During pregame last night, David Fizdale dismissed Rachel Nichols' question about Portland joining the West contenders saying we hadn't done enough to separate from the other conference also-rans, and then Paul Pierce followed up saying that you can't be a contender without a superstar wing. Well, he's right--we don't have a superstar wing. What we do have is a wing rotation with all the elements you want from superstar. We have: Melo--offensive threat from every party of the floor, veteran savvy RoCo--versatile defender, decent outside stroke, plays within the offense Jones--otherworldly athleticism, disruptive on both ends of the floor, tireless motor Trent-- continually expanding offensive game (seriously improved handle and passing displayed last night), active and tireless defender Hood--if healthy, gives a little bit of everything So Pierce is right, the Blazers don't have a LeBron, Kawhi, Luka, Harden, Booker (Porter, Zion, Wiggins?), but given the varied skill-set of their wing group, do they need one? Or soes the fact that those skills are spread amongst multiple wings mean we'll always see a deficiency regardless of which combo is on the floor at any given point?
Nah it’s a lazy narrative. What they needed was a Robert Covington. We saw what an impact Ariza made. When it comes to low usage 3&D wings, Covington is essentially the star and prototype.
Most of the teams that have a 'star wing', don't have a superstar PG. So it's kind of a lazy way of over stating that the team needs solid contribution from the SF spot and totally ignoring that they already have a superstar in their PG.
Warriors (pre Durant) Spurs Mavs Pistons won titles without superstar wings. Id say superstar wing is most likely position of a title winner but, no its not absolute requirement. If Blazers get starter production from 9th man they can compete with any team in the league. Of course they aren't a favorite.... but teams like Toronto won a title with less.
Need? No. could use? Sure? cant win without? Wrong. Portland can win with team ball and a healthy roster. This team can be better than the mathews rolo lma team. im gonna go out on a limb and say this teams is almost as deep as the 2000 team. Not quite. But? We will be better. Less egos and more team togetherness WILL translate. No superstar wing needed.
And if I need to support that, you can look at his assist numbers vs. the rest of his team, or his shot chart. Almost no shots from the wing. https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/lebron-james-shot-chart-by-season-2020
meh. Thats questionable. He could be called a ptfoward but not sure he plays the style of a wing much at all anymore. Does he post up in the corner and slash to the hoop much? he is more of a facilitator than anything i would think. But id put an asterisk on it and go with either opinion on lbj. He has proven he can play almost any position required.
And we have like four buffalo wild wings!!! whats the point of this thread? Portland has plenty of wings!! @PtldPlatypus be better!!
They still need a wing who can be a playmaker when Dame gets trapped in the Playoffs. For all the defensive improvements RoCo and DJJ bring, neither approaches that.
not so sure. Djj brought it up a few times. Can he handle the trap? Doubt it. But can he be an outlet for Dame? Not sure why not. Hood as well when he is back. Melo isnt this? i think the need for a star wing might be overated at this point for us. Because a true impact wing on both ends of the court is so far and few between, i think id roll the dice on this team, over trading half the team away for a star wing. To me though this should be your year to either be proven right or wrong about Stotts. To me its clear he now has roster flexibility to play any style of ball required. Will he adapt? Will he scheme more on D? Will he force offensive changes when Dame is trapped? i think we have the roster now and if we stay healthy, this is the year that makes or breaks Stotts.
