I used to think that Steve Blake was a good distributor, the perfect guy for a team with a lot of offensive weapons. I liked his pass first mentality and he seemed pretty well rounded as a player. But the more I watch him in this series, I'm realizing that he makes a lot of boneheaded decisions that sometimes cancels out his production. From watching a few of these games, I've noticed the following things: He runs the shot clock down which leads to desperation shots and poor possessions. I've even seen a couple times where the clock gets low to about two seconds and then Blake, instead of getting a shot off, dishes the ball to someone as the clock expires. He is very hesitant offensively. He'll have an open shot and you can tell he's thinking about taking it but by the time he commits one way or another, he's been picked up. In the event he does shoot, he often misses as his hesitation gets the best of him. He fails to get the ball into the right people's hands. In the final seconds the other night, he sprinted down the floor and then, rather than finding Roy or Fernandez, he pulled up and badly missed the would be tying shot. He also doesn't find the Blazers' big men very often and the offense doesn't seem to flow very well when he's in. These are just some things I noticed. Is Blake having a bad series or are these mistakes he makes often?
This is just my opinion and I know people will agree and disagree but I think that the way he has played in this series (and even with in each games iteself) is similiar to the way he has played all season. His highs are too high and his lows are too low. In other words IMO he is too inconsistent. Every Blazer fan has loved some of the big shots he has made this season but we have also wanted to strangle him at times. I understand that there are many other players on the team that have fallen into this category at times but we (especially this team) can not have that from our point guard. The second thing that I think has happened with Blake is that he may have played himself out of a Blazer inform in this series. Best case scenario for him may be back up which I honestly wouldnt mind. I dont think he was the sole reason for any of ours loses but he sure didnt help. I can only hope and pray that Bayless works his ass off this summer and comes back ready to challenge for the starting PG. Or that we make a move ... but I have this sneaking suspision that we wont.
Huh? I don't see this at all. Last night he took a lot of jumpers and was quite aggressive. He drives the ball when he can, but he's always willing to take the jumper. And he hits them with a fairly high percentage.
He's played a lot better in the past two games, BUT even then, his weaknesses are evident. He CANNOT penetrate. And on the rare occasions when he does get into the paint, you know he cannot finish unless he's all alone (as, for example, when the Rockets think a timeout has been called). And I don't know if this is McMillan's fault, but he hardly ever plays pick and roll. It looks like he CAN play it (those three dunks in a row from Oden, Oden and Aldridge in game 3 stand out) but just doesn't enough. Anyone think that Blake hasn't played himself out of a starting job and possibly off the team? I find myself actually wishing that he would go down with some minor injury because right now, with the season on the brink, I'd rather watch Sergio (or Rudy or even Bayless) attempt more things and make mistakes than watch Blake overdribble outside the arc because he's afraid to shoot and afraid to get a turnover.
I can see some of your points and I agree that he has a very hard time getting Oden or LaMarcus the ball where they like it. But, some of the 'brain-lock' stuff isn't really Steve Blake's game, it's just that he's never been very good at creating his own shot or getting into the lane to distribute. He's really more of a spot-up shooter or even shooting guard than point guard in this offense because he ends up deferring to Roy so much. Ideally Steve would be backup point guard who can protect a lead while starters rest (great A/TO ratio, reliable 3 point shooter, adequate team defender) but, put in the role of a 30-35 minute starter some of his warts start to show.
I don't know... I think Blake was one of our more consistent guys during the regular season. He'd make bonehead plays down the stretch every 5-7 games or so, but he was pretty consistent with the ball and taking care of it. Now, it seems like he's making a costly turnover in each of the past two games. I don't know if it's fatigue of playing 40 mins now or what, but his inopportune turnovers are reminding me of Jarrett Jack. He'll be back next season because KP and the coaching staff love him, but I don't know if he can be the starting PG when we make our long playoff runs.
blake shouldn't be taking those off the dribble pull up 3 pointers that he's been taking recently. his strength is standing in the corner and making open 3's, not trying to create his own. he's a horrible shooter when he tries to create. and his decision making off the dribble isn't much better. blake, if anything, needs to be a back-up and out of the game at the end of the game. he is horrible with the ball, can't break down the defender and get to the rack. he never picks up fouls on oposing guards or big men which is essential for guards to do in order to help his own big men out. and he isn't quick enough to stay with his man on defense, and when his man does score alot, he makes excuses by saying some of the points were scored on him, but some were scored on his teamates, so he as a point guard is passing the blame on his big guys for letting the opposing pg score...and getting his big guys in early foul trouble
I used to think that Blake could be starting point guard for a playoff caliber team, now I think he's the ideal backup.
I agree. The only way I see Blake starting next season is if KP has drafted the "future" PG. As much as I like Bayless, and want to watch his progress as a Blazer, I don't think he's the "answer" at PG. Other than that, I see a trade or KP picking up someone such as, perhaps, Bibby or Miller.
I'm all for signing Dre Miller and letting Bayless be the backup..bring over PetKo to fill out the roster
Steve Blake makes fewer mistakes than anyone on the team as far as TO's, bad shots, risky passes, crossover dribbles... That is my main beef with him. He is overly cautious. We always face a set, packed-in defense because he is careful in walking the ball up. He is careful in waiting for a wide-open shooter to pass to. He is careful not to try anything risky like feeding the guy in the post. He is careful to simply give the ball to Roy rather than try to thread the needle to a moving Nic or LaMarcus. When he gets 8 assists, 7 of them are shots by Roy. He minimizes the offense by neutralizing our strengths in depth and talent. But to piss and moan because he missed a 3 pointer he was open for, one he missed simply due to fatigue from long minutes (for him), one he makes 3 out of 4 times, is just plain mean.
