2023 NBA Draft (tonight's discussion on pg 58)

[zzaj]

I think Dame foolishly has Billups back, but man cutting that dead fish and signing Nurse would be a godsend.

They may be two of the most opposite coaches in the league - Chauncey a coach with no clue how to coach but liked by the players, Nurse a tremendous X/O guy with elite adjustments who wears on his players (At least that is what I can sus out of this firing).

Do guys want to win? Or want a BFF in the locker room?

At the NBA level, I usually fall into the camp of "the coach is mostly as good as the players they're coaching." However, I saw enough of Chauncey to think that he's ACTUALLY making mistakes that cost the Blazers a few games.

One of the biggest mistakes the organization could make is to go into next season with Billups as the head coach. Both Nurse and Ime would be HUGE upgrades. I think that a change to one of those guys, would alone be worth 5 wins next season.

[DusterBuster]

I think Dame foolishly has Billups back, but man cutting that dead fish and signing Nurse would be a godsend.

They may be two of the most opposite coaches in the league - Chauncey a coach with no clue how to coach but liked by the players, Nurse a tremendous X/O guy with elite adjustments who wears on his players (At least that is what I can sus out of this firing).

Do guys want to win? Or want a BFF in the locker room?

At the NBA level, I usually fall into the camp of "the coach is mostly as good as the players they're coaching." However, I saw enough of Chauncey to think that he's ACTUALLY making mistakes that cost the Blazers a few games.

One of the biggest mistakes the organization could make is to go into next season with Billups as the head coach. Both Nurse and Ime would be HUGE upgrades. I think that a change to one of those guys, would alone be worth 5 wins next season.

Dude same! It’s important players want to play for coaches, but X’s and O’s matter too. To me it seems like players just want to play for Billups because they respect him as an icon of the game when they were growing up and that’s it. The fact he didn’t even remotely understand how to make adjustments to other teams halftime adjustments is textbook “you don’t know what the **** you’re doing” in a coach.

For as much as people complained about Stotts’ switch on defense, at least it was a defensive scheme. If Billups ever becomes successful as a coach, he will be the next Doc Rivers. Rivers and Billups to me are really similar as coaches. Player who were successful, have players respect, but their only real skill as a coach is that players respect you and you can give a halftime speech.

[BlazersBroncos]

Probably crazy but I wouldn’t be upset if we went into 23/24 with Paul Reed and Drew Eubanks as our C rotation.

Go the GSW way, hustle screen setting low usage garbage men at C and allocate salary / assets elsewhere. Unless of course you have Joel or Joker.

Use all the assets we can on a F upgrade (Assuming Nurk can be the salary matching, with or without Simons), resign Drew cheap, use the MLE (Or a portion) on Reed.

I think Paul is going to blow up once he is out of Philly. Kid always produces and would be the athletic injection at C we desperately need. Ya, he isn’t 7’0 or a 3PT threat, but he brings everything else we need. He is the type of low key high upside gamble we need to be taking.

[GEE]

We are not yet ready to compete. We tried to starting out the season, but at the half-way mark, it was pretty clear that with the lack of dependability at PF and C (Winslow and Nurkic) more roster building will be needed, so we fired up the tank. Same strategy as the previous year, and unfortunately with the tank stategy comes losses of many games that could have been won. In order to ACHIEVE this, a coach will suck on purpose. This is necessary because no player in the NBA will do such a thing.

My criticism of Chauncey Billups & Scotty Brooks will begin next season.

[red_power]

Player who were successful, have players respect, but their only real skill as a coach is that players respect you and you can give a halftime speech.

Yeah both are of that type of a coach whose coaching skills are limited to screaming "Trust each other!!!" during timeouts

[GEE]

MAY 16th... Surely it's already marked on your calendars, and it's coming up quick. The lottery ball drop iirc gives SAN, DET & HOU equal odds of landing #1, followed by CHA then POR. I'm going to stay hopefull because this Blazers franchise deserves a little luck, and IMO would generate the best NBA story making the Blazers instantly relavant again. I still remember the Oden introduction at Pioneer Square... that was fun, and we only had a less than 9% chance back then.

I have a sickening feeling the Spurs are going to get it, because they are NOT unlucky like us. Regardless, I think my days are going to start getting longer, as May !6th comes nearer. If we do somehow win the #1 pick, this town will go absolutely bananas, and I will definitely loose my $#!t.

Any update on who will represent us at the Lottery? We should choose carefully. I'm feeling... Bill Walton to be my choice to bring us the necessary good vibrations, with the powerful spirit of Jerry Garcia. Plus the obvious... Bill being drafted #1 back in the day.

Or the obvious choice... B ROY... The one who represented us at the 2007 Lottery when we last lucked out.

[Norm2953]

Portland is not going to be picking at 5 and the odds say its likely they will be picking at 6/7
when its all done. I would bet on the SA Spurs winning the lottery for its best for Victor and
a HOF coach like Pop to be paired together.

Team needs have to address defense/rebounding for all those who have advocating for DDR have to
consider DDR/Grant might be the pair of rebounders, starting for an NBA team.

Portland should still be okay if they pick at 6/7 for they can address their need for defense/rebounding
for one of Walker/Hendricks will be there if they keep the pick. If they trade the pick, I hope they
remember to address what they need as opposed to merely keeping Dame happy for now.

Whatever they do, make a smart basketball move as opposed to a marketing move. Decide whether they
wish to relevant for the next 3-4 years of Dame's remaining prime or tear it down and build around
Sharpe who should be solid player by his third season, after he has had time to adjust to how NBA teams
will be playing him next season.

[DusterBuster]

MAY 16th... Surely it's already marked on your calendars, and it's coming up quick. The lottery ball drop iirc gives SAN, DET & HOU equal odds of landing #1, followed by CHA then POR. I'm going to stay hopefull because this Blazers franchise deserves a little luck, and IMO would generate the best NBA story making the Blazers instantly relavant again. I still remember the Oden introduction at Pioneer Square... that was fun, and we only had a less than 9% chance back then.

I have a sickening feeling the Spurs are going to get it, because they are NOT unlucky like us. Regardless, I think my days are going to start getting longer, as May !6th comes nearer. If we do somehow win the #1 pick, this town will go absolutely bananas, and I will definitely loose my $#!t.

Any update on who will represent us at the Lottery? We should choose carefully. I'm feeling... Bill Walton to be my choice to bring us the necessary good vibrations, with the powerful spirit of Jerry Garcia. Plus the obvious... Bill being drafted #1 back in the day.

Or the obvious choice... B ROY... The one who represented us at the 2007 Lottery when we last lucked out.

Yeah, Spurs are who I think gets Wemby too unfortunately. Who knows, but if history has anything to say bout it…

That said, still holding out some hope for a miracle. Not over til all those balls drop.

[Goldbum]

I spent a chunk of my day off looking at rosters to find a team that would give us a star for Ant+Lotto+Nas + whatever else. At the end I decided we need to do the opposite. Instead of cashing in our future we need to find a similar package to move Dame to a team Instead. 1 super high potential 23 year old, 1 lotto pick and another youngster plus picks.

A example would be
Nurkic + Dame
4
Porzingas + Avidja + Davis + Wright + 8 overall

I'm not suggesting this is THE trade you make, just that it's an example of the frame work.
I would look to move Keon, Nas, Wright and ??? to get a Center or PF/C like Jalen Smith ( I know that salary doesnt work, but a player like Smith is what I'd be looking for).
I believe that if a lot of teams we aproach might to pick up a player to pair with Dame might prefer to put Dame with their star rather than rebuild.
Like we contact Brooklyn to get Bridges and end up with them making an offer for Dame and Nurkic instead.

[zzaj]

I spent a chunk of my day off looking at rosters to find a team that would give us a star for Ant+Lotto+Nas + whatever else. At the end I decided we need to do the opposite. Instead of cashing in our future we need to find a similar package to move Dame to a team Instead. 1 super high potential 23 year old, 1 lotto pick and another youngster plus picks.

A example would be
Nurkic + Dame
4
Porzingas + Avidja + Davis + Wright + 8 overall

I'm not suggesting this is THE trade you make, just that it's an example of the frame work.
I would look to move Keon, Nas, Wright and ??? to get a Center or PF/C like Jalen Smith ( I know that salary doesnt work, but a player like Smith is what I'd be looking for).
I believe that if a lot of teams we aproach might to pick up a player to pair with Dame might prefer to put Dame with their star rather than rebuild.
Like we contact Brooklyn to get Bridges and end up with them making an offer for Dame and Nurkic instead.

I feel like it's going to be really tough to match salary in a Lillard trade, without taking something really big back.

It's going to be really interesting to see what Lillard does after the summer dust settles. I can't quite decide if he were to ask out, if it'd be before the season or before the deadline. My hope would be before the deadline...that's when teams seem to get blinded by the season's championship aspirations and make mistakes. But honestly, if it goes public that Lillard wants out, bye bye leverage...the Blazers are likely to get fleeced in any transaction.

[DusterBuster]

I spent a chunk of my day off looking at rosters to find a team that would give us a star for Ant+Lotto+Nas + whatever else. At the end I decided we need to do the opposite. Instead of cashing in our future we need to find a similar package to move Dame to a team Instead. 1 super high potential 23 year old, 1 lotto pick and another youngster plus picks.

A example would be
Nurkic + Dame
4
Porzingas + Avidja + Davis + Wright + 8 overall

I'm not suggesting this is THE trade you make, just that it's an example of the frame work.
I would look to move Keon, Nas, Wright and ??? to get a Center or PF/C like Jalen Smith ( I know that salary doesnt work, but a player like Smith is what I'd be looking for).
I believe that if a lot of teams we aproach might to pick up a player to pair with Dame might prefer to put Dame with their star rather than rebuild.
Like we contact Brooklyn to get Bridges and end up with them making an offer for Dame and Nurkic instead.

I feel like it's going to be really tough to match salary in a Lillard trade, without taking something really big back.

It's going to be really interesting to see what Lillard does after the summer dust settles. I can't quite decide if he were to ask out, if it'd be before the season or before the deadline. My hope would be before the deadline...that's when teams seem to get blinded by the season's championship aspirations and make mistakes. But honestly, if it goes public that Lillard wants out, bye bye leverage...the Blazers are likely to get fleeced in any transaction.

I don’t believe they’ll get fleeced as such, even if it’s public. He’s still a top 10-15 player and when those guys ask out - even publicly - they still can return good value.

I agree with GEE tho, outside of a lottery miracle, I’m just not seeing an all-in trade shaking loose that makes sense for the Blazers. Too many teams are already looking at the Blazers to be the team with an all-in player available, which makes it tough for the Blazers when they want that to be someone else. I think moving Dame and starting new makes the most sense and is probably the most realistic outcome here

[zzaj]

I spent a chunk of my day off looking at rosters to find a team that would give us a star for Ant+Lotto+Nas + whatever else. At the end I decided we need to do the opposite. Instead of cashing in our future we need to find a similar package to move Dame to a team Instead. 1 super high potential 23 year old, 1 lotto pick and another youngster plus picks.

A example would be
Nurkic + Dame
4
Porzingas + Avidja + Davis + Wright + 8 overall

I'm not suggesting this is THE trade you make, just that it's an example of the frame work.
I would look to move Keon, Nas, Wright and ??? to get a Center or PF/C like Jalen Smith ( I know that salary doesnt work, but a player like Smith is what I'd be looking for).
I believe that if a lot of teams we aproach might to pick up a player to pair with Dame might prefer to put Dame with their star rather than rebuild.
Like we contact Brooklyn to get Bridges and end up with them making an offer for Dame and Nurkic instead.

I feel like it's going to be really tough to match salary in a Lillard trade, without taking something really big back.

It's going to be really interesting to see what Lillard does after the summer dust settles. I can't quite decide if he were to ask out, if it'd be before the season or before the deadline. My hope would be before the deadline...that's when teams seem to get blinded by the season's championship aspirations and make mistakes. But honestly, if it goes public that Lillard wants out, bye bye leverage...the Blazers are likely to get fleeced in any transaction.

I don’t believe they’ll get fleeced as such, even if it’s public. He’s still a top 10-15 player and when those guys ask out - even publicly - they still can return good value.

I agree with GEE tho, outside of a lottery miracle, I’m just not seeing an all-in trade shaking loose that makes sense for the Blazers. Too many teams are already looking at the Blazers to be the team with an all-in player available, which makes it tough for the Blazers when they want that to be someone else. I think moving Dame and starting new makes the most sense and is probably the most realistic outcome here

DB, your last point is the same point I was trying to make (my elipses didn’t seperate the ideas enough). I agree that everyone is going to be licking their lips at the Blazers. The only leverage they might keep is if Lillard maintains his “I want to be here” stance, publicly.

[JasonStern]

Shooting my shot - the Blazers either draft Wembanyama and he plays ~50 games before retiring due to knee injuries. Or we draft Scoot and act surprised when surrounding Dame with another undersized guard doesn't work.

If you aren't cynical, you either aren't a true Blazers fan or you're new here.

[red_power]

Or Blazers go with Miller just to find out that he's a borderline starter who lacks quickness and explosiveness to be a real difference maker

[JRoy]

Or Blazers go with Miller just to find out that he's a borderline starter who lacks quickness and explosiveness to be a real difference maker

Marvin Williams part 2?

[Goldbum]

Or Blazers go with Miller just to find out that he's a borderline starter who lacks quickness and explosiveness to be a real difference maker

Marvin Williams part 2?

I've always believed Marvin Williams would be a difference maker in today's game. I'd have him top 3 in either of the last 2 drafts. Sometimes it's the player and sometimes it's the era, just imagine all those ibg guys that go late but would have gone top 10 before the NBA became 30 teams trying to play like the GSW

[DusterBuster]

Or Blazers go with Miller just to find out that he's a borderline starter who lacks quickness and explosiveness to be a real difference maker

Marvin Williams part 2?

I've always believed Marvin Williams would be a difference maker in today's game. I'd have him top 3 in either of the last 2 drafts. Sometimes it's the player and sometimes it's the era, just imagine all those ibg guys that go late but would have gone top 10 before the NBA became 30 teams trying to play like the GSW

I agree with this. The league was so rigid about positions back in the day, that guys like Williams ended up being hard guys to fit into a roster since they weren't really pure PF's or SF's, so you had a hard time playing them against teams who did have the prototypical players at those positions. They were not strong enough to stay with real PF's, but too bulky to guard quick SFs.

Even guys who did have some success like Antawn Jamison, he was kinda a hard fit for most teams and bounced around a lot despite being a 20ppg level player. Meanwhile, in today's game, Jamison would probably be looked at a lot like a Jason Tatum type and super coveted.

[JRoy]

Marvin Williams part 2?

I've always believed Marvin Williams would be a difference maker in today's game. I'd have him top 3 in either of the last 2 drafts. Sometimes it's the player and sometimes it's the era, just imagine all those ibg guys that go late but would have gone top 10 before the NBA became 30 teams trying to play like the GSW

I agree with this. The league was so rigid about positions back in the day, that guys like Williams ended up being hard guys to fit into a roster since they weren't really pure PF's or SF's, so you had a hard time playing them against teams who did have the prototypical players at those positions. They were not strong enough to stay with real PF's, but too bulky to guard quick SFs.

Even guys who did have some success like Antawn Jamison, he was kinda a hard fit for most teams and bounced around a lot despite being a 20ppg level player. Meanwhile, in today's game, Jamison would probably be looked at a lot like a Jason Tatum type and super coveted.

Maybe.

He was so bad defensively.

[JasonStern]

Yep. That part of the off-season where we're optimistic we can land a Marvin Williams caliber player.

[Goldbum]

Yep. That part of the off-season where we're optimistic we can land a Marvin Williams caliber player.

Put (a young) Williams next to Grant and we would have a set of modern combo forwards. Heck Jabari's best case is probably prime Williams (though he likely won't get there). Tobias Harris is a less talented Marvin clone and has had a very good (and very wealthy) career.
We're just commenting on the way the games changed, not pining for a retired JAG.
PS imagine Shawn Bradley in the modern game without him facing 2 to 4 bruisers every night. Sometimes it matters 'when'.