Most alarming thing about this series? We seemed like a team without a plan. I never really saw Portland make an adjustment to counter Memphis's defense, or learn as they went along. Our offensive strategy is get the ball to Aldridge and watch him back down his man. If that doesn't work, it's anything goes! Memphis always seemed to know what they wanted to do, but Portland didn't. If I'm Paul Allen, that's what concerns me most.
Yes the "get the ball to gasol or zbo and watch him back down his man" offense was much more creative. I'm glad someone else noticed.
Well, when they got 2-3 chances per possession from offensive rebounds, I'd say that is an effective strategy.
The fact that we couldn't stop that, with their shitty shooters, was actually more sad than our offensive scheme. Why didn't we double more?
Seriously? I saw Stotts make changes. I felt he did what he could with what he had. He changed his rotation in game four. Aldridge had consistently been playing the whole first quarter and then would rest until about 6 minutes in the second. Not the last two games, He pulled Aldridge early and got Meyers in there sooner. This changed the whole rotation. He benched Kaman. Did you not see these changes? There is another thread where someone said maybe we just need to change our coach.... I don't think that is a very thought out opinion...in my opinion. Stotts had injury after injury all season long to deal with. He has improved our defence big time. He has won 50 games two seasons in a row. How can he be on the hot seat so quickly? I think its because some Blazer fans are simply unrealistic. Who is out there to replace Stotts?
Don't even try to use the "he's won 50 two years in a row" card. Mike Brown won 60 two years in a row, does that mean he is a good coach? His adjustments came too late too. Was it game 2 where Leonard played really well only to play like 5 minutes in game 3? He kept with the starting lineup the last 3 halfs even when CJ and Leonard were flamethrowers, you know what happened? We got outscored by at least a total of 20-22 points to start halfs because of it. His defense is mind numbing at times. How can our players not defend pick plays? How do players like Udrih and Calathes look like nba starting caliber point guards against us? That's on the coach more than the players.
Someone else said it. The coach is only as good as his talent. Stotts came into a team with zero defensive prowess and in two years made them better than average. Have you or anyone considered the possibility that some things you want him to do with the team he doesn't do because he knows they are unable to ? Things take steps and you cant take a 28th ranked defense and make it top 5 without players that are willing and able to make that type of transition, both physically and mentally. Meyers and CJ are both offensive players with below average D currently. I see why stotts did what he did and didnt do what some wanted him to do. Also... Mike Brown has the best player on the planet right now???? Stotts has more than proven he is a good coach for this team and a better than average coach in the league.
I don't care what any stats say, we were not a top 5 defense. We have enough talent to be but we are absolutely terrible at defending the most used play in that nba and we can't stop fastbreaks. Good defenses limit those types of plays. I'm not just on Stotts for defense either, his offensive problems are similar to his defensive problems, we set shit screens the majority of the time and we can't run in transition with a team that easily could dominate the open court. Yes, Mike Brown had LeBron... But who else? MO Williams and antawn Jamison? Big Z? Our current team would shit on that.
I never said we were a top 5 defense. What I said was you cant take a 28 ranked defense and make it a top 5 without the players being able to both physically and mentally. Shit screens aren't always on the coach. If your superstar(Aldridge) isn't interested in setting a good screen then what can you do? bench him? Aldridge is one of the worst screeners on our team. Do you watch team practices? Do you know Stotts hasn't been trying to improve these types of deficiencies? No? Me neither. But I do know that the teams defense was drastically improved from last year and you cant fix everything overnight. LMAO at our current team shitting on the Cavs. Your kidding right? I was taking you seriously until now. Listen. I am a big Blazer fan, but lets be real. Lebron will take his team to the finals and if we were in the way, we would lose.
Agree to disagree on Stotts. But there is no way those late 2000s Cavs teams beat us (at full strength). They never made the finals and were beat by some pretty old Celtics teams and the Magic.
All I saw in this series is how much we missed Matthews who covers up a lot of sins on defense, and Memphis was strong exactly where we are weak. I'm not sure Stotts had much to work with in terms of personnel . . . which isn't to let him off the hook as a shitty defensive coach. They've got their work cut out for them this offseason.
We were a top defensive team with Wes. Rolo, Kaman and Freeland healthy. 2nd half of the season we were gimpy on the defensive end. Wes was the X factor. Rolo just didn't come back the same guy from his hand and Kaman has struggled with his shoulder and ankle during the same period. Wes was the floor general and the defensive captain of the whole team. He hit big buckets and got us stops.
That is far from true. Stotts's system took energy from McMillan's emphasis on defense and allocated it to the offense. Yet Stotts's defense depends upon high energy. So it only works against a less energetic opponent. I agree with you there. If space cadet Aldridge leaves, it may make Stotts look better.
I think Stotts may have had questionable calls but I enjoyed what he's done so far. We were one of the worst teams in the league with a shitty bench and now we have evolved into a top 5 team and the bench is really coming around.
Me....it was me that said this. I wasn't making a case that that was the change to make. I was just throwing it out there. In stead of a roster turn. Maybe a coaching philosophy change is all the team needed.
