Game 14: Portland vs Atlanta 3:00pm KATU/ Charge

[zzaj]

Another thing I’ll point out about the games sans Ayton and Simons…Grant looks much more comfortable with his role.

I’ve always been fine with the Blazers keeping Grant over Simons, as he’s not blocking anybody’s development for the most part.

Sadly, he’s likely the most desirable of the trio

[monopoman]

Word is the Lakers were very close to trading for Grant last off-season, so yeah if the price was slightly lower he might be a Laker right now. It appears the Blazers are trying to trade him, it's just a matter of what team is willing to pay the price, or if they lower the asking price.

[Norm2953]

The Blazers would wait till the best draft of the decade to blow the tank idea up

Lets not too carried away with the merits of the 2025 draft for there is nobody on the level of Victor any time soon

Cooper flagg is pretty dang good and the top 5 are pretty good collectively

It's going to be a solid draft but Victor is on a different level as a prospect. Its like comparing Anthony Davis
as a prospect to Lebron

[Shem]

Word is the Lakers were very close to trading for Grant last off-season, so yeah if the price was slightly lower he might be a Laker right now. It appears the Blazers are trying to trade him, it's just a matter of what team is willing to pay the price, or if they lower the asking price.

Yeah, Cronin was asking for an extra 1st rounder that stalled those trade talks. Usually teams get more desperate at the trading deadline if they're fighting for a playoff spot. If the Lakers are around the 7-10 seed, that maybe enough for them to finally give in.

[monopoman]

Word is the Lakers were very close to trading for Grant last off-season, so yeah if the price was slightly lower he might be a Laker right now. It appears the Blazers are trying to trade him, it's just a matter of what team is willing to pay the price, or if they lower the asking price.

Yeah, Cronin was asking for an extra 1st rounder that stalled those trade talks. Usually teams get more desperate at the trading deadline if they're fighting for a playoff spot. If the Lakers are around the 7-10 seed, that maybe enough for them to finally give in.

I have a feeling they can find the right team that will be willing to pay that price Grant is a damn good player to have in general, and he is a pretty damn solid defender. I don't see the rush to try to move him immediately at all, unless they are desperate to lose more games right now.

[Shem]

I like what Billups said about what he's trying to do with Sharpe starting at the 2:37 mark.

Watch on YouTube

[BlazersBroncos]

Word is the Lakers were very close to trading for Grant last off-season, so yeah if the price was slightly lower he might be a Laker right now. It appears the Blazers are trying to trade him, it's just a matter of what team is willing to pay the price, or if they lower the asking price.

Yeah, Cronin was asking for an extra 1st rounder that stalled those trade talks. Usually teams get more desperate at the trading deadline if they're fighting for a playoff spot. If the Lakers are around the 7-10 seed, that maybe enough for them to finally give in.

I have a feeling they can find the right team that will be willing to pay that price Grant is a damn good player to have in general, and he is a pretty damn solid defender. I don't see the rush to try to move him immediately at all, unless they are desperate to lose more games right now.

Grant can stay IMO. At least until his contract is shorter and the young forwards have been seasoned a bit more.

We know who needs to be dumped. I would rather move Ayton and Simons for little to no value than move Grant for a pick.

This is a entirely different team with them out of the rotation.

[Walton1one]

I was at the game last night. A couple of thoughts:

Sharpe had a great night, the questions about him or not whether or not he is capable of putting up a big game. The question is can he do it consistently, can he consistently be that #1 guy (and can he stay healthy). Remember, he also had a 5-game stretch LY where he scored 27/24/26/25/29 and then fell off sharply after that. Let's see if he can make that 5-game stretch the norm rather than the anomaly

I thought Deni (12-8-4-2 steals-1 blk) had a good game, he is a good connective player, he should be getting more than 25 minutes. I thought Billups took him out too soon in favor of other players who should not be prioritized.

RW3 is just a good player, just hope he stays healthy enough until the deadline when POR can trade him for a 1st.

I thought Camara really gave Trae Young a lot of problems. Trae is such a good offensive player, he is going to get his, but Camara hounded him all over the court and didn't let Trae get comfortable very often. I thought Trae struggled tonight, but then looking at the box score he had 29 (8-16\5-10 3pt). Yes, that was a foul by Camara on Trae near the end of the game. Credit to Camara, he probably knew what flavor of bubble gum Trae was chewing, but crafty offensive players find a way to use a defender's momentum against them and that is what happened there.

Banton, statistically a good night (9-19/4-8 3pt) but actually watching him play is frustrating, his favorite play is calling his own shot, and he does it way too often. Banton should not be taking 19 shots a night (2nd only to Sharpe @ 21). He hit a desperation double pump 3, nice the shot went in, but that was a stupid shot. Also, he is not even remotely a PG, he was credited with 5 TO, but had more that IMO, his first run he got stripped\turned it over like 3 times in a row. The guy needs to learn how to pass and play WITHIN a team concept. Much better ball movement with Avdija and\or Scoot in the game. Almost every time Banton gets the ball other players are left standing around.

I thought Scoot struggled tonight, then I look up his stats and note he had 10 assists tonight (4 TO). He needs to focus more on being a distributor & play to what is increasingly becoming the best aspect of his game right now.

POR center tandem tonight: 20 - 16 with 4 blocks (3 by DC) and both players are great at generating movement on the offensive end. I think that is the biggest difference in POR play of late.

The Blazers would wait till the best draft of the decade to blow the tank idea up

I agree, OTOH, it is good to see the young guys playing so well. However, to think this team does not need a MAJOR (Franchise\All Star) piece added to the roster would be foolish. As much as I hate to say it, maybe they need to bring back and play Simons\Ayton as much as they can. It is a moot point though, because that is what Billups would do regardless.

Lets not too carried away with the merits of the 2025 draft for there is nobody on the level of Victor any time soon

It's going to be a solid draft but Victor is on a different level as a prospect. Its like comparing Anthony Davis as a prospect to Lebron

While you likely are correct, there are a lot of (Franchise\All Star) caliber players potentially, and for a team that desperately needs one of those, THAT is why 2025 is so important.

This team does not even have a player remotely good as Anthony Davis. That just illustrates the point why positioning themselves to get the best pick possible for 2025 is so important (and Cronin looks to be screwing it up).

Even the worst teams in the NBA only have a 14% chance at most for that #1 pick that means you have a 86% chance of it not ending how you want it even if this year ends in complete disaster as far as wins go. You get way better odds of winning big in Vegas putting $20k on black or something.

Again, this is not a one person draft. It is a draft that is shaping up to have 4-5 franchise caliber players in it, so in that regard ending with one of the 3/4 worst records 100% matters.

[BlazersBroncos]

I want a good pick in this draft - but if we are winning games and playing well on the backs of our youth then I can live with it.

Its the idea, which hasnt played out since they basically stink, that the vets would get us wins and mess up the lotto balls that had me unhappy.

[PDXKnight]

I want a good pick in this draft - but if we are winning games and playing well on the backs of our youth then I can live with it.

Its the idea, which hasnt played out since they basically stink, that the vets would get us wins and mess up the lotto balls that had me unhappy.

I just wonder if we trade jerami if we end up in a better lotto spot.

I think the younguns will revert back to the mean sooner than later so hopefully the competitive losing will come natural

[Shem]

Grant can stay IMO. At least until his contract is shorter and the young forwards have been seasoned a bit more.

We know who needs to be dumped. I would rather move Ayton and Simons for little to no value than move Grant for a pick.

This is a entirely different team with them out of the rotation.

Grant will be the easiest to move in terms of his contract and current value. I'm willing to bet he's the first to be moved if anybody is traded "this" season.

Next season it will be easier to move Simons and Ayton because they will be expiring contracts. The thing that hurts the most this season is that if you're the Blazers, you only want to move Grant, Simons and Ayton for expiring contracts. Because you have to take salary back which means you're going to get a return on a veteran (or veterans) and it will likely be players we want gone as soon as trade is official.

Right now in terms of their value, Grant will be the easiest to move in terms of demand. Unless some miracle happens, it's very likely we'll have both Simons and Ayton the whole season. The soonest will likely be the summer of '25 when their contracts become expiring.

[G_K_F]

What is everyone’s feelings on Banton here? Will he even play much when Simons comes back?

I really like Banton’s production for my fantasy team but I also just like him as a player overall so I’m genuinely curious.

[DusterBuster]

What is everyone’s feelings on Banton here? Will he even play much when Simons comes back?

I really like Banton’s production for my fantasy team but I also just like him as a player overall so I’m genuinely curious.

That's a very good question, honestly don't think anyone here has an answer for that. When Banton plays, he produces.

There's rumblings Simons has asked out of Portland. Whether Simons' current status is due to that request or a legit injury/illness is up for debate rn.

When/if Simons comes back, Banton's minutes will likely get cut significantly. I would suspect Banton will still get some burn, but it will be situational. It will wholly depend on matchup and how the players in front of him are playing. Scoot will still be the first PG off the bench, but if he's having a rough night and scoring is needed from the PG spot, I suspect Billups will pull Scoot for Banton rather quickly. Banton can also play off-guard decently, so on nights Scoot has it going, I think Banton gets the call as the next man up for SG before Rupert or Murray - but his minutes will still be cut unless it's clear fast he's got his shot on for the night.

This is probably a lot of text for a non-answer. Truly, who the hell knows. Personally, I'm in the camp that I think Simons very well might have played his final game for Portland... it's probably wishful thinking, but I've got a tin-foil hat on with the Simons "injury" / "illness". I could very easily be wrong tho and he will be back next week playing 32 a game.

Bottom line, if Simons is healthy, Banton is probably getting like 15min a game. If Simons is out, he's getting the 25 a game Scoot would be getting.

[Shem]

Atlanta just went into Sacramento tonight and beat the Kings.

[DusterBuster]

Atlanta just went into Sacramento tonight and beat the Kings.

The Kings are like the TWolves, good, not great. Hawks are likewise, ok, not great. So not a surprise.

Bad teams can wrack up surprise wins early in seasons. So I wouldn't go overboard with this little win-streak. The Blazers did the same mini-streak this time last year. It's super encouraging to finally see the young Blazers getting run, it's how it should have been even last year... Scoot should have been starting all season last year - struggles be damned. Cronin **** up bringing in veteran players like Ayton. Dame and Simons should have been moved in the same summer and they should have bottomed out with nothing but youth.

Long story short, don't take anything away from the Blazers winning games against decent talent. Enjoy the fun basketball being played, enjoy a couple of wins, but don't overthink it.

All I am taking away from anything this season is player development. Give Scoot, Shae and Clingan as many minutes as they can handle, let them play through the mistakes and pain and let the W/L's fall where they may.