Game 39: Portland vs Phoenix 5:00pm Root, Root+

[PDXKnight]

Good to see Rupert have a nice game as well as kris

[Brandon-Clyde]

Consolation GLB pic

Spoiler:

[m0ng0]

I think this roster is going to be our core group for the rest of the year, maybe bringing Ayton back when healthy and whatever we get for Brogdon and Grant.

[PDXKnight]

I'm racking my brain trying to decide if Scoot had a good game. Yeah great points rebounds assists and steals but also he was pretty inefficient on his shots at 35 percent.

Either way great to see him get a career high just hopefully he can make a couple more and at least get to north of 40 percent.

[JasonStern]

Read on Twitter

Celebrating the little things..

[red_power]

I'm racking my brain trying to decide if Scoot had a good game. Yeah great points rebounds assists and steals but also he was pretty inefficient on his shots at 35 percent.

Either way great to see him get a career high just hopefully he can make a couple more and at least get to north of 40 percent.

It actually was a good game for Scoot. His inability to finish from mid-range and around the basket is quite depressing though but I think we simply have to put up with that.

Really happy to see Kris have a nice shooting game. I think his role will increase if vets are moved at the trade deadline as many are anticipating.

Well, some of those vets are NEED to be moved

[zzaj]

I'm racking my brain trying to decide if Scoot had a good game. Yeah great points rebounds assists and steals but also he was pretty inefficient on his shots at 35 percent.

Either way great to see him get a career high just hopefully he can make a couple more and at least get to north of 40 percent.

I think it was a great game for him, and moving forward the Blazers need to give him the Green light offensively…efficiency be damned. It takes years (yes years) to figure out what’s a good or bad shot in the NBA, especially for PGs. The sooner Scoot gets a feel for that the better. Being aggressive offensively will only open avenues for getting teammates involved. He’s already made strides, so that’s a good thing.

If Scoot/Sharpe is BCOTF, then one of them has to be an aggressor. Sharpe has a tendency to try and out-athlete people and give himself nowhere to go on his finishes. He lacks the natural passing acumen of Scoot. Plus Sharpe has a natural instinct for cutting, so I say give the ball to Scoot as the primary and let Sharpe be the beneficiary once defences are collapsed.

[Shem]

Watch on YouTube

[PDXKnight]

I'm racking my brain trying to decide if Scoot had a good game. Yeah great points rebounds assists and steals but also he was pretty inefficient on his shots at 35 percent.

Either way great to see him get a career high just hopefully he can make a couple more and at least get to north of 40 percent.

I think it was a great game for him, and moving forward the Blazers need to give him the Green light offensively…efficiency be damned. It takes years (yes years) to figure out what’s a good or bad shot in the NBA, especially for PGs. The sooner Scoot gets a feel for that the better. Being aggressive offensively will only open avenues for getting teammates involved. He’s already made strides, so that’s a good thing.

If Scoot/Sharpe is BCOTF, then one of them has to be an aggressor. Sharpe has a tendency to try and out-athlete people and give himself nowhere to go on his finishes. He lacks the natural passing acumen of Scoot. Plus Sharpe has a natural instinct for cutting, so I say give the ball to Scoot as the primary and let Sharpe be the beneficiary once defences are collapsed.

Yeah I'm down to let Scoot shoot, maybe he should be a bit more selective at times but there will be a learning curve

I'm not sure what to do about simons, he's increasingly looking expendable

[PDXKnight]

Read on Twitter

Celebrating the little things..

Hopefully he can be the 3 of the future. His ceiling may be higher than toumanis given his physical attributes but either way we have 2 quality rotation players

[zzaj]

I'm racking my brain trying to decide if Scoot had a good game. Yeah great points rebounds assists and steals but also he was pretty inefficient on his shots at 35 percent.

Either way great to see him get a career high just hopefully he can make a couple more and at least get to north of 40 percent.

I think it was a great game for him, and moving forward the Blazers need to give him the Green light offensively…efficiency be damned. It takes years (yes years) to figure out what’s a good or bad shot in the NBA, especially for PGs. The sooner Scoot gets a feel for that the better. Being aggressive offensively will only open avenues for getting teammates involved. He’s already made strides, so that’s a good thing.

If Scoot/Sharpe is BCOTF, then one of them has to be an aggressor. Sharpe has a tendency to try and out-athlete people and give himself nowhere to go on his finishes. He lacks the natural passing acumen of Scoot. Plus Sharpe has a natural instinct for cutting, so I say give the ball to Scoot as the primary and let Sharpe be the beneficiary once defences are collapsed.

Yeah I'm down to let Scoot shoot, maybe he should be a bit more selective at times but there will be a learning curve

I'm not sure what to do about simons, he's increasingly looking expendable

His interview on Reddick’s pod is pretty telling. Especially with Grant out, teams are sending two to the ball when Simons has it and taking what comes out of that. We saw a few times when the Suns blitzed 3 to the ball a few times last night and it was a disaster. Ant doesn’t have half of Lillard’s BBiq, so he can’t deal with that before it comes.

Part of the issue is the Blazers haven’t had a consistent guard rotation the whole year, so it’s hard to get comfortable knowing how teams are going to play you night to night—defenses are going to constantly look different.

Another part of the issue, is Chauncey. I’d be willing to bet he didn’t have the team prepared for that kind of coverage last night.

Another part of the issue is talent/experience. It’s a team sport and having a team full of experience and talent goes a long way towards solving these types of issues—they’ve seen the pattern and know what to do.

[The Sebastian Express]

I wasn't concerned with Scoot's shooting last night or in general. He's a rookie without a consistent outside shot, so interior shots are going to be rough for him until he gets the reps in, fixes his base on off the dribble shots (he twists his lower base a lot imo when he gets into the airs going side-to-side, especially in the mid-range).

He had to shoot so much because only Ant and him can really create their own offense of the group out there last night. He had a lot just roll off. I'll be concerned about his shooting if we're still this way in three years, but he seems like a really hard worker who understands the areas he needs to improve. And you cannot teach the energy, intensity and positivity he has on the court and for his teammates. That kind of stuff is infectious and also suggest a person is truly teachable.

I think zzaj and I both agree this summer should be spent on developing the left hand and shooting technique. In particular since he has all the makings of a really nice teardrop/floater and mid-range game (which while is not the most efficient shot in today's era of analytics, I think is a critical shot for someone who can do it).

[JasonStern]

Read on Twitter

Celebrating the little things..

Hopefully he can be the 3 of the future. His ceiling may be higher than toumanis given his physical attributes but either way we have 2 quality rotation players

I'm pretty high on the guy. Will probably never be a starter, but a defensive 6'6" wing with a 7'3" wingspan - the type of player that the Blazers have lacked since Batum. Great use of small assets in a 2nd round pick and (near) minimum contract during a rebuild. Plus, he's only 19. Plenty of chance for him to continue to develop. His major weakness seems to be the game coming at him too fast, which is fixable should he work to develop.

[PDXKnight]

Read on Twitter

Celebrating the little things..

Hopefully he can be the 3 of the future. His ceiling may be higher than toumanis given his physical attributes but either way we have 2 quality rotation players

I'm pretty high on the guy. Will probably never be a starter, but a defensive 6'6" wing with a 7'3" wingspan - the type of player that the Blazers have lacked since Batum. Great use of small assets in a 2nd round pick and (near) minimum contract during a rebuild. Plus, he's only 19. Plenty of chance for him to continue to develop. His major weakness seems to be the game coming at him too fast, which is fixable should he work to develop.

Who knows if he starts but it's too early to predict he can't imo. I don't think anyone including ruyan really knows what we have in him Just yet. If he can get anywhere near Batums level he could be a 12 ppg defensive impact sort of starter while the guards take on the offensive load

[JasonStern]

Hopefully he can be the 3 of the future. His ceiling may be higher than toumanis given his physical attributes but either way we have 2 quality rotation players

I'm pretty high on the guy. Will probably never be a starter, but a defensive 6'6" wing with a 7'3" wingspan - the type of player that the Blazers have lacked since Batum. Great use of small assets in a 2nd round pick and (near) minimum contract during a rebuild. Plus, he's only 19. Plenty of chance for him to continue to develop. His major weakness seems to be the game coming at him too fast, which is fixable should he work to develop.

Who knows if he starts but it's too early to predict he can't imo. I don't think anyone including ruyan really knows what we have in him Just yet. If he can get anywhere near Batums level he could be a 12 ppg defensive impact sort of starter while the guards take on the offensive load

Batum won the starting job after the pre-season, which is both a credit to him and a sign of just how bad the Blazers roster was at that time. Rupert is raw and probably not going to be more than a bench wing, but he was the 43rd pick in the draft. Being able to stick at #43 is huge.

I mean, look at who was drafted after him? Who would you trade him for? Camara. Oh, wait.

[PDXKnight]

I'm pretty high on the guy. Will probably never be a starter, but a defensive 6'6" wing with a 7'3" wingspan - the type of player that the Blazers have lacked since Batum. Great use of small assets in a 2nd round pick and (near) minimum contract during a rebuild. Plus, he's only 19. Plenty of chance for him to continue to develop. His major weakness seems to be the game coming at him too fast, which is fixable should he work to develop.

Who knows if he starts but it's too early to predict he can't imo. I don't think anyone including ruyan really knows what we have in him Just yet. If he can get anywhere near Batums level he could be a 12 ppg defensive impact sort of starter while the guards take on the offensive load

Batum won the starting job after the pre-season, which is both a credit to him and a sign of just how bad the Blazers roster was at that time. Rupert is raw and probably not going to be more than a bench wing, but he was the 43rd pick in the draft. Being able to stick at #43 is huge.

I mean, look at who was drafted after him? Who would you trade him for? Camara. Oh, wait.

Yeah he was good for where we got him

[m0ng0]

How can you judge Rupert based on his pro sample size so far...jesus kids can improve and grow. He is a marginal backup wing with no potential. Shut up let him play, thats the point of tanking

[m0ng0]

Scoot sucks, murray sucks, reath sucks, trade ant, rupert sucks, walker is a bust... all based off of armchair observations at the 1/3 mark of their rookie or second season. Jesus man this place is stupid.

[JasonStern]

Scoot sucks, murray sucks, reath sucks, trade ant, rupert sucks, walker is a bust

No need to kick us while we're down.