It shouldn't have been over. Wes was our third or fourth best player. In 2011, Dallas lost their SECOND best player and still won the title. We had Dame/Aldridge/Batum. Should've won more than half our games.
This whole post only makes sense with the benefit of hindsight. Pretty much all of the downward spiral you speak of happened prior to the Afflalo trade. The Blazers had a historically bad bench. Trading for a quality player like Afflalo did make a huge difference. Wes going down moved Afflalo into the starting lineup and made our bench even worse since we had traded Barton and T-Rob. Afflalo got hurt too, you forgot that fact. CJ had been injured for portions of his first two seasons as well and wasn't ready to breakout quite yet. Wes was the heart and soul of that team. When he went down everyone knew that season was over. To say otherwise is changing the narrative after the fact. The Warriors hadn't won shit up until that point other than ONE playoff series against the Nuggets two years prior. Not one person thought they would be this good. The Cavs hadn't ever won a title either so you can't just hand them a title.
So the downward spiral was a grand total of 11-11? I guess the phrase 'downward spiral' means different things to different people.
Next 5 games: Wolves: @Kings, @Blazers, @Jazz, vs Celtics, vs Warriors. ------Maybe 2-3? Could be 1-4. Very tough stretch for MIN. Spurs: @Cavs, vs Pels, vs Lakers, vs Grizzlies, @ Warriors. -------Likely 3-2 Blazers: vs Kings, vs Wolves, vs Thunder, @lakers, vs Knicks ---At least 4-1 if not 5-0. POR needs a hot stretch here as tough teams are coming up. Nuggets: vs Rockets, vs Clips, @Grizzlies, @Cavs, @Mavs --------Probably 3-2 Thunder: vs Magic, @Mavs, @Suns, @Blazers, vs Rockets -------3-2 or possibly 4-1. By the end of the first week of March, the standings could easily look something like this if Portland takes care of the games they should win. Spurs 38-27 Blazers 38-27 (going 4-1...I think they can/should go 5-0 and be 39-26) Wolves - 39-29 Nuggets 36-28 Thunder 37-29 To have a shot at #3, they need a 5-0 stretch against the Thunder at home and 4 garbage teams. If they falter in this stretch, it will be very tough as games against the Rockets, Warriors, Cavs and Celtics are coming up.
This is a different argument than “Blazers where on a downward spiral long before Wes got hurt.” And Wes was the heart and soul of that team.
If Portland gets homecourt Dame wins MVP. It would be a better accomplishment than Houston and Harden.
Remaining Schedule: VS SAC Feb. 27 - sub .500 VS MIN Mar. 1 +.500 WCP (DR) VS OKC Mar. 3 +.500 WCP (DR) @ LAL Mar. 5 sub .500 VS NYK Mar. 6 sub .500 VS GWS Mar. 9 + .500 WCP (chmps) VS MIA Mar. 12 + .500 ECP VS CLE Mar. 15 +.500 ECP VS DET Mar. 17 sub .500 (poss. ECP) @ LAC Mar. 18 +.500 (poss. WCP) VS HOU Mar. 20 +.500 WCP VS BOS Mar. 23 +.500 ECP @OKC Mar. 25 +.500 WCP (DR) @NOP Mar. 27 +.500 WCP @MEM Mar. 28 sub .500 VS LAC Mar. 30 +.500 (Poss. WCP) VS MEM Apr. 1 sub .500 @DAL Apr. 3 sub .500 @HOU Apr. 5 +.500 WCP @SAS Apr. 7 + .500 WCP @ DEN Apr. 9 + .500 WCP (DR) VS JAZZ Apr. 11 +.500 (Poss. WCP) (DR) *DR = Division Rival *WCP = Western Conference playoff team *ECP = Eastern Conference playoff team 22 Games Remaing 13 Home: 9 VS +.500 teams 4 VS sub .500 teams 9 Away: 6 VS +.500 teams 3 VS sub. 500 teams 5 games VS division rivals: 3 Home 2 Away 15 games VS. +.500 teams 7 games VS. Sub .500 teams 17 VS Western conference teams 5 vs Eastern conference teams 2 back to back 3 sets of 5 games in 8 days 1 set of 5 games in 7 days Series Standings W\ Remaining Teams: GP RG VS Kings 2-1 (H@-@) 1H VS MIN 1-2 (H-@@) 1H VS OKC 2-0 (H@- ) 2H@ VS LAL 2-0 (H@ - ) 1@ VS NYK 1-0 ( @ - ) 1H VS GSW 1-1 ( H - @) 1H VS MIA 1-0 (@ - ) 1H VS CAV 0-1 ( - @) 1H VS DET 0-1 ( - @) 1H VS LAC 1-1 (@ - H) 2@H VS HOU 0-2 ( - H@) 2H@ VS BOS 0-1 ( - @) 1H VS NOP 1-2 (H- H@) 1@ VS MEM 1-1 (A -H) 2@H VS DAL 2-0 (H@ - ) 1@ VS SAS 1-1 (H - H) 1@ VS DEN 1-2 (H - H@) 1@ VS JAZZ 1-2 (A - HA) 1H Blazers lead 6 series: 2 VS + .500 teams 4 Vs sub .500 teams Blazers tied in 4 series: 3 VS + .500 teams 1 VS Sub .500 teams Blazers trail in 8 series: 7 VS + .500 teams 1 VS sub .500 teams
I bet, if someone were to care enough. They could find multiple posts of a certain poster claiming Portland was title contenders the season Wes went down.
I'm getting the website down but I haven't really explored how to look up posts from a few years ago. If I'm reading your post right, @KingSpeed didn't even include the Cavs and Warriors as title contenders towards the end of that season but is now claiming that those two teams "were a class above" everyone else?
But we started the season 30-8 WITHOUT Afflalo. How did we play THAT great and then THAT horrible? And how can you say CJ wasn't ready yet when he broke out a couple months later in the playoffs?? Also, the Warriors won 65+ games that year and Curry was MVP. How can you say nobody thought they'd be that good. EVERYBODY thought they were that good.
11-11 is AWFUL after you just went 30-8. Fell from 2nd best record in West to 6th. Happened the year before too when we started the year 24-5 and then fell to 5th place in West.
I always believe our team can win the title every year. But when the year is over, I can objectively say the team that won the whole thing deserved it. Neil said the same thing. He said "we simply weren't good enough" and that's why he didn't throw money at Wes and Lopez and traded Batum.
He wasn't. Chandler was their entire defensive identity. Kidd was still solid. Marion and Terry were as valuable as him.
