Does that mean Roy and LMA aren't as good as we thought they were? I don't care how many key role players were missing, those two are supposed to be our studs and should be able to carry the team to at least a 7th seed. If not, Roy doesn't come close to being the "greatest Blaze of all time" many have him pegged to become.
Outside of those two we really don't have much talent. We're the NJ Nets. Outside Harris/Lopez they are very thin in the talent department too. Webster is horrible. Blake is horrible. Przybilla is a shell of his former self. I just can't figure him out this year. And then our bench, holy shit...
Yeah, we're pretty thin right now. Still- i'd like to see a 20/10 from Aldridge- some continued development to have hope for the future. I think we should still make the playoffs.
Look around the NBA. Many teams benches are terrible. Joel isn't as good as the past two years, but thats probably due to change now that hes starting and getting back into the flow of things. Even if hes not playing great, hes a serviceable big man that would start/play lots of minutes on half of the NBA. We made the playoffs with Blake last year. Martell...I'll give you that. Bayless and Miller is a great combination back up teams would kill for. Cunningham has shown he has the ability to play.
That is a momentous question, but I do believe we'll make the playofss,I have great faith in Brandon, Andre, and LaMarcus to to carry us into the first round with atleast an 8 spot or better. But who knows because McAsshole and his coaching staff could easily alter my Blazer faith. And that frightens me to great length.
I'm still going to watch every game just as I did before the players got hurt. Hell, I watched every game when we were winning 21 games and if I couldn't watch I'd listen. Playoffs aren't going to be a factor in anything with me.
Not sure how that's relevant. Anyway, our starting line up is Blake, Roy, Webster, LMA, and Pryz. Save for a Webster/Batum switch, that is essentially the same starting line up we had last year. Unless Batum was really that under-appreciated, or if perhaps Travis was, we should still be about the same team. I know we're missing a couple key players like Fernandez and Oden too, but shouldn't all of the players have gotten better from another year of experience? Especially Roy and Aldridge if they really expect to be that dynamic duo that's been hyped about since 2007.
That is no way to judge the quality of those 2. Who says making the playoffs is an evaluation of a players talent? It's a team game. Right now I honestly think this team is in shock! It will take a while for them to figure out how to make this work. Regardless if we win 51 games and squeak into the playoffs or win 41 and miss 'em, Brandon and LA are studs and will be the core along with Greg that our future will be built around.
The team has no depth up front. That's what I think will sink them. They'll have Cunningham and Howard and ??? as the "bigs" off the bench. That's horrific...even Frye is better than that, and I'm no fan of Frye as a player. They're okay in the backcourt if Bayless turns out to be solid. But the reserve forward/center situation is one of the worst I've ever seen.
And also, if we hit a .500 record, does that mean we're the same team that we were two years ago? Where Oden, Batum, Rudy, etc., weren't playing yet. Would that mean Roy and Aldridge made zero progress?
Not making the playoffs is not going to reflect poorly on anybody this year (except perhaps KP for not consolidating the roster sooner, when he had non-injured trade assets). Hell, look at the wizards last year, they had Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler surrounded by a bunch of stiffs and they were fucking terrible. It's not just about talent of your top two players, you need role players who can provide quality shots and/or quality defense and this team has precious few of those guys.
It really would show about the talent around them, and the scrap they have. Look at Utah last year mid-season when Deron was still hobbled by his ankle injury, Boozer was being a bitch, and Memo had back issues/family issues, yet Utah still were able to compete with a thin bench and completely new rotations. Really injuries tests a teams fight, and mindset, more than what 2 players can do.
K.P will evaluate which players made or disappointed the teams chemistry or production if we don't make it. With all the injuries this season KP will probably hold onto Oden, Batum, LA, Roy, Webster, Prz, and Outlaw. Bayless and Rudy are definitely up for grabs in the offseason. Possibly Blake too. This year is the real test for KP, Nate and P.Allen to see Bayless's potential on this roster. Blake has really regressed and doesn't push the ball like Bayless or Miller. At this point the team likes to run and blake still holds the team back on half court attack. At this point, if the team doesn't shed new light with a new identity of their new roles with 6 players injured this season will just be a year of adjustment and missed opportunities amongst our two long contract players. If they don't advance now with Greg gone they will have regressed in my books..
There might be any number of explanations for the Blazers not making the playoffs. Roy and Aldridge not blowing up into superstars under the pressure of the situation might be one of them. The fact that the Blazers have been playing mediocre defense all season long - and that they worsened in that department after the injury bug hit might be another explanation. Or, the fact that Portland is getting very little scoring from anyone else might be part of the problem, too. In the end, if the Blazers don't make the playoffs, no matter what, some of the blame will fall on Roy and Aldridge. But to say that if the Blazers don't make the playoffs then it had to have been the fault of the Big Two, is premature at this point to say the least, but it's almost definitely only a slice of the explanation we might be looking at five months from now.
I think it is partially how much a coach can get out of his players but its also what the players have in them to start with.
That's bullshit. Two players can't win games by themselves. You need 3 other teammates on the floor. You need shooters and defenders. Look at last night: Roy had 27 and LMA had 19/13. Those are All Star numbers. But we lost to the Knicks. They had no help. You can't expect two guys to score 90-100 points a game. Roy is not only one of the greatest Blazers of all time, he's one of the greatest players in the NBA of all time. There are only FOUR players averaging at least 20 ppg, 4 rpg, and 5 apg this season. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Monta Ellis, and Brandon Roy. Brandon is well on his way to the Hall of Fame regardless of whether we make the playoffs this season.
