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vs



Time: 7:00pm
Place: Portland
TV: Root+

GLB of the game Barbara Eden

Last night against the Clippers, we looked like an exotic race car, running on cheap watered down regular. I think we all may like what we see, quite a bit more tonight. Brand new team will take some time adjust, but you'd have be blind, to not see the potential with our talent.

I do not like our young players very much... I wonder if will ever see veterans around Dame? I really hope we do some consolidation trades at the deadline.

Brandon Williams might actually be the worst player I've ever seen in an NBA game... even if preseason. It's not that he in himself is the worst player ever. But he's just such a damn chucker. Calls his own number every time he touches the ball... easy.. tough... doesn't matter... he's chucking... and he's not a good shooter. Complete lack of self awareness and just straight up and buffoon of a pleyer.

Where has Trendon been?

twame brown wrote:Where has Trendon been?

Tendon has a right hip flexor.

My god this Vic kid is unbelievable.

As for the Blazers, meh. 7-8th seed or bubble IMO. We might play hard, but the top end talent isnt there and IMO its unlikely a trade becomes avaliable to grab a true difference maker. Maybe we can sell the future for Pascal, but even with him we would be fighting for HCA, the league is just a bloodbath right now.

Espn is reporting there will be robust tanking market for Victor. It makes you wonder if Portland is lingering around 8/9 in the conference, if we'll see a reprise of last season. Already talk of Victor sitting out this season coming off last night's 37 point game

Norm2953 wrote:Espn is reporting there will be robust tanking market for Victor. It makes you wonder if Portland is lingering around 8/9 in the conference, if we'll see a reprise of last season. Already talk of Victor sitting out this season coming off last night's 37 point game

Vic and Scoot will be franchise changers.

This will probably be the strongest Top-2 since the Oden / Durant draft. Its a once every 15-20 year Top-2 class.

BlazersBroncos wrote:

Norm2953 wrote:Espn is reporting there will be robust tanking market for Victor. It makes you wonder if Portland is lingering around 8/9 in the conference, if we'll see a reprise of last season. Already talk of Victor sitting out this season coming off last night's 37 point game

Vic and Scoot will be franchise changers.

This will probably be the strongest Top-2 since the Oden / Durant draft. Its a once every 15-20 year Top-2 class.

All the more reason to rebuild this year! I dont understand the direction they've taken, what's the goal here? If everything goes perfectly, and I mean perfectly, maybe a top 4 seed in the West?

CDM_Stats wrote:

BlazersBroncos wrote:

Norm2953 wrote:Espn is reporting there will be robust tanking market for Victor. It makes you wonder if Portland is lingering around 8/9 in the conference, if we'll see a reprise of last season. Already talk of Victor sitting out this season coming off last night's 37 point game

Vic and Scoot will be franchise changers.

This will probably be the strongest Top-2 since the Oden / Durant draft. Its a once every 15-20 year Top-2 class.

All the more reason to rebuild this year! I dont understand the direction they've taken, what's the goal here? If everything goes perfectly, and I mean perfectly, maybe a top 4 seed in the West?

I would argue that the goal was to keep the team afloat (IE low playoff seed worthy) using a defensive identity in the hopes that Sharpe is a hit and develops into the borderline All NBA #2 that anyone with sense understands Dame needs to make any serious noise in the playoffs.

I dont believe will pan out, and I am getting farther and farther from being of the belief that a team with Damian Lillard as their #1 can win a ring, especially as he ages.

But, its not a crazy plan. The team remains profitable due to Dame, they put a product on the floor that at least in theory is full of try-hards and defenders to compliment Dame / Ant (The type of squad we have yelled needs to be put around Dame for years), they hope and pray that Sharpe can 'hit' and become the upper tier #2 option that an aging, lower tier #1 like Dame will require to make legit playoff noise.

We also were not dealt a great hand to rebuild. Dame was injured, no team gives up fair value for a guy coming off an injury that has not proven healthy.

At the same time, the contract we gave Dame will be quite unappealing to any buyer IMO. The pessimist in my says when this new plan fails the return for Lillard will be much less than we have hoped for. Just matching contracts will be tough. On top of that, a small number of tanking teams already own a huge number of other teams future picks, limiting the teams in play for Dame even further.

Just a tough situation. In the end we all want Dame to end his career like Dirk, with that one ring gained out of perseverance and built on a star surrounded by near ideal complimentary role players. End of the day the guy I believe he will end up compared to should he remain in Portland is another who stayed his whole career in a single place but never got that ring - Reggie Miller.

I would love to see Dame see success here, I just dont know if its possible. I agree with all of the above, but I think to be an actual contender, Blazers have to do everything perfect for the next year or so. And have accelerated development of Sharpe, a renewed interest on D from Grant, and Nurk just has to do better with the layups. Among numerous other things.

I'm just saying if the Lakers came calling, with a huge expiring in Russ and enough 1sts to make it worth it, I'd give that a long look. And then immediately after I'd see if Nurk and Grant could be dealt too. Its not what I really want, which is to see Dame get a ring here, but I am afraid that the value PDX could get for him is shrinking a ton and by next year will be entirely negative value. Lakers might be the one team desperate enough to pay what a healthy Dame is actually worth.

But most importantly, I'd hate to see the Blazers finish as a 8-10 seed when this draft has 2 elite prospects and several great ones behind them. To put it bluntly, I dont want to see the Sacramento Trail Blazers

If you listen to people here Dame had NO VALUE during this past off season AND he did not ask for an extension...quite strange. I think his value could keep diminishing like possibly his skills to the point, saddled with his current contact he could become untradable.

I thought this was our last chance to unload him while still giving him a shot for a ring, but it seems we are going to ride this horse all the way to the glue factory.

Roy The Natural wrote:Brandon Williams might actually be the worst player I've ever seen in an NBA game... even if preseason. It's not that he in himself is the worst player ever. But he's just such a damn chucker. Calls his own number every time he touches the ball... easy.. tough... doesn't matter... he's chucking... and he's not a good shooter. Complete lack of self awareness and just straight up and buffoon of a pleyer.

Damian Lillard
CJ McCollum
Anfernee Simon's
Brandon William's

Is there a PG checker pattern?

m0ng0 wrote:If you listen to people here Dame had NO VALUE during this past off season AND he did not ask for an extension...quite strange. I think his value could keep diminishing like possibly his skills to the point, saddled with his current contact he could become untradable.

I thought this was our last chance to unload him while still giving him a shot for a ring, but it seems we are going to ride this horse all the way to the glue factory.

haha I love that turn of phrase there

It appears that is the route Cronin has chosen, which makes sense if the market for Dame is pretty cold, because trading a franchise lifer for peanuts is a bad look. I have a tough time believing he's going to return value for the 90 million investment in his final 2 years also. Maybe the opportunity has passed already. But the moves being made are going different directions, like the Powell/RoCo trade to shed contracts and rebuild, but then the trade for Jerami Grant using a future 1st and two 2nds is more to win now. Which is it? I know its a different GM but this is the kind of draft where if you're a possible treadmill team, just stop walking and let the momentum take you downwards. Just my 2c

Blazers fans when winning a preseason game: "It's just preseason. No big deal."

Blazers fans when losing a preseason game: "Things are looking bad in Rip City. We're in big trouble."

Chill Blazer Fans. This is a Half-Baked Cake right now. We will have a much better feel by the season opener. Not saying the new and improved small guard pairing is going to work, but at this point we have to hope it somehow results in two, 50/40/90-ish guys because if it stinks... he's owed ALOT more money now and trading partners are shrinking along with the length of Dame's prime. The extension still seams strange to me.

Hopefully Cronin either proves smart because the pairing works, or he at least knows that he still has some good options with other GMs in regards to Dame. I think one of the two will prove true.