Looking at the January schedule the Blazers could have a decent chance of being 6-7 games above .500 by the end of the month.
This team is getting really hard to predict. Who woulda thought that we'd lose to teams like Philly, NJ, and WAS, and then come out and beat Utah twice in one week? I hope we do get better and build on this little run we've had recently, because this middle of road spot we're at now is the last place I want to be.
Little doubt in my mind the team as constructed would make the playoffs. Better than the Rockets Phoenix will die off Denver's done when they trade Melo Denver is the damn 6th seed right now. I could see the Blazers grabbing that spot if things keep going the way they are. The team seems to be getting stronger, which I love. Maybe the most resilient team I've ever followed. They simply won't quit.
Ya, making the playoffs isn't the issue in my mind. After we got the tiebreaker vs. PHX, I felt that we had a really good chance of guaranteeing a spot. It's what we do in the playoffs that gets me. I don't want us to simply be first round fodder for the better the teams. Unless BRoy makes a miraculous comeback and we integrate him into this system with LA at the helm, I don't see our ceiling any higher than the first round. And that's a bad spot for a team with no capspace to be in, because it can't really get much better, and it's too good to get a decent pick.
It was a fun game. Thanks for the tickets. My daughter had a great time - Batum is her favorite player and she wore her new I (pinwheel) Batum! shirt tonight. She also likes Patty Mills. Man, that guy was everywhere tonight. So, with both of them playing well and the Blazers winning, she was guaranteed to have a good time. Camby and Miller only scored a total of 6 points, but they were the key to the excellent ball movement tonight. They combined for 15 assists and 19 rebounds. Not bad for a couple old guys. BNM
Glad she had a great time! I actually got a shot of you guys when the Rockets were taking a foul shot. She was to your left with two of the clapper foul shot balloons.
Cool! This is one of the few times she hasn't made it onto the jumbotron. She usually makes some big elaborate sign, but we were out of poster board, so she had to use a sheet of 11x17 paper - not quite enough to get the attention of the cameramen. She made it onto jumbotron multiple times at the Hornets game. Her personal record is 7 times in one game. I'll have to remember to get some more poster board. BNM
This team is a lot more fun to watch without Brandon for sure. It's also nice to see the team beating teams they should beat. Houston is a crappy basketball team. Even though it would probably make us worse right now, I hope the front office doesn't decide to keep the aging vets just so we can get the 8th seed.
I don't think the Blazers are better without Brandon Roy. They are, however, better without a hobbled limping Brandon Roy. I sure don't think this team should rush to dump Brandon.
Sometimes teams and players have to take some lumps in order to get some mojo going in the right direction. In the past, when roy went down, Lamarcus wasn't ready to step up. Now it appears he is. If Roy does ever come back, this team will be different than when he left, and he will have to find his way. In the past, Lamarcus deferred too much. The whole team deferred too much. Now they are starting to forge an identity. If he comes back, he needs to fit within that identity. Right now guys are just finally starting to find their way in their roles, because their playing time is consistent. The next corner to turn, is to take that play from here at home, and take it on the road.
I like the fact Roy is at the game, in game gear and stays involved with the team. It is a much different feeling than when Oden is hurt. I think Roy is more about the team than himself. He just happens to think that the ball going through him is best for the team. Sitting on the bench watching a new identity emerge for the Blazers, I think Brandon will lose the "it's on me" mentality and try to fit in when he is ready to go. I see him pulling an Arenas and accepting a role coming off the bench (until he shows he deserves to be in the starting lineup with the new offensive scheme)
I disagree. I'd like them to keep the vets to help teach the young guys what it takes to compete and win at this level, how to remain focused over the course of a long, grueling 82-game schedule. And, most importantly, I WANT this team to make the playoffs, even if it's just as an 8th seed. Playoff experience is invaluable to future playoff success. Most teams struggle the first time or two they make the playoffs. The intensity is ratcheted up to a much higher level. Preparing to face the same team six or seven games in a row is much different than playing a different opponent evry night during the regular season. Yes, the Portland Trailblazers have made the playoffs the last two yeasr, but this team is different, with a different mix of players, and other players with new, expanded roles. Aldridge is becoming our 4th quarter go to guy. Over the course of a playoff searies, teams will be able to focus their game plan on shutting him down in the 4th quarter, and will try different things that he, and his coach, will have to counter from game to game. I'd like to see him get that experince sooner, rather than later. Same with the rest of the team. Missing the playoffs would be a huge set back, IMHO. It would essententially be starting over from scratch. Even if they get sewpt in 4 games, I'd rather get that over with now, when we know we don't have the chance at a deep play-off run, than wait and fail due to inexperience when the pieces have been added that could help the team go further. BNM
"Fool me every year since 1977..."? you can't be wise and cynical if you keep coming back to the team every year anyway.
