Game Thread Game #49 - BLAZERS @ ROCKETS - JANUARY 28, 2022 - FRIDAY - 5:00 PM (PDT) ROOT SPORTS

Addressed this above.

 

I'll throw one other thing into the equation: The previous seven years we had a coach that didn't care a lick about what this team did on defense. That might have had a little something to do with why our defense looked bad. Maybe even had more to do with it than two 6-3 guards.

 

Dame is 32 bro lol.. why would u trade a kid that’s 22 to keep an old dude? That doesn’t make sense man.

 

Ant is only 22 years old. You think that this is his ceiling? You don’t think he’ll be able to make any defensive improvements? He’s already shown defensive improvement from earlier this season. He has a defensive-minded coach that will teach him defense. This is his first time getting consistent, meaningful minutes.

CJ is 31 years old. He’s at his ceiling. He’s not going to make any defensive improvements.

Comparing Ant to CJ is like comparing Ant’s Chapter 1 to CJ’s Chapter 10.

 

Old dude has been playing like a top 6 player in the league while dealing with an injury. Old dudes like LeBron, CP3, KD, DeRozan and more are tearing this league up. So yeah, I think the old dude if given the actual help he deserves, help that Ant could be a big part of getting, is our best chance to win a chip in the next half of a decade.

I get it if you're scared and want to start over with very small expectations and hope for unseen possibilities but Dame has shown he can dominate this league. I expect him to be the best he's ever been next season and to continue like that for a couple more seasons before making a slow decline for another three seasons. I don't think you believe in Dame like that and that's fine. You bet on an unproven asset, I'll bet that the proven one can get back to and exceed what he's already shown.

 

He's a small guard who hasn't shown a proclivity to be the kind of dominant defender that Dame needs next to him. Don't get it twisted Dame doesn't just need someone in the defensive back court with him that's a little better than CJ fucking McCollum, he needs a defensive killer back there. I don't think that's Ant. Ant is also incredibly gifted with the ball in his hands... yeah he can shoot spot up jumpers but he's far more valuable as a facilitator for himself and others.

I'm not saying trade Ant for any small value we can get for him so we don't have to pay him like I am about CJ but if there is big value there and I think there is, then take the big value that fits better with Dame.

 

I think he’s shown some proclivity to defensive acumen.

 

Interesting stat about CJ: since October, he hasn’t averaged more than 20 points per game. This month he’s also averaging just below 16 shots per game, a season low, but also having his most efficient month. Just for reference he hasn’t averaged below 17.8 shots in any season he’s been a starter. All this with Dame out. Seems like Billups has found a way to get the best out of him (I’m gonna chalk his early season struggles up to the stress he had off the court, he deserves the benefit of the doubt on that)

He’s also defending better. His value is up. It feels like it’s now or never as far as a trade is concerned. So unless Simmons sticks in Philly beyond the deadline, if CJ doesn’t get traded now I don’t think he ever will.

 

I've seen this posted but I've also seen Ant constantly out of position and terrible at closing out on jump shooters which might be able to be fixed but what else I've seen is Ant is a terrible one on one defender... that's indicative of his potential. DLo is the most recent example but there are a tone of them. Ant is in his fourth year in the league and while some weird metric might say that he does well getting through screens DLo and a bunch of other guys break him off at will without a screen and do it all of the time. If you disagree with that you haven't been watching the games.

 

Send a memo to all of the front offices in the league and twenty to Morey. CJ can play the game the right way and can be a serious contributor to winning basketball, he's just the worst fit possible next to Dame. Let's get him out of here and get back something that makes sense.

 

Even with Lillard and CJ in previous seasons Blazers played better when ball was moving.
With Ant on the floor ball is swimming naturally. Then CJ and Powell come in and stop it.

Trade CJ and Powell. Next season let's play Ant and Dame. A year is enough to see how consistent Ant is. If he is great, next season teams will have to split attention between him and Dame and Dame will go back to his 50 points performances.
Then, if Any is legit, trade Dame at his peak and build around Ant.

For now, I would just trade those two Melos we got.

 

So they ain’t tanking?

 

In otherwords, better than Steph Curry.

 

Ant Simons is the future. He’s hella nice

 

Nurk last 10: