2008-09 Blazer record predictions

Discussion in 'Portland Trail Blazers' started by maxiep, Sep 13, 2008.

  1. maxiep

    maxiep RIP Dr. Jack

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    Or in the words of Channing Frye, "a buffet of goodness". :cheers:
     
  2. JFizzleRaider

    JFizzleRaider Sad Panda Global Moderator

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    Blake is actually an average, scrappy defender, and Webster will not have the ball in his hands whatsoever.

    If it's not Blake, i wouldn't be surprised to see Bayless or Fernandez with it. Rudy is plenty good offensively to contribute right away.

    I think this is all a moot point though, by accounts I have read, Roy should be ready by the start of the season
     
  3. maxiep

    maxiep RIP Dr. Jack

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    That's what makes it so tough. Our first option has to be Roy. He's the guy when on the court can do the most with the ball. The San Antonio model that KP has tried to emulate means that you have three stars (perhaps superstars) and fill the rest of the roster with players who will run through walls for those three.

    Another poster in another forum said about the SA model, "It works great until you get to the step where it says, 'Insert Tim Duncan here'." Of course, we then got the #1 pick and ended up with Oden, who I'm pretty high on, so luck is really the driver in this case.

    I see the starting Blazer offense as Roy acting as the defacto PG, Aldridge at the elbow, Oden in the low post and Webster and Blake on the perimeter.
     
  4. maxiep

    maxiep RIP Dr. Jack

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    I love the way Steve Blake plays hoops, and he's perfect for Nate. He's a guy who won't win the game for you by himself, but will never lose it. He'll also make the big shot when called upon, won't turn the ball over, will play smart defense and will always give 100%.

    Denver should have kept him.
     
  5. cpawfan

    cpawfan Monsters do exist

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    So you only want to talk about one specific part of Roy's role?

    Webster would be completely useless there except as a spot up shooter.

    Why couldn't Oden or LMA do that? More importantly, with Bayless and Rudy on the roster, why would the Blazers do that?

    Blake isn't Boozer-bad on defense. He is an average defender of PG's.

    How many freaking games do you think Roy is going to be out? Regardless, Blake is going to handle the ball for portions of every Blazers game anyways.
     
  6. cpawfan

    cpawfan Monsters do exist

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    Denver wanted to keep him, but Blake wanted to be in Portland.

    Blake signed for less in Portland than what the Nuggets offered. Additionally, his agent told the Nuggets that he had a bigger offer from Portland than what the Nuggets were offering. So they called his bluff and wouldn't increase their offer.
     
  7. Denny Crane

    Denny Crane It's not even loaded! Staff Member Administrator

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    Yeah, a lot of people are hung up on the traditional PG role. Yet the two final teams had PGs named Rondo and Fisher. Rondo didn't look like a PG in the finals - he basically just dribbled the ball to half court and got the ball into Pierce's hands at the top of the key. It was Pierce who was driving and dishing and hitting tough shots as if he were the PG. Fisher at PG averaged a whopping 2.9 APG, which isn't what you expect from a PG.

    If you have a Roy, you need the kind of PG who can get the ball past half court and into Roy's hands. The only problem I see with the Blazers is when you take Roy out of the game or he's out due to injury.

    San Antonio won championships with a guy who's as much a scorer as a PG, and then his APG isn't as good as Blake's. The ball seemed to be in Ginobili's hands in most of the clutch situations, and Duncan sure got his touches.
     
  8. maxiep

    maxiep RIP Dr. Jack

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    I ran into Steve Blake the day after he was traded from MIL at Cherry Creek Mall. Well, I saw him pass by Williams & Sonoma and used him as an excuse to get away from picking out a new set of cookware with the wife. I happened to be wearing a Blazer hat and when I called out to him he saw my hat and smiled. I welcomed him to Denver and said that when he was a FA I hoped he would consider coming back to the Blazers. He said, "I never wanted to leave". We then chatted about Maryland (I used to live in DC) and LO/West Linn. What a tremendously nice guy.
     
  9. bodyman5001

    bodyman5001 Genius

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    50-32 I see them starting slow, having a good run in the middle and then getting close to the end needing to win 4 of 5 to win 50.
     
  10. CelticKing

    CelticKing The Green Monster

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    49-33

    Get either 7th or 8th seed.
     
  11. JFizzleRaider

    JFizzleRaider Sad Panda Global Moderator

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    Denny why don't you think Blake, or Rudy, or Bayless could handle the ball past half court? A lot of times last year Blake was the guy with the ball in the half court offense, Roy would usually take over in the 4th quarter and be the primary ball handler.
     
  12. Denny Crane

    Denny Crane It's not even loaded! Staff Member Administrator

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    My view of basketball is that you want the ball in the hands of guys like TMac or Kobe or Pierce or Roy or Ginobili or KG or Paul ... OK, so they're all superstars, but hey, that's why they're superstars. Even the guys you think of as traditional PGs - Billups, Baron Davis, Paul, Williams, Nash, etc., are all outstanding scorers. All the guys I listed can and do manufacture their own shots repeatedly in games.

    Not Blake's game.
     
  13. JFizzleRaider

    JFizzleRaider Sad Panda Global Moderator

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    But that is Bayless's and Rudy's game.

    Blake is best at creating for others or hitting 3's. If Roy is out, then Bayless or Rudy will most likely be in, and both of them can handle the ball quite well manufacturing their own shots like you state
     
  14. Denny Crane

    Denny Crane It's not even loaded! Staff Member Administrator

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    If those guys are so good, you may as well trade Roy for an expiring contract or something. You'll need the cap space to sign those guys.

    Or am I on to something about Roy being that good?
     
  15. JFizzleRaider

    JFizzleRaider Sad Panda Global Moderator

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    Now your just being ridiculous. I never said Roy isn't amazing, he is. If you watched the Olympics at all, you would have seen Rudy ball it up against team USA, I have no doubts that he will be a great offensive player in the NBA. He can handle the ball too, so if Roy does miss some time, it will hurt, but not as much as you seem to think.

    Besides like I said, its a moot point, Roy should be back before the start of the season.

     
  16. Tortimer

    Tortimer Well-Known Member

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    I would predict 52-30 this year. I really think the Blazers will win between 48-54 games and be the 6th seed. I also wouldn't be surprised if we only won 48 games and were the 8th seed with their hard early schedule.
     
  17. maxiep

    maxiep RIP Dr. Jack

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    That's what's so scary (even though your comment was tongue-in-cheek); we don't really need to worry about our salary level. To get the right guys to come to the team or to stay on the team, Paul Allen is willing to write checks that would make James Dolan blanch.
     
  18. Denny Crane

    Denny Crane It's not even loaded! Staff Member Administrator

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    You know it was tongue in cheek. Portland had that remarkable 13 game win streak last season, and all everyone talked about (the press) was how great Roy is. He played in 74 games last season, in the 8 he missed, the team's record was 1-7. I do think he's not being overhyped and his shoes are really big to fill.

    If he starts the season healthy, it's obviously a great thing for the team. To win 50 games, you're going to need him to play in 80 or 82 games, IMO. Here's another way I look at it:

    He only played 54 as a rookie and 74 last season. That extra 20 games and his year over year improvement was worth 9 in the win column - from 32 to 41 wins. An extra 6 games might get you 3 wins to 44. Oden and other newcomers enough to get you 6 more wins? Remains to be seen.
     
  19. JFizzleRaider

    JFizzleRaider Sad Panda Global Moderator

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    It possibly remains to be seen, but a smart betting man would clearly see Adding Oden, Rudy and Bayless to a team means improvement.
     
  20. Denny Crane

    Denny Crane It's not even loaded! Staff Member Administrator

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    Chemistry.

    It takes time for the players to learn a system.

    All three of those guys have never gone through the rigor of playing an 82 game season. Against guys who are a lot bigger and faster and better defenders than they saw in college or overseas and who get to play them more than once and study game films.

    It does remain to be seen.

    Don't get me wrong, though. I am quite enthusiastic about seeing the team actually play together and on paper they are downright impressive.
     

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