Blazers can furiously tank for several years and still never get a #3 pick. Asking Lillard to stay the course during this rebuild might bruise his fierce competitive nature, but once his supermax salary kicks in, Damian will be the highest paid player in the NBA. His complaints about the Blazers stinking may begin to subdue, as Lillard will not be surrounded by youngsters who probably should be in the G-League, but on an absolutely loaded young Blazers team with freakish athletes who can begin stringing wins together.
how can you really form any answer to that question without assuming a static roster? * what happens if Sharpe explodes...does the ceiling change? * what happens if there is a major trade at next season's trade deadline? *what happens if Portland uses the 23rd pick and lands a player like? 27 Pascal Siakam 29 Dejounte Murray 32 Ivica Zubac 36 Malcolm Brogdon 23 OG Anunoby 27 Kyle Kuzma 29 Derrick White 30 Josh Hart 24 Anfernee Simons 27 Robert Williams 33 Jalen Brunson 34 Devonte' Graham 36 Mitchell Robinson 41 Jarred Vanderbilt 42 Bruce Brown 29 Keldon Johnson 30 Kevin Porter Jr. 31 Nic Claxton 25 Immanuel Quickley 28 Jaden McDaniels 30 Desmond Bane 52 Kenyon Martin Jr. that's just the last 5 drafts what happens if Portland has an MLE signing like Milik Monk or Bruce Brown? on the other hand, if you go back to the draft when Dame was picked 6th, and do the next 10 drafts, top-3 picks: 2 Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 1 Anthony Bennett 3 Otto Porter Jr. 1 Andrew Wiggins 2 Jabari Parker 2 D'Angelo Russell 3 Jahlil Okafor 1 Ben Simmons 1 Markelle Fultz 2 Lonzo Ball 1 Deandre Ayton 2 Marvin Bagley III 1 Zion Williamson (giving Oden a run, oops, I mean limp, for his money) 3 RJ Barrett 2 James Wiseman 1 Cade Cunningham 2 Jalen Green so, more than half are either busts, role players, or injury magnets. What is Portland's ceiling if they chose like that?
The other Global Moderator brought up the petition. It was a joke. Why can’t I see this post kind of thing.
And then there's the really fun stuff..... Injuries Egos Coaching and its limitations Age But with all that said, at the heart of every championship team, there's the core. There's the foundation. MJ and Pippen Magic and Kareem Shaq and Kobe LeBron and Wade... and Kyrie.... and Davis. Steph and Klay Every championship team has a rock solid foundation and their team is built around that foundation. Role players come and go. Sometimes coaches come and go. But it's the core that makes the team a true contender. So the question is...... Dame/Butler/Grant - is that a championship foundation?
"Bask in disappointment"? That's a new one. I'd prefer to AVOID disappointment. Usually my expectations are low enough that I'm pleasantly surprised. However, Chauncey has managed to go 2-0 in performing below my already low expectations.
Dame/Butler/Grant probably is. Dame/Brown/Grant probably isn't Scoot/Sharpe/Little sure isn't; neither is Ant/Sharpe/Miller
Yeah you have to look at it from both side for sure. Lillard's time may be coming to an end at some point but i highly doubt that will be before this next year. If there isn't a pretty big improvement by next summer I would assume that argument gains some traction.
Two years of gutting Olshey's roster and tanking should pleasantly surprise anyone who wanted CJ gone. Chauncey has tanked because of it...that's not his fault.
I agree but they score way better. This game is and has always been about scoring buckets. You just watched Boston get stops but could not make an open look to save their life. You get a mobile big that can protect the rim and add another scoring threat to your three in Sharpe and that team can defend and score. We all know Grant can play defense and Sharpe got better last year. Brown plays defense. That team defends well and scores the ball.
I don’t want to hear anyone complain about player loyalty when Sharpe becomes a star and signs somewhere else. Dame has tremendous amount of loyalty and i would prefer he decide when to leave.
