I used to think the Blazers were a second-tier team, but I think we’re actually a third-tier team now. We can’t attract free agents and apparently we can’t swing a decent trade anymore. We are not even in the running for the good players. Free agency happens in some other mysterious world. Dallas can get a big free agent, and so can Oklahoma City, but not Portland. Apparently Portland is such a backwater town in the minds of most NBA stars that it is their absolutely last option. Which means it’s not an option at all. Can you believe that we lost Ed Davis but we still have Myers Leonard on the roster? Ponder that for awhile.
Every fucking hipster in the country wants to move here..... and we have a housing crisis, but to NBA players we're the worst place in the world.
By decision, basically. We have had many opportunities to make big moves over the last two years but refused. We could have got Paul George last season if we had been brave enough to offer CJ. Indiana would not have rejected that deal, instead we offered a bunch of mid and late first picks and asked them to choose whichever bad contracts they would like to absorb (because we told them they’d not be getting Dame, CJ or Nurkic). We didn’t think we would be able to get him to re-sign after that year and guess what, OKC did not have that fear and now they have him long-term. We handed over some obscene contracts two years ago while biddding against ourselves. Nobody was meeting with Leonard. Nobody was calling Turner. Even those guys were surprised to be getting those deals and we happily handed them. Our front office doesn’t want more. They seem to not want the pressure of trying to win and are instead perfectly happy recycling the same lines about having a young team that is still growing, despite the fact that we maybe have two players who seem like they are actually capable of getting significantly better. We are average and happy to be.
Few teams in the league have as bad outlook for the future as us. It’s not where we are now but where we can be if everything goes our way - not much better than we are now. Maybe Charlotte.
A lot of B.S. C'mon Portland is a young talented team. GET REAL! Sounds like "The Russians are coming, the Russians are coming".
We are always going to be a decent team, chance to make the playoffs any year but also if not then will be in that 10th to 14th draft pick range with Lillard. Don't get me wrong I love Lillard and want him to play his whole career here, but we may not ever be bad enough to get a top prospect. Either Olshey needs to get his head out of his ass and fix this team or Paul Allen needs to get his head out of Olshey's ass and fire him and find someone who can try to fix this team.
Like I have been saying the whole time, the ONLY way out of this mess is to trade CJ... until Neil admits this, Blazers will just get further entrenched into purgatory... the sad thing is, the longer Neil waits to trade CJ, the worse his trade value will get for returning assets... now is the time to make the move and have a last chance to build a contender around Dame in his prime
I agree that the Blazers are a third tier team right now. Good thing the season happens after the off-season, not before it.
I'm no where opposed to trading CJ, I tend to agree. But what kind of deal do you have in mind to help build around Dame?
It’s not my job to find a deal, that is what Neil is paid for... I just know CJ is the only asset we have to change they dynamic of the team now without giving up the future in Zach Collins
Wow. That cop out is more like a COPOUT. Make a move just to make a move without knowing what the move to be made should be. That’s pure gold right there.... If I were soooo adamant that I know what move should be made, I would think I’d be smart enough to... I don’t know... know what should be done? You crack me up.
“Make a move just to make a move” ??? It’s been 6 years!! How many more years will you allow Neil to say this?? Have some standards man, demand more from your GM... Neil knows people like you will buy anything he is selling
I'm well aware it isn't your job, but there has got to be something out there that would make you happy/excited to get back for CJ. The problem is, I don't think you're going to get anywhere closer to a championship team with trading CJ as you would with him on the team. He is a good player, but isn't an all star, so you have to wonder how much you could really get for him. Unless you want to risk trading for Kawhi and having a 1 year rental or any potential rental on a superstar who wants to move on, it'll be tough to find something better, I think.
To put it another way.... You don’t sell Off your Honda Accord for some wet dream of waking up to find a Mercedes in the driveway, when you know all that is available in the lot right now are pacers and gremlins.
Hate to say it but maybe Dame isn’t the timeline we should be building around. He’s obviously disenchanted with the franchise. Maybe the frontcourt is what we should consider building around, imagine the young assets we could get for Dame and CJ to mesh with Nurk/Collins. By the time they were ready GS would be on the decline. Just a thought.
How much is Olshey getting paid to be the GM? What you are saying is that he should be held to the same standard as a poster on a fan message site. Think about that for a minute, and I think you will see how silly that is.
Here's the issue with Dame: If you lose, you have to lose teammates. If you win, you get to keep your teammates. We melted down. That being said, the moves in the last 2 years definitely have a "rebuilding" feel to them....
