Game Thread GAME# 44: BLAZERS @ NUGGETS - JANUARY 13, 2019 - SUNDAY, 5:00 PM, NBCSNW

Discussion in 'Portland Trail Blazers' started by Darkwebs, Jan 11, 2019.

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Biases aside, who is the better overall basketball player?

Poll closed Jan 18, 2019.
  1. Jokic

    71.2%
  2. Nurkic

    28.8%
  1. PtldPlatypus

    PtldPlatypus Let's go Baby Blazers! Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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    "TrueBlazerFan"s!!
     
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  2. TorturedBlazerFan

    TorturedBlazerFan Well-Known Member

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    TorturedBlazerFans?
     
  3. PtldPlatypus

    PtldPlatypus Let's go Baby Blazers! Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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    That too.
     
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  4. JDC

    JDC Well-Known Member

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    The plan is not to allow wide open 10-15 footers. Preferably Dame, CJ and the other guards chase over or meet under for a quality contest. Some nights the effort isn't there and/or teams make shots and it looks bad. but every scheme is going to be forced to give up something.

    Terry just opts to limit the double teams and to guard pnr's 2 v 2 to limit rotations/catch and shoot 3's/assisted shots at the rim. You might not agree with that strategy, but it's one that many NBA coaches use and have had success with.

    But I do agree that his scheme doesn't quite hold up in the playoffs and he's too unwilling to deviate from those principles. I'll still contend though that personnel and match ups have played a major part in those struggles and I also don't think Terry is too stubborn to evolve.

    It's just hard for me to rag on him too much when these Blazer teams the last few years have consistently improved on a lot of the things that lead to winning defensively.
    - Giving up low value / limiting high value shots on D
    - Defensive rebound
    - Low foul rate

    They're might be a better coach for this team, but I think it's far from a given. Still think this team has WCF type potential in a couple years when Zach will be closer to his prime and we are in better position financially/contractually to make improvements to the roster.

    And at that point, I'm much more worried about Neil's ability to make the right moves to take us to the next level, than if Terry is the right guy to lead us there.
     
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  5. BonesJones

    BonesJones https://www.youtube.com/c/blazersuprise

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    When a good guard goes around a screen well, it's VERY hard to get a good contest on that shot. When it doesn't work, Stotts should switch up his pick n roll coverage. Like you said, he can't adjust and doesn't have any versatility in his defensive scheme, so sometimes our scheme is literally allowing wide open mid-range shot after wide open mid-range shot (remember Beno Udrih?). Yet, he sticks with it, and his reaction coaching-wise is essentially: "Dang, they're getting wide open 10-15 footers, nothing we can do", so he basically allows them to get those shots instead of switching up coverages. I get limiting double teams but there's times where you have to double and he waits too long to do so. Also, the only way guarding Jokic with Aminu makes sense is if you're going to throw a double team at him. Otherwise, Jokic eats down-low.

    I understand the reasoning for his scheme, and sometimes it works (just like any other scheme would)… But when teams take-advantage of it and get what they want and he doesn't adjust at all, then he's essentially allowing them to get what they want.

    Terry isn't too stubborn to evolve? He hasn't shown any sort of defensive versatility in his schemes in his 7 years here. He hedged for a bit and did nothing else. Now he ices the pick n roll. He's never been a guy to throw doubles or traps at a team. I don't think he ever will evolve in that regard.

    I don't think this team is built for post-season success because the post-season is a game of coaching adjustments and playing your matchups, which (which you somewhat agree with?) Stotts is terrible at. Matchups are an excuse. A good coach is able to minimize and adjust the other teams matchup advantages and is able to maximize his own matchup advantages. Last year, Stotts literally maximized the other teams matchup advantages, and then you have people saying "they were a bad matchup, it's not Terry's fault"....

    But this is how you discuss coaching with me. Discussing basketball. I respect it. I hate all the generalizing and generic arguments that most Stotts defenders give me.
     
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  6. BonesJones

    BonesJones https://www.youtube.com/c/blazersuprise

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    Yessir!
     
  7. JDC

    JDC Well-Known Member

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    Some things in here I disagree with, specifically on when and why a coach should adjust his scheme. It's a question that is a lot more difficult to answer than most would think and one that all coaches struggle with. There's no guarantee that a scheme change is going to lead to a better result or be better executed (it's actually more likely that it won't be), regardless of how obvious the adjustment might seem on the surface. Especially if it's something that isn't practiced.

    Budenholzer shares a lot of the same philosophies and has had the same questions surrounding him as far as whether or not he's smart/flexible enough as a coach to translate his regular season success into playoff wins.
     
  8. hoopsjock

    hoopsjock Well-Known Member

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    In my opinion, having the same pick and roll philosophy regardless of the competition is really bad. It also allows the team you are playing against to easily prepare their gameplan. That is why it doesn't work in the playoffs when teams have lots of time to figure it out. It would be okay to have a base PnR philosophy but I strongly believe in throwing wrenches into it every game.

    That is why blitzing the pick worked so well against Harden in that one game last year. He was completely caught off guard and wasn't expecting it because we had never played him like that. At the very least every every so often throw a hard hedge or trap or whatever. I just don't like doing the same thing every time within the same game. For Dirk's whole career we switch immediately when he sets a screen up top and he gets a guard switched onto him and he posts up at the free throw line and just shoots over him.
     
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  9. BonesJones

    BonesJones https://www.youtube.com/c/blazersuprise

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    Exactly. If teams know they're going to get the same look on every pick n roll, they're going to get comfortable, things are going to be repetitive, so making the right reads will become increasingly easier. Also, different personnel in the pick n roll on both sides of the ball call for difference in coverages to maximize the defenses strengths and minimize the offenses strengths
    Of course there's no guarantee, nothing is guaranteed. But certain coverages increase the likelihood of success depending on certain situations. And if the current coverage is getting killed, then you should be able to switch things up. Keeping teams off-balance with different looks thrown in here and there will also greatly increase the likelihood of success for a base scheme. The team should practice all types of coverage to be ready to switch if the situation calls for it.
    .
     
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  10. kjironman1

    kjironman1 Well-Known Member

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    Really?
    Your really gonna run with that huh?
    You realize that comment is going to come back to haunt you right?
     
  11. BonesJones

    BonesJones https://www.youtube.com/c/blazersuprise

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    That comment is gonna a haunt me? Hahahahahahahahaha get outta here
     
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