Is RIP CITY back? Blazers shoot for Play In ???

[Walton1one]

even though Simons and Ayton bug the shiz out of me, and Grant's contract bugs the shiz out of me, if I narrow my remedial powers of focus to just each game, the winning streak has been entertaining

but it is coming at a high cost, IMO. Portland's chances of a top-4 pick in the loaded 2025 draft are now effectively DOA. And landing an elite player is the only way the Blazers can become a contender

but worse than that is I'm inclined to think the streak has convinced Cronin his work is done. Now, all he has to do is 'bake that cake'. And we know how that works out.

notwithstanding the fun of the winning streak, the nuts and bolts for the 9 wins in 10 games are revealing. 7 of the 10 games were at home. The win against the Pacers last night was the only win against a team in NBA's top-10, record-wise. Only 3 of the 10 games were against teams in the top-6 in either conference and they lost one of those games. The Blazers have been getting wins on the backs of Simons-Ayton-Grant. In the previous win against Phoenix, Simons played as many minutes as Sharpe and Scoot combined. Simons/Ayton/Grant combined for 125 minutes and 51 shots; Scoot/Sharpe/Clingan combined for 51 minutes and 18 shots. If you love those 3 vets and want them as Blazers' top-3 options for the next 5 years then you'll be happy. But if you're like me and see those guys as captains of Purgatory....yuck

something else: 3-4 weeks ago the Blazers were 5 games out of 10th seed. After winning 9 of 10, the Blazers are now 4 games out of 10th seed. They picked up 1 game; that's all. Perhaps more important is they have 5 more losses than the current 10th seed(s) and they don't own the tiebreaker on any of them. And over the last 22 games starting in March, Portland has 11 road games and 10 games against Cleveland (2), Boston (2), New York (2), OKC, Memphis, Denver, and Lakers.

meaning their odds at 10th seed is really low. But it probably doesn't matter. As I said, I think Cronin probably feels vindicated now. Jody and the Vulcans don't care. treadnill

by the way in a 1 year period, Ayton, Simons, Williams, Thybulle, Scoot, Sharpe, & Camara will all be due new contracts. Good luck!

Great post Wiz, and sad...

This team, as constructed is reminiscent of what the Chicago Bulls team has been for the last 10 years. Nowhere near a legitimate title contending team or even a playoff team to take seriously.

The way Cronin has constructed this team is like building a state of the art house that has a fatal flaw in its' foundation and then realizing 3? 5? 7? years later that it cannot be fixed w\o tearing it all down.

CHI BTW is finally, embracing a full tear down & rebuild after 10 YEARS of floundering around in no man's land.

CHI record over these last 10 years...
21-29
39-43
40-42
46-36 (lost 1st round 4-1)
31-41
22-43
22-60
27-55
41-41 (lost 1st round, 4-2)
42-40

10 years of mediocrity, 2 playoff appearances where they got handled easily, intermixed between years of incompetence or irrelevance.

[Wizenheimer]

It's not a matter of may, you can hear it directly from DA in his post game interviews recently. He makes no secret that he loves being in Portland.

The question of resigning him will largely come down to two things, if he can keep this motivated play sustained and Clingan's development/health.

I think it comes down to more than that

I mentioned it in a post above, but in a 1 year period, Ayton, Simons, Williams, Thybulle, Scoot, Sharpe, and Camara will all be due new contracts. Thybulle you can toss aside. Maybe Timelord too although he and Clingan make a lot more sense than Ayton and Clingan

but that's a lot of players to get re-signed. The salary caps in those 2 years will like be around 170M and 185M. 20% of those caps could be a contract approaching 40M/year. And 20% seems about what you can expect for those vets and rookie extensions

that would mean Ayton + Simons + Grant + Scoot + Sharpe + Camara + Avdija would be well over 200M in salary. And that doesn't count Clingan's rookie extension. Something has to give and if what gives is part or all of the Simons-Ayton-Grant trio then why the hell are they Blazers right now busy monkey-wrenching Portland's chances at a high lottery pick?

[DusterBuster]

It's not a matter of may, you can hear it directly from DA in his post game interviews recently. He makes no secret that he loves being in Portland.

The question of resigning him will largely come down to two things, if he can keep this motivated play sustained and Clingan's development/health.

I think it comes down to more than that

I mentioned it in a post above, but in a 1 year period, Ayton, Simons, Williams, Thybulle, Scoot, Sharpe, and Camara will all be due new contracts. Thybulle you can toss aside. Maybe Timelord too although he and Clingan make a lot more sense than Ayton and Clingan

but that's a lot of players to get re-signed. The salary caps in those 2 years will like be around 170M and 185M. 20% of those caps could be a contract approaching 40M/year. And 20% seems about what you can expect for those vets and rookie extensions

that would mean Ayton + Simons + Grant + Scoot + Sharpe + Camara + Avdija would be well over 200M in salary. And that doesn't count Clingan's rookie extension. Something has to give and if what gives is part or all of the Simons-Ayton-Grant trio then why the hell are they Blazers right now busy monkey-wrenching Portland's chances at a high lottery pick?

These are all excellent points, which is why I'm of the believe this team is going to eventually need some sort of consolidation trade or trades.

[Sinobas]

I don't want Portland to intentionally "tank", because I'd like to see if they naturally revert back to the crappy play we saw in 2024. It's already too late to "tank" anyway because the teams below us wouldn't win enough games to allow us to catch them.

If this team has truly turned a corner, that really undermines what most fans have been assuming, that Grant/Ayton need to go. It would mean this is likely our last year in the lottery and we should focus on winning.

If this is just a hot streak, they won't really need to "tank", they'll just go back to losing. I don't suspect we'll move much up or down either way, so it's better to get more analysis.

[Sinobas]

It's not a matter of may, you can hear it directly from DA in his post game interviews recently. He makes no secret that he loves being in Portland.

The question of resigning him will largely come down to two things, if he can keep this motivated play sustained and Clingan's development/health.

I think it comes down to more than that

I mentioned it in a post above, but in a 1 year period, Ayton, Simons, Williams, Thybulle, Scoot, Sharpe, and Camara will all be due new contracts. Thybulle you can toss aside. Maybe Timelord too although he and Clingan make a lot more sense than Ayton and Clingan

but that's a lot of players to get re-signed. The salary caps in those 2 years will like be around 170M and 185M. 20% of those caps could be a contract approaching 40M/year. And 20% seems about what you can expect for those vets and rookie extensions

that would mean Ayton + Simons + Grant + Scoot + Sharpe + Camara + Avdija would be well over 200M in salary. And that doesn't count Clingan's rookie extension. Something has to give and if what gives is part or all of the Simons-Ayton-Grant trio then why the hell are they Blazers right now busy monkey-wrenching Portland's chances at a high lottery pick?

They won't give RW a new contract. And if we retain Ayton, it would be for much less than he's earning now. And I really doubt they'd keep Simons either. Simons wouldn't want to stick around and be a 6th man, and the team is going with Scoot.

[Wizenheimer]

They won't give RW a new contract. And if we retain Ayton, it would be for much less than he's earning now. And I really doubt they'd keep Simons either. Simons wouldn't want to stick around and be a 6th man, and the team is going with Scoot.

you're making some assumptions about Cronin's intentions I sure wouldn't make

I'd agree that re-signing Timelord is a bad idea, but Cronin is the guy who hard-capped the Blazers by signing an injured-needs-surgery Gary Payton and rumors are the Blazers are still really high on TL

Cronin was eager to land Ayton and his contract so I think it's entirely possible he's willing to give Ayton at least 30M/year. And I'm betting he re-signs Simons. I think Cronin + Simons will be like Olshey + CJ

it's a treadmill in purgatory and I'm betting the winning streak make Cronin feel vindicated

[HoopsFanAZ]

I think all of us expected to the Blazers to be one of the worst teams in the league this year. BUT all of a sudden, they are winning and beating quality teams...routinely.
Over the last ten games, the Blazers are 7-3. Only Indy, Men and Lal are better. The Blazers are four games behind the Kings for the 10th play-in spot, and 5 behind Phoenix.
IF the Blazers reversed the stream and traded for a position upgrade, they could make a push for the play in.
Obviously, they risk sending their 1st to Chicago. And the opportunity cost of missing out on a blue chip rookie.

Which would you prefer? Shoot for the playoffs or lose for a better shot at ping pong balls?

Not only do they not get to the play-in nor make the playoffs, IMHO, they should not.
Handing over the pick to Chicago would suck hard in a strong draft. I expect the pick — going into the lottery — is 6-8.

Growth of the young fellas is good. Having better vets to help this growth on the court is good. Cleaning out the larger and longer contracts is good. All good. But 4 contracts up after the 2025-2026 season is not to be botched for short-term wins. Whether it’s tomorrow or this summer, the rebuild in this iteration has not been completed.

Pick 8 or higher vs. no pick and feel good? For me, it’s not close. Beyond not close. Play hard. Tank. Trade.

Build on Clingan, Camara, Avdija, Sharpe, Scoot.

[PDXKnight]

They won't give RW a new contract. And if we retain Ayton, it would be for much less than he's earning now. And I really doubt they'd keep Simons either. Simons wouldn't want to stick around and be a 6th man, and the team is going with Scoot.

you're making some assumptions about Cronin's intentions I sure wouldn't make

I'd agree that re-signing Timelord is a bad idea, but Cronin is the guy who hard-capped the Blazers by signing an injured-needs-surgery Gary Payton and rumors are the Blazers are still really high on

Cronin was eager to land Ayton and his contract so I think it's entirely possible he's willing to give Ayton at least 30M/year. And I'm betting he re-signs Simons. I think Cronin + Simons will be like Olshey + CJ

it's a treadmill in purgatory and I'm betting the winning streak make Cronin feel vindicated

Yup, I've seen nothing from Joe to indicate he won't make a stupid signing. And even if by some miracle he doesn't give any of these guys dumb extensions I could see him finding another way to burn it ie maxing out all 3 of Sharpe Scoot and toumani & leaving us a capped out treadmill team

[zzaj]

POR has no all star level players.

Making the play in to get squashed would be a catastrophe.

It gets happen FRP might convey to CHI. If that happens the entire FO needs to go.

Scoot, Shae and Deni all reasonably look like they have asg potential within 2-3 years.

Which means, in next years we become reliably good.

They kind of already are?

Man the crow, like I don’t think you guys are actually ready for it. It seems like lately there’s been some “great enlightenment” that maybe just maybe, our team isn’t horrible, we actually have a future, Chauncey and Joe are actually tolerable for now…

Then I realize, no. They really still want to live in the land that thinks we should have completely thrown our season away and fired our coach to chase after the “ODDS” of a draft pick. Specifically one player.

I cannot ever agree with this logic.

We chose to be good now, as the youngest team in the league, with a whole chest of assets, plus somewhat helpful vets around.

You couldn’t possibly be mad right now, unless - you guessed it, you’re a Blazer “fan”.

It’s the golden era to be a Blazer fan, and you cannot convince me otherwise.

And guess what? You can just stay pessimistic, and not only will the Blazers continue improving and Scoot continues to prove *everybody but his 4 believers* wrong, Deni and Ayton continue taking steps up, and JoeCro/Chauncey continue to make the right moves and improve themselves, respectively in their own newer positions.

Everyone wins. Us believers win, you guys who think losing is the only path to success, you’ll learn a whole new era of what team chemistry and success look like… ya just might learn something or two

Pattycakes...I'll make a fun deal with you:

I refuse to eat crow over a 10 game stretch where they played mostly bad competition and teams in turmoil. This team could just as easily switch "off" and lose the next 6 in a row vs. good teams.

Now. Has the team improved? Absolutely. But everything we're seeing is like a best-case scenario...that's not sustainable over the end of the season. Or at least, i don't think it is.

The deal:

If the Blazers go 4-2 or better vs. the next 6 (SAC, MIN, DEN, DEN, LAL, CHA) I'll gladly eat crow. If the Blazers go 2-4 or worse in that same stretch, it'll be your turn. Deal?

[Butter]

POR has no all star level players.

Making the play in to get squashed would be a catastrophe.

It gets happen FRP might convey to CHI. If that happens the entire FO needs to go.

Scoot, Shae and Deni all reasonably look like they have asg potential within 2-3 years.

Which means, in next years we become reliably good.

They kind of already are?

Man the crow, like I don’t think you guys are actually ready for it. It seems like lately there’s been some “great enlightenment” that maybe just maybe, our team isn’t horrible, we actually have a future, Chauncey and Joe are actually tolerable for now…

Then I realize, no. They really still want to live in the land that thinks we should have completely thrown our season away and fired our coach to chase after the “ODDS” of a draft pick. Specifically one player.

I cannot ever agree with this logic.

We chose to be good now, as the youngest team in the league, with a whole chest of assets, plus somewhat helpful vets around.

You couldn’t possibly be mad right now, unless - you guessed it, you’re a Blazer “fan”.

It’s the golden era to be a Blazer fan, and you cannot convince me otherwise.

And guess what? You can just stay pessimistic, and not only will the Blazers continue improving and Scoot continues to prove *everybody but his 4 believers* wrong, Deni and Ayton continue taking steps up, and JoeCro/Chauncey continue to make the right moves and improve themselves, respectively in their own newer positions.

Everyone wins. Us believers win, you guys who think losing is the only path to success, you’ll learn a whole new era of what team chemistry and success look like… ya just might learn something or two

Pattycakes...I'll make a fun deal with you:

I refuse to eat crow over a 10 game stretch where they played mostly bad competition and teams in turmoil. This team could just as easily switch "off" and lose the next 6 in a row vs. good teams.

Now. Has the team improved? Absolutely. But everything we're seeing is like a best-case scenario...that's not sustainable over the end of the season. Or at least, i don't think it is.

The deal:

If the Blazers go 4-2 or better vs. the next 6 (SAC, MIN, DEN, DEN, LAL, CHA) I'll gladly eat crow. If the Blazers go 2-4 or worse in that same stretch, it'll be your turn. Deal?

Interesting. I thought last night's game was an bit of a litmus test for the Blazers. Granted, the Kings just moved their best player, and their two new acquisitions need time to gel, but I thought the Blazers showed a lot of poise. I get what some fans are saying, but in professional sports, you play who's on the schedule. Some times it's not just about getting a win against a bad team, it's HOW the Blazers have been winning.

We'll see what happens over the next 6 games.

[PDXKnight]

Scoot, Shae and Deni all reasonably look like they have asg potential within 2-3 years.

Which means, in next years we become reliably good.

They kind of already are?

Man the crow, like I don’t think you guys are actually ready for it. It seems like lately there’s been some “great enlightenment” that maybe just maybe, our team isn’t horrible, we actually have a future, Chauncey and Joe are actually tolerable for now…

Then I realize, no. They really still want to live in the land that thinks we should have completely thrown our season away and fired our coach to chase after the “ODDS” of a draft pick. Specifically one player.

I cannot ever agree with this logic.

We chose to be good now, as the youngest team in the league, with a whole chest of assets, plus somewhat helpful vets around.

You couldn’t possibly be mad right now, unless - you guessed it, you’re a Blazer “fan”.

It’s the golden era to be a Blazer fan, and you cannot convince me otherwise.

And guess what? You can just stay pessimistic, and not only will the Blazers continue improving and Scoot continues to prove *everybody but his 4 believers* wrong, Deni and Ayton continue taking steps up, and JoeCro/Chauncey continue to make the right moves and improve themselves, respectively in their own newer positions.

Everyone wins. Us believers win, you guys who think losing is the only path to success, you’ll learn a whole new era of what team chemistry and success look like… ya just might learn something or two

Pattycakes...I'll make a fun deal with you:

I refuse to eat crow over a 10 game stretch where they played mostly bad competition and teams in turmoil. This team could just as easily switch "off" and lose the next 6 in a row vs. good teams.

Now. Has the team improved? Absolutely. But everything we're seeing is like a best-case scenario...that's not sustainable over the end of the season. Or at least, i don't think it is.

The deal:

If the Blazers go 4-2 or better vs. the next 6 (SAC, MIN, DEN, DEN, LAL, CHA) I'll gladly eat crow. If the Blazers go 2-4 or worse in that same stretch, it'll be your turn. Deal?

Interesting. I thought last night's game was an bit of a litmus test for the Blazers. Granted, the Kings just moved their best player, and their two new acquisitions need time to gel, but I thought the Blazers showed a lot of poise. I get what some fans are saying, but in professional sports, you play who's on the schedule. Some times it's not just about getting a win against a bad team, it's HOW the Blazers have been winning.

We'll see what happens over the next 6 games.

8 of 11 were at moda as well so that will be interesting to see.

[Braggins]

We need a bigger sample size to know how real this is, but it looks like ol' Chauncey could end up having the last laugh. Wild development.

[BlazersBroncos]

I am not going to say this team has a high ceiling, they dont. We clearly need that alpha.

That being said, I never expected to see this caliber of play after watching this team the first 30% of the season or so. Its so drastically better that I have issues believing its sustainable, but in the meantime I will enjoy it.

The ball movement is most surprising. The defensive talent was always there with our length, but the passing and ball movement is so many levels above what it 10-15 games ago that I simply cant believe it.

Worth noting this streak came when we went away from playing 2 small guards and injected the jumbo 2-4 lineup. For all the warts, and for his meh offensive play, Grant is still a guy that can stick to players from SG through PF. Camara / Deni / Grant are just a terror in terms of size, length and mobility on defense. Its really fun to see after 15 years of a guard duo 6'3 or under.

[oldfishermen]

[url]

Watch on YouTube

;si=9e5aZFf7tpanQ9lu[/url]

[zzaj]

I am not going to say this team has a high ceiling, they dont. We clearly need that alpha.

That being said, I never expected to see this caliber of play after watching this team the first 30% of the season or so. Its so drastically better that I have issues believing its sustainable, but in the meantime I will enjoy it.

The ball movement is most surprising. The defensive talent was always there with our length, but the passing and ball movement is so many levels above what it 10-15 games ago that I simply cant believe it.

Worth noting this streak came when we went away from playing 2 small guards and injected the jumbo 2-4 lineup. For all the warts, and for his meh offensive play, Grant is still a guy that can stick to players from SG through PF. Camara / Deni / Grant are just a terror in terms of size, length and mobility on defense. Its really fun to see after 15 years of a guard duo 6'3 or under.

Yep, pretty much this...

Also, it's a bit of an elephant in the room, but perhaps Sharpe's best role on a basketball team actually is as a 6th man. So far he hasn't really shown an ability to be a cornerstone on a winning team.

[BlazersBroncos]

I am not going to say this team has a high ceiling, they dont. We clearly need that alpha.

That being said, I never expected to see this caliber of play after watching this team the first 30% of the season or so. Its so drastically better that I have issues believing its sustainable, but in the meantime I will enjoy it.

The ball movement is most surprising. The defensive talent was always there with our length, but the passing and ball movement is so many levels above what it 10-15 games ago that I simply cant believe it.

Worth noting this streak came when we went away from playing 2 small guards and injected the jumbo 2-4 lineup. For all the warts, and for his meh offensive play, Grant is still a guy that can stick to players from SG through PF. Camara / Deni / Grant are just a terror in terms of size, length and mobility on defense. Its really fun to see after 15 years of a guard duo 6'3 or under.

Yep, pretty much this...

Also, it's a bit of an elephant in the room, but perhaps Sharpe's best role on a basketball team actually is as a 6th man. So far he hasn't really shown an ability to be a cornerstone on a winning team.

I am hoping he just needs this move to the bench to play a bit looser and it can translate to starting.

If you project him as a 6th man - you trade him on draft night. The kid will get a deal somewhere between Pat Williams (20M AV) and Jalen Green (34M AV). You cant pay that, even on the lower end, if you dont think Sharpe is not just a starter - but a guy that projects to be at least top-10 at his position IMO.

Again, for all his natural talent the advanced stats dont really show Sharpe as a good player.

- Never has posted positive On/Off or OnCourt in all 3 seasons
- Career average of 0.035 WS48 is abysmal
- Never has posted a + OBPM or + DBPM
- Never has posted a + VORP

All the metrics show he basically is a guy that is posting decent raw stats based simply on getting usage and a plethora of shooting opportunities. He is far and away the worst rated guy using advanced metrics of all the players on this team that get consistent PT.

Jalen Green is a pretty close comparison, a guy with tons of natural talent but plays a game that doesnt really impact the W column. I dont think many here would want to pay Jalen Green 35M AV - well Jalen by the same advanced metrics is actually a better player - like Sharpe he also is a consistent negative in On/Off and OnCourt - but he has some better stats elsewhere -

- Career average of .047 WS48
- Positive career OBPM
- Positive career VORP

Its tough - he has flashes that are just jaw dropping - but the reality is we are closely approaching a juncture where we likely will be put in a position to have to pony up 30M AV to a guy who is, by all metrics, a worse player than Jalen Green.

[zzaj]

I am not going to say this team has a high ceiling, they dont. We clearly need that alpha.

That being said, I never expected to see this caliber of play after watching this team the first 30% of the season or so. Its so drastically better that I have issues believing its sustainable, but in the meantime I will enjoy it.

The ball movement is most surprising. The defensive talent was always there with our length, but the passing and ball movement is so many levels above what it 10-15 games ago that I simply cant believe it.

Worth noting this streak came when we went away from playing 2 small guards and injected the jumbo 2-4 lineup. For all the warts, and for his meh offensive play, Grant is still a guy that can stick to players from SG through PF. Camara / Deni / Grant are just a terror in terms of size, length and mobility on defense. Its really fun to see after 15 years of a guard duo 6'3 or under.

Yep, pretty much this...

Also, it's a bit of an elephant in the room, but perhaps Sharpe's best role on a basketball team actually is as a 6th man. So far he hasn't really shown an ability to be a cornerstone on a winning team.

I am hoping he just needs this move to the bench to play a bit looser and it can translate to starting.

If you project him as a 6th man - you trade him on draft night. The kid will get a deal somewhere between Pat Williams (20M AV) and Jalen Green (34M AV). You cant pay that, even on the lower end, if you dont think Sharpe is not just a starter - but a guy that projects to be at least top-10 at his position IMO.

Again, for all his natural talent the advanced stats dont really show Sharpe as a good player.

- Never has posted positive On/Off or OnCourt in all 3 seasons
- Career average of 0.035 WS48 is abysmal
- Never has posted a + OBPM or + DBPM
- Never has posted a + VORP

All the metrics show he basically is a guy that is posting decent raw stats based simply on getting usage and a plethora of shooting opportunities. He is far and away the worst rated guy using advanced metrics of all the players on this team that get consistent PT.

Jalen Green is a pretty close comparison, a guy with tons of natural talent but plays a game that doesnt really impact the W column. I dont think many here would want to pay Jalen Green 35M AV - well Jalen by the same advanced metrics is actually a better player - like Sharpe he also is a consistent negative in On/Off and OnCourt - but he has some better stats elsewhere -

- Career average of .047 WS48
- Positive career OBPM
- Positive career VORP

Its tough - he has flashes that are just jaw dropping - but the reality is we are closely approaching a juncture where we likely will be put in a position to have to pony up 30M AV to a guy who is, by all metrics, a worse player than Jalen Green.

Yeah, this is a good post BB...I'm with you pretty much in lock-step on Sharpe. It's part of why it's so infuriating to me that he's not getting big minutes--it's imperative that the Blazers "know" what they have in what should typically be a breakout season. Instead the team is prioritizing winning, which I get from Billups' side.

I have a sneaking suspicion the Blazers are going to wildly overpay Sharpe, and he'll be a disappointment based on his contract. The SG equivalent of Deandre Ayton.

[oldfishermen]

Yep, pretty much this...

Also, it's a bit of an elephant in the room, but perhaps Sharpe's best role on a basketball team actually is as a 6th man. So far he hasn't really shown an ability to be a cornerstone on a winning team.

I am hoping he just needs this move to the bench to play a bit looser and it can translate to starting.

If you project him as a 6th man - you trade him on draft night. The kid will get a deal somewhere between Pat Williams (20M AV) and Jalen Green (34M AV). You cant pay that, even on the lower end, if you dont think Sharpe is not just a starter - but a guy that projects to be at least top-10 at his position IMO.

Again, for all his natural talent the advanced stats dont really show Sharpe as a good player.

- Never has posted positive On/Off or OnCourt in all 3 seasons
- Career average of 0.035 WS48 is abysmal
- Never has posted a + OBPM or + DBPM
- Never has posted a + VORP

All the metrics show he basically is a guy that is posting decent raw stats based simply on getting usage and a plethora of shooting opportunities. He is far and away the worst rated guy using advanced metrics of all the players on this team that get consistent PT.

Jalen Green is a pretty close comparison, a guy with tons of natural talent but plays a game that doesnt really impact the W column. I dont think many here would want to pay Jalen Green 35M AV - well Jalen by the same advanced metrics is actually a better player - like Sharpe he also is a consistent negative in On/Off and OnCourt - but he has some better stats elsewhere -

- Career average of .047 WS48
- Positive career OBPM
- Positive career VORP

Its tough - he has flashes that are just jaw dropping - but the reality is we are closely approaching a juncture where we likely will be put in a position to have to pony up 30M AV to a guy who is, by all metrics, a worse player than Jalen Green.

Yeah, this is a good post BB...I'm with you pretty much in lock-step on Sharpe. It's part of why it's so infuriating to me that he's not getting big minutes--it's imperative that the Blazers "know" what they have in what should typically be a breakout season. Instead the team is prioritizing winning, which I get from Billups' side.

I have a sneaking suspicion the Blazers are going to wildly overpay Sharpe, and he'll be a disappointment based on his contract. The SG equivalent of Deandre Ayton.

I agree with both of you.

There is room for more development, with everyone on the roster. Many players are on a path to become savy vets.

Sharpe in mid way through his 3rd season, and is not showing as much development that matches his natural skills. He has more potential then he consistantly shows, which can be frustrating as a fan. Hope he figures it out soon. Our GM tends to overpay on potential, not results.

[Dame Lizard]

I am hoping he just needs this move to the bench to play a bit looser and it can translate to starting.

If you project him as a 6th man - you trade him on draft night. The kid will get a deal somewhere between Pat Williams (20M AV) and Jalen Green (34M AV). You cant pay that, even on the lower end, if you dont think Sharpe is not just a starter - but a guy that projects to be at least top-10 at his position IMO.

Again, for all his natural talent the advanced stats dont really show Sharpe as a good player.

- Never has posted positive On/Off or OnCourt in all 3 seasons
- Career average of 0.035 WS48 is abysmal
- Never has posted a + OBPM or + DBPM
- Never has posted a + VORP

All the metrics show he basically is a guy that is posting decent raw stats based simply on getting usage and a plethora of shooting opportunities. He is far and away the worst rated guy using advanced metrics of all the players on this team that get consistent PT.

Jalen Green is a pretty close comparison, a guy with tons of natural talent but plays a game that doesnt really impact the W column. I dont think many here would want to pay Jalen Green 35M AV - well Jalen by the same advanced metrics is actually a better player - like Sharpe he also is a consistent negative in On/Off and OnCourt - but he has some better stats elsewhere -

- Career average of .047 WS48
- Positive career OBPM
- Positive career VORP

Its tough - he has flashes that are just jaw dropping - but the reality is we are closely approaching a juncture where we likely will be put in a position to have to pony up 30M AV to a guy who is, by all metrics, a worse player than Jalen Green.

Yeah, this is a good post BB...I'm with you pretty much in lock-step on Sharpe. It's part of why it's so infuriating to me that he's not getting big minutes--it's imperative that the Blazers "know" what they have in what should typically be a breakout season. Instead the team is prioritizing winning, which I get from Billups' side.

I have a sneaking suspicion the Blazers are going to wildly overpay Sharpe, and he'll be a disappointment based on his contract. The SG equivalent of Deandre Ayton.

I agree with both of you.

There is room for more development, with everyone on the roster. Many players are on a path to become savy vets.

Sharpe in mid way through his 3rd season, and is not showing as much development that matches his natural skills. He has more potential then he consistantly shows, which can be frustrating as a fan. Hope he figures it out soon. Our GM tends to overpay on potential, not results.

I agree with this post. However, sadly small market NBA teams need to pay on potential. It's a necessary gamble most of the time, even if it doesn't work out in many instances.

[Butter]

8 of 11 were at moda as well so that will be interesting to see.

It's true, and, good teams are expected to win those games.

I am not suggesting that the Blazers current roster has magically changed from a frog to a prince. However, there is legit talent on this team.

Ayton was a #1 pick
Scoot was a #3
Clingan was #7
Shaedon was #7
Deni was #9
Jerami was #9

On top of that, Cronin spotted a diamond in the rough with Camara.