it is very possible that internal growth will bloom the talent. Yes. Some players come out of school with known talent and blow the league away. But most take a few years to start showing consistent star play. This team is loaded with growth potential.
The only place you hear or read that is on a Blazer comment board. You never hear that on the national level from any source. This team is average and it would be great for them to have an average season. I consider an average season somewhere between 38-43 wins. Problem is as soon as this team becomes that then they are back to no man's land. Mediocre at the very core. With no actual free agents wanting to come here and no real draft prospects unless the picks they got somewhere else translate into good picks. After what has been years now of trying to lose games they are still trying to rebuild. It's why I always say "Never Tank". It creates a culture of losing and losers lose.
It was a loooooooooooong time ago that I stopped looking to the national media for any sort of a pulse on the Blazers. Their job is to attract eyeballs, sell magazines & get clicks. Every offseason they overvalue the title chances of the Lakers and Knicks while having the lesser markets (like PDX) going nowhere and potentially selling off what assets they have to those bigger markets for pennies on the dollar. From their prospective, Portland doing well means they're losing money in ratings... until this year. If Yang earns 10-15 regular MPG as a backup this season a new reality will set in for them and they'll be singing a different tune about Portland's upside. Can't wait to be blessed with all important glowing insites from Perk and Co STOMP
So, I'm expected to depend on the same experts who last year predicted the team would win 23 games, to base how I feel this years season will go?
I almost went for a different font color on the LMA comparison, but I wasn't sure on which one is irony. Fair comment by you. I did have hopes for Rodney Hood until his playoff injury ... and then he was gone. Denver > Detroit > Portland for Grant. He is good. Not a star. But good. I hope he returns to his better years from the past 5 years. With that said, Toumani is the "star" of the team. An 'all star' level defender who guards all stars from 1 to 5. Grant D's up and so does Deni ... and Clingan looks both young and good on D, but Toumani is a different breed as a defender. So, I guess I've said it. Toumani Camara is their #1 -- at the defensive end -- and I expect him to improve.
To be fair they thought the Blazers were actually going to try to improve through the best draft in years by working to get a decent pick. The Blazers pretty much failed to do that.
I see the Blazers on the rise and becoming better than the finals squad of the early 90's and winning a championship. I think positively and optimism is my fuel. I support the team and lend my enthusiasm and encouragement to them. I appreciate what Dame did for me. And sage advice about the sauce. A conasieur?
Do you think that ^^^^ is "ascending to the greatest heights this team has ever known"? Again. Interesting take and obviously you are forgetting
