I don't think that means that they're at their best. It just means they're athletically peaking, but peaking athletically doesn't mean they're the best they will be. Damian is a better *player* today than he was at 27.
From the same article I mentioned; "To most of us, 27 seems like a young age to hit your prime which makes it natural to ask why NBA players peak so young, but when you look at the prime age in comparison to other sports, it’s not so young at all. Most ice skaters, swimmers, and gymnasts start worrying about whether they’re too old to be competitive when they are still in their early 20s." ... "The good news is that while the age that NBA players are hitting their peak doesn’t seem to be changing, it does appear that top players are able to stay in the game far longer than they used to."
I read another study previously that I can't find now, but it used peak PER stat and this was in the same 26-28 age range. Yes some players extend that into their 30's or even have their peak a number of year later than the 26-28. But on average this is the statistical expectation.
"NBA All-Star games. These games are designed to highlight the best and brightest players each season. There have only been about 12 players to have ever appeared in the NBA All-Star game after passing their 35th birthday. " So Dame is 3 years away from this cutoff. That is really the problem with the Blazers being so far away from building a contender, and to attempt to do it with a 32 year old Lillard. Statistically its extremely unlikely Dame with still be an all star at that time in 3 years. Could Dame buck the odds and still be at that level? Sure, anything is possible. But as they say father time is undefeated, and betting on Lillard to defy those odds doesn't seem to be a likely bet if you look at it from a purely unbiased statistical perspective.
What is Dame's most irreplaceable skill? Clutchness. Will father time take that away? Perhaps - if we run him into the ground like Stotts. Perhaps not - if we build a team of athletes around him that can carry the team to those final moments where Dame shines. That is what I want, a complete team offensively and defensively with Dame being the cherry on top. Outlandish? Maybe - but it's the path we are attempting and if we're able to get it done the reward of seeing Dame win a title here would be absolutely incredible.
I'm not sure what you mean by the path we are attempting. What is a single action the Blazers have taken to as you say field "a complete team offensively and defensively with Dame being the cherry"?
i think dame's most irreplaceable skills are intangible: it's his empowerment of teammates and his calming presence in the face of adversity.
Signing Ant to a long term contract would be one. Drafting a high upside talent would be two. I'm not of the belief they are going to double down on the Neil moves of the past but we'll see if Mediocre Man is right.
Your statement was present tense, the "path we are attempting". But none of your actions have happened. If instead you mean the Blazers haven't done anything to attempt this path of building a complete team I agree. Perhaps its your hope they can and or will start succeeding at that. I'm extremely pessimistic the Blazers will or even have the resources to build such a team. I'd love to be proven wrong.
Hello, attempting means has not been completed yet. attempted means completed. Whether a success or a failure.
Thanks. Yeah I'm not an English expert; what I meant was his statement "we are attempting" sounds as though this has begun, so there should be an action that shows it is happening, or something that shows it has begun. If that is incorrect, perhaps I just misread or misunderstood the statement, and it means the same as "a path we will attempt" in other words nothing has happened to show the Blazers are current doing or currently have started this action.
Ant wouldn't have agreed to tank if we hadn't already agreed on a framework for a nice new contract for him IMO. Yes I'm being optimistic but it seems logical to me they will do their best to surround Dame with talent but also youth so that the value of the franchise will remain high for auction.
All good and Fair enough. Sometimes things need to happen in steps. I would say the first attempt was cleaning house and that has been done and was successful in my opinion. Im not sure we could have got a better first time coach. ( I know this happened prior to Cronin, but that means Cronin and him need time to gameplan and come together on a plan). I also like the assistant hirings. We cleared the roster of albatross middling contracts to provide flexibility/maneuverability. To me, these are steps in the attempt. As far as spending the money and/or trading/making moves, Im glad we aren’t making early moves like we did with the trades. If NO did one thing right, it was keeping his game plan from the public. Im fine with that. Lets see how the draft pans out and it might soon answer more of your questions regarding attempting. Hopefully positively.
Can you imagine some GM saying "we should trade Lebron, he's 29, past his peak, and we could rebuild quicker w/out him." Only to watch him be an All-NBA talent for another decade, while they drafted Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and Tyus Jones with their furture 1st round picks.
How does the productivity of a HOF player from age 32-35 compare to the productivity of 3 random draft picks?