So far only two players have emerged - CJ and Crabbe. And CJ hasn't really emerged, as much as he's doing things he's always been able to do he's just now doing it consistently in the NBA.
Only two players? I think that is pretty good. Plus I also think Plumlee is emerging as a pretty good center. Now we just need Vonleh or Meyers to emerge. (Or maybe Harkless?)
Plumlee is doing what he did last year. CJ hasn't developed, he's just performing consistently. My point is that in a developmental season we've seen very little development. Yes, we should really be focusing on Meyers, Vonleh, and Harkless - two of those three players need to show marked improvement by the end of the season otherwise this season has been a failure. Other than giving Vonleh some token minutes to get him acclimated to the game we aren't seeing any concerted effort to develop these guys.
My theory is if you have two guys at the same position, you might trade the better of the two because you get more back in trade. However, the CBA really messes this up if the other team can't manage the salary in their cap space. I don't see why we can't eventually have CJ as super sub 6th man. The only reason the two can't play together over the long haul might be defense. Smurf back courts are difficult to win with.
I think CJ has developed quite a bit as the back up PG. No comparison IMO to last year. As for Plumlee I guess you are right, except I think he has developed his passing. He already has 15 more assists for the year then he had all of last year, and he played all 82 games last year.
Um what? What exactly is your definition of development? CJ could not play this complete game last year.
Wow. Two guards playing at an All-Star level and a 3rd emerging from being just a defender to an all-around contributor; a center who every game displays more attributes of his game, and a team that is able to win 3 in a row without its best player. Yup, the glass is just almost empty in Blazerville.
well IF we ever decide to trade CJ the cost to the team wanting him continues to climb - CJ INFLATION
I love CJ's game, but I stand by my initial post. What he does is fantastic, but there are diminishing returns of having two guys so similar on the same team. It's kind of like LeBron playing with Love--sure, they can make it work, but there's probably somebody else in the league who has similar value who is a better fit next to the star player. I'd love to see CJ traded (with filler) for Cousins. Seems like a perfect fit for both teams--they need character and a face of the franchise that fans can actually like, and we need a talented scoring big. Rondo seems a great paring for CJ as well--the passer/defender and the perimeter scorer. I'll always be a fan of CJ, no matter where he goes. Honestly, I don't think Lillard would be that upset. He likes CJ, but he also knows CJ will never realize his potential living in the shadow of Damian. CJ is inevitably going to want to be Damian Lillard for his own team.
I've never addressed if they should trade CJ silly, I'm pointing out the reality of various player sizes... a reality that obviously you want to tune out. Lillard & CJ are more or less the same size which is a decent (or average) size for a starting NBA PG. You can pretend this isn't true, but it is. I'm pretty much always for trading anyone on the roster if it improves the team's talent & fit. This current team has substantial room to improve in both categories. STOMP
It gets even more interesting when one looks at CJ's PG stats for the 4 games when Dame has been out: CJ w/o Lillard 24.8 ppg 6.5 apg 5.8 rpg 2.3 topg .477 FG .320 3pt Lillard this season 24.6 ppg 6.8 apg 4.5 rpg 3.5 topg .418 FG .364 3pt
Like I've been saying. Do not be shocked if Cj ends up being better than Dame by the end of the season. What does Lillard really do better than Cj? Really the only thing I can think of is athleticism and other than that nothing much. I'll say it again... Cj might be better than Lillard.
The thing about Cleveland is that they have Triston Thompson too. A completely different type of PF. So they have options. (We have Crabbe) So they have versatility and depth in case of injuries. And injuries almost always occur. Kind of wish we kept Moses even though we had Bill. But even though Damian may never have a career or even season ending injury, what about the wear and tear we have seen him get playing big minutes the last few years? It takes a toll mentally and physically. I think it would be nice to have the luxury of having two guards who can be "the man" on any given night. Especially when one of them is having a bad night. Are we really wanting to trade CJ because we think he wants his own team? Players like playing with their friends and they like winning, so as long as he gets paid, I think CJ will be fine. He doesn't seem to be the type of player who wants his own team. Not if he cares about winning. Regardless Neil has time to evaluate the situation. No need to rush into anything. See if it works. Their trade value won't diminish in the eyes of wise GM's. Personally if they want to play together, then I would build around them.
1. "Difficult to win with" is compatible with you coming up with ONE example. 2. Isiah Thomas was probably the greatest 6-footer ever up to that time. He was certainly the best of his era. Damian is good, but he's not in that league. 3. Michael Jordan once said that the player who guarded him the best of anyone was Joe Dumars. If anyone says that of CJ it's because they haven't PLAYED anyone else.
