Sure, because everyone on our roster is fully developed into the player they will be in their prime, right? No more opportunity for growth from any of our 10 players under the age of 27 (11 if we got Kanter). The 2008 team was 41-41 (purgatory!!); the next year we won 54 and made the playoffs the first of three seasons, seasons which likely would have seen further improvement had Roy's knees not disintegrated (and Oden's not been made of glass). If we can switch to a complete youth movement, reach a similar point this season, and not hit bottom, I'm all in favor.
I think you've just been used to the old Blazers and how they had a mediocre team, old players, no cap space and bloated contracts. Even if we are mediocre right now, most the players will be under the age of 25. Most players hit their prime at 30, so there is a lot of room for improvement. Also, if there is a possibility to land a top tier free agent, and our young team is a 41-45 win team, it's very appealing to be here. Or, if there is a marquee player requesting a trade and we have great "manageable contracts" and cap space, we can be a good trading partner to grab em.
That's another aspect that I forgot about. A .500 team with a multiple-time all star, a lot of youth, and a bunch of cap space would be much more attractive than what we were this off-season.
Yep we called their bluff and they can either have him and be in salary hell for Clay or give him up and let another good player slip away. Not a good example when Durant is deciding where he wants to go next summer
Exactly!!!! The reason I say this is because many teams saw how we were without Dame and Aldridge being the sure fire #1. We missed the playoffs. Now if Dame can lead this core to the 8th seed, it proves he's a great leader in a tough WC.
I put excited. Because I suffered through what 3? seasons of MEYERS FUCKING BEIBER not playing a god damn LICK of defense. And all the sudden, like out of nowhere, he learns how to play. If this Turkish delight or whatever the fuck he is can do the same, and WANTS to play center (i know unheard of right?) then fuck ya!
75% vs 25% is not very divided. IN presidential campaigns, thats a landslide whopping unanimous victory.
Kanter's woeful defense aside, I think people are missing another important implication if we get him. You can only develop so many young guys who play the same position at the same time. Guys are still trying to figure out who they are in the league and there is going to be a lot of pressure on them to try and maximize their statistical output over learning to sacrifice for the team's greater good. Maybe Neil is already planning to trade somebody and improve the youth to veteran balance, but if not I see problems ahead (and for those who are inclined to disagree, I'd suggest you have a short memory and don't remember 2007, 2008, etc. when this team was loaded with young guys and a lack of veteran leadership when the balance between old guys and young was similarly out of whack).
I don't know if you remembered, but Aldridge was the back-up for Zach and played back-up spot minutes at center for most of his rookie year. He was considered very soft, with no inside game, poor defense and thin as a rail. CJ was in a bad pickle his rookie year because we were actually pretty good by the time he came back from injury and had zero playing time to develop his game. He had another set back last season, but finally came around at season's end. Leonard was a major disappointment up until last season. Many in here, including myself, ate some major crow with his huge jump in efficiency and toughness. Plumlee has been a career back up in Brooklyn because they had a max center already there. Dinging him for not starting would be like singing Aldridge for not starting when Zach was here. I can foresee major improvements from CJ, Plumlee, Leonard, and Crabbe. We will be better than you think. Kanter can plug in and give us more efficient 20/10 that we lost from Aldridge on the offensive end. So we need to make up 16-18 points for Matthews, 12 points from Batum and 8 points from Lopez. We can do it
A better poll would be whether you think OKC will match or not. They will. This is much ado about nothing.
FWIW, Neil talked about how Elton Brand left the Clippers and how he rebuilt. Here's the Clippers' record (Brand was gone in 2008-2009 forward): Olshey was hired by the Blazers in June of 2012.
It's amazing how quick you are to judge. I wonder how many minutes you've actually spent watching Aminu, Davis, Plumlee, or Kanter in order to be able to come to this "meh at best" conclusion. I also wonder what the definition of "meh" is to you. Do quality role players who contribute efficiently and defend well qualify as "meh"? If so, and "meh" isn't good enough for you, then I'd say your expectations are too high. We have a bonafide star, potentially a superstar, in Lillard. If OKC doesn't match, we have another potential star in Kanter (don't pre-judge--just look at his offensive numbers and efficiency). And we have 5 other young guys (CJ/Aminu/Davis/Nards/Plums) who have demonstrated that they can be quality role players, if not more, along with a few "wildcards" (Frazier/Pat/Crabbe/Vonleh). That's absolutely the basis for a very good team.
