Game Thread GAME# 3: WIZARDS @ BLAZERS - OCTOBER 22, 2018 - MONDAY, 7:00 PM (PDT), NBCSNW

Is it on TV?

 

Yea it’s on Comcast

 

TV?

 

Can you answer my question sir

 

Blazers vs Wizards

Starting to get a look at what the Blazers can and can't do. Two very different opponents in the first two games. Portland was allowed to slow it down a bit more against the Spurs. They took 84 shots as opposed to 100 vs the Lakers. The Spurs on the other hand took 100 shots and struggled a bit with their mid range game. When the Blazers play a solid half court game and control the ball while shooting 53% from the floor they are very tough to beat.

There is some talk about the value of Nurk if Collins can produce well. Nurkic had a pretty good game last night. He shot 6-12 for 12 points 8 rebs with 2 ast a block and a steal. I swear i saw two blocks but i'm not sure he got credit for the second one? Aminu was in the mix on that. One of my favorite whipping posts has been Aminu. That guy played a very solid game against the Spurs. Got to give credit where it is due. We watched "Good Aminu" last night. My thinking is that Nurk will play well against certain teams. Collins is going to do what Collins does. Zach will bring energy and toughness. He will make shots and he obviously can shoot the 3. Last night he hit 2-3 from the arc. When he plays well and Harkless is hitting the boards for 8 rebs in 20 mins that duo is not only exciting but dynamic.

Jake Layman needs experience. I looked up his minutes his total is just over 400. I have a couple benchmarks that i use pretty consistent. the 1000 minute mark and the 1500 min mark. You usually see the biggest growth around those areas. It's essentially a season for a rotational type player. Even Dame who was ROY improved dramatically in his first 40-60 games. Just little things that players pick up on. Also the game starts to slow down a bit. They relax and see tendencies players have. They also see their own tendencies that players are seeing and can change or refine those. If Jake is worthy of continuing to get minutes he will be hard at work in the next month and he will make some strides. Don't look for Stotts to pull the plug on the guy after two games. Even more so after two games the Blazers WON.

One point @Orion Bailey made in the Spurs game thread was about minutes for Dame and CJ. The bench so far has shown the ability to at least hold this team steady without them on the floor. I totally agree with this sentiment. It's what we all have been saying about the Warriors for the last three years. They are so deep and they can rest their players during games. They can also limit minutes throughout the season. I just did not expect this kind of production from the bench this year as we have seen so far. My first pregame even said "Expect to see either dame or CJ on the court at all times" or something to that effect. We have seen CJ and Dame both be able to sit together for extended periods of time. Not only will they rest but they will discuss things together while on the bench. You watched this last night as CJ got open time and again during his second shift. And guess what? Lillard ended up with 9 assists. Players hitting shots and being able to break down defenses will be the result of rested legs and players coaching each other.

What can you say about Turner? He has had two games where he filled the stat line. He is playing with players that can score and he can facilitate. Neil Olshey did indeed give him a second unit that he can play with. Glad to see it.

You will see a dynamic back court coming to town in the Wiz. Bradly Beal and John Wall always play tough. I personally think the Blazers have the edge here but in years past they could not keep pace because of the players around them. Interested to see Aminu stifle Morris and how Nurk does on Mahinmi. The Wiz don't have Dwight Howard playing right now. He has been inactive but if he plays Leonard will probably get some extra duty. Going small against Howard would not work well. Austin Rivers is their spark off the bench. I think the Blazers can handle him. Turner is bigger and will frustrate Rivers with his size and his trash talk. Should be fun to watch.

Pick for this game is Aminu. If he can frustrate Morris, and make a few shots, this game is in the "W" column.

Go Blazers!
Kjironman is a fan!!!

 

@kjironman1 Another thing that's happened that I don't see people talking about is Stotts' 3-man unit of Lillard-McCollum-Aminu. I noticed that Aminu subbed out with our starting backcourt and subbed back in with them, too. This makes a lot of sense to me: our 2 best scorers/worst defenders paired with our best defender/worst offensive player. They cover for each others weaknesses pretty well.

 

Nobody answered if it’s on TV or not?

 

It's not. Morse code play-by-play only.

 

If you didn't have Darkwebs on ignore you would have that answer.
Or can you see this post?

 

BUTT the HOLE thing is that he is Hurt...

 

I hope we double team Beal the whole game. I think that should throw them off a bit.

And a shoutout to @kjironman1 for the breakdown. You touched on something about Nurk:

And you are absolutely correct. Against teams like LA, GS, and The Pelicans, he'll struggle. But against teams like New York, Miami, and Denver, he's capable of putting up 20-10-5.

It's all about finding the right matchups for him. It will be interesting to see how he does against Washington with no Howard playing tomorrow.

 

Man Beal lit us up last game! Just had nobody that could stop him. I Don’t even think Wall played in that game either did he?

 

Yes Beal lit them up for 51 on 21 of 37 shooting. Wall did not play in that game. Terrible game Portland had no reason for losing. They were on two days rest and were on the third game of a four game home stand last December. Even worse.... They lost all four of those home games. This place was BLOWING UP! I created the Meltdown Thread and all started to get better.

 

The Blazers have struggled with talented back courts in the past. Let's hope tonight is a little different. You don't want the Wiz getting their first win on your home court.