Game 53: Portland vs Denver 6:00pm Chargetv and KUNP

[DusterBuster]

Yeesh, that ayton injury looked bad. Sucks cause he seemed to finally be enjoying himself.

And this is why enjoying that streak wasn't worth it in the long run…

[zzaj]

Why tf is Deni still in this game?

[Brandon-Clyde]

Consolation GLB pics

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

[Walton1one]

Rupert sighting!

Murray is just not an NBA player if he can’t hit that 3pt shot, and time is not on his side

Scoot out with an injury, let’s hope it’s not serious

Banton playing out of control as usual. I don’t care how many points he scores. He is a total scrub.

Braun OTOH

Clingan 3!!

7min left and this game is over, and Billups still refuses to put in the bench. 3 starters still in the game, Simons\Deni\Camara, lol

Good defense by DC on a tough drive to prevent an easy bucket

Deni scoring late, he should not be in the game, but Billups apparently doesn’t give a crap

For the Banton lovers still left, 22pts, 6-16 shooting, that is some stellar efficiency for you

[Walton1one]

DC was 8-8, with a career high 21, and yet Banton stole the glory (player of the game) from him!!

That is, if you take blazer broadcasting seriously

[PDXKnight]

DC was 8-8, with a career high 21, and yet Banton stole the glory (player of the game) from him!!

That is, if you take blazer broadcasting seriously

That's a big old pile of bs on their part. Good thing it's a pointless award

[PDXKnight]

If the DA injury is as bad as it seemed looks like reath might be getting burn again, and we probably get a 2 way contract big as well to fill the void

[BlazersBroncos]

With Ayton out we are finally going to see DC get big minutes that coach cant cut short if he makes a mistake - let the growing pains begin, but optimistic he flashes a good amount as well.

[DaVoiceMaster]

Lotta hurt last night. Scoot nearly twisted his ankle and Deni seems to always be in pain. Just play the scrubs tomorrow night and give the main guys an extra day off on top of the break.

[PDXKnight]

With Ayton out we are finally going to see DC get big minutes that coach cant cut short if he makes a mistake - let the growing pains begin, but optimistic he flashes a good amount as well.

I like your optimism but don't put it past Chauncey to give someone meaningless minutes. Duop reath could start, jerami grant at center, a 2 way signing could play major minutes, the possibilities are endless..

[Wizenheimer]

I say again: That 11 game stretch of winning could end up being the most damaging thing to happen to the Blazers since game 7 of the WCF against the Lakers in 2000

(although Roy and Oden falling apart may be worse)

[zzaj]

With Ayton out we are finally going to see DC get big minutes that coach cant cut short if he makes a mistake - let the growing pains begin, but optimistic he flashes a good amount as well.

I like your optimism but don't put it past Chauncey to give someone meaningless minutes. Duop reath could start, jerami grant at center, a 2 way signing could play major minutes, the possibilities are endless..

Indeed...Deni finished the game last night in a 30 point blowout, despite having a sprained shooting hand, which is unjustifiable. Billups' minutes choices are downright idiotic at times.

[PDXKnight]

I say again: That 11 game stretch of winning could end up being the most damaging thing to happen to the Blazers since game 7 of the WCF against the Lakers in 2000

(although Roy and Oden falling apart may be worse)

2000 was definitely the worst. We had a championship in the bag if we beat LA in that series

Blazers would have more titles than Boston if what ifs won the trophy

[PDXKnight]

[quote="zzaj"][quote="PDXKnight"][quote="BlazersBroncos"]With Ayton out we are finally going to see DC get big minutes that coach cant cut short if he makes a mistake - let the growing pains begin, but optimistic he flashes a good amount as well.[/quote]

I like your optimism but don't put it past Chauncey to give someone meaningless minutes. Duop reath could start, jerami grant at center, a 2 way signing could play major minutes, the possibilities are endless..[/quote]

Indeed...Deni finished the game last night in a 30 point blowout, despite having a sprained shooting hand, which is unjustifiable. Billups' minutes choices are downright idiotic at times.[/quote]

Jerami practically has an open checkbook on minutes or if he will even play any given night. Ant can play zero defense and face zero consequences but Sharpe and Scoot suffer the consequences if they lapse. Ayton can bring zero energy and start no matter what. And if/when thy comes back I'd bet anything he takes scoot and sharpe's minutes before any of the aforementioned players.

The only thing that makes sense about Chaunceys rotations is that they don't make any sense whatsoever

[zzaj]

I like your optimism but don't put it past Chauncey to give someone meaningless minutes. Duop reath could start, jerami grant at center, a 2 way signing could play major minutes, the possibilities are endless..

Indeed...Deni finished the game last night in a 30 point blowout, despite having a sprained shooting hand, which is unjustifiable. Billups' minutes choices are downright idiotic at times.

Jerami practically has an open checkbook on minutes or if he will even play any given night. Ant can play zero defense and face zero consequences but Sharpe and Scoot suffer the consequences if they lapse

I've mentioned it elsewhere, but I honestly think this comes down to age/experience. Chauncey likely knows he ain't changing a thing about Grant and Simons' games, whereas Sharpe and Scoot are young enough that they are correctable and might learn from a benching.

Do I agree with it? Not at all. But I can at least squint and see that as one motivation. Most likely, Chauncey just wants to win in order to salvage his coaching career so that he can have a job...in that respect, I don't blame him at all.

[Wizenheimer]

Indeed...Deni finished the game last night in a 30 point blowout, despite having a sprained shooting hand, which is unjustifiable. Billups' minutes choices are downright idiotic at times.

Jerami practically has an open checkbook on minutes or if he will even play any given night. Ant can play zero defense and face zero consequences but Sharpe and Scoot suffer the consequences if they lapse

I've mentioned it elsewhere, but I honestly think this comes down to age/experience. Chauncey likely knows he ain't changing a thing about Grant and Simons' games, whereas Sharpe and Scoot are young enough that they are correctable and might learn from a benching.

Do I agree with it? Not at all. But I can at least squint and see that as one motivation. Most likely, Chauncey just wants to win in order to salvage his coaching career so that he can have a job...in that respect, I don't blame him at all.

Cronin will be basking in the glory of that 11 game stretch for months. He'll probably re-sign Billups, then a year later re-sign Simons and Ayton...and maybe Timelord too....while not trading Grant because no team will meet his two 1st round picks asking price

he might let Thybulle walk though

[zzaj]

Jerami practically has an open checkbook on minutes or if he will even play any given night. Ant can play zero defense and face zero consequences but Sharpe and Scoot suffer the consequences if they lapse

I've mentioned it elsewhere, but I honestly think this comes down to age/experience. Chauncey likely knows he ain't changing a thing about Grant and Simons' games, whereas Sharpe and Scoot are young enough that they are correctable and might learn from a benching.

Do I agree with it? Not at all. But I can at least squint and see that as one motivation. Most likely, Chauncey just wants to win in order to salvage his coaching career so that he can have a job...in that respect, I don't blame him at all.

Cronin will be basking in the glory of that 11 game stretch for months. He'll probably re-sign Billups, then a year later re-sign Simons and Ayton...and maybe Timelord too....while not trading Grant because no team will meet his two 1st round picks asking price

he might let Thybulle walk though

(sigh)

Right now, there is no indication that he'd do anything differently.

It also makes the makes-me-want-to-hurl-o-meter go very much off the scale...

[Wizenheimer]

I've mentioned it elsewhere, but I honestly think this comes down to age/experience. Chauncey likely knows he ain't changing a thing about Grant and Simons' games, whereas Sharpe and Scoot are young enough that they are correctable and might learn from a benching.

Do I agree with it? Not at all. But I can at least squint and see that as one motivation. Most likely, Chauncey just wants to win in order to salvage his coaching career so that he can have a job...in that respect, I don't blame him at all.

Cronin will be basking in the glory of that 11 game stretch for months. He'll probably re-sign Billups, then a year later re-sign Simons and Ayton...and maybe Timelord too....while not trading Grant because no team will meet his two 1st round picks asking price

he might let Thybulle walk though

(sigh)

Right now, there is no indication that he'd do anything differently.

It also makes the makes-me-want-to-hurl-o-meter go very much off the scale...

sorry...can't help myself. There's so much more not-to-like about the Blazers right now than to-like. And any hope for change is trapped between the Vulcan Vortex Of Ambivalence and Cronin's roster evaluations

[Case2012]

I'm absolutely baffled by this FO. Those wins were fun but wtf were they thinking? 4 years of tanking and they still don't have a star to show for it and they decide to win 10/11 games so CB can save his job and Cronin can pat himself on the back? No trades. None. Still a bunch of overpaid vets that will have nothing to do with the future of this team 3 years from now. It's malpractice. Mr Clean really could not look at how savvy OKC, WAS, and SA were with their tanks, freeing up cap space to take on bad contracts for pics or sending their vets out for pics? The blueprint was there the whole time and we got another rinse and repeat deadline of "well we were aggressive but didnt do anything" laugh reel. JFC and no one in the local media has the courage to call out how bad this strategy is.

Why hasn't Thybulle played? Why would any team want to trade for him if he's either been dnp or injured? Why did Williams sit out last night? If we don't get some ATL kind of luck in the lottery, that winning streak set us back another year at least(i dont even want to think about the implications of contracts etc). We need stars. We have a decent supporting cast but without a Flagg, Harper or Bailey, this draft, the season was waste. It's like after 13 years Cronin still doesn't understand the concept of a treadmill team? I'm living in crazy town. I'm not baffled, I'm convinced this ownership hates the fans and only wants to be good enough for people to go to games. They don't want to be good enough were they have to pay multiple stars max deals and into the second apron which is what they would have to realistically do to win a ring. They want mediocre players that only demand mid level deals and get OK young guys they wont have to max out. I mean.. What else can you derive from their actions?

Lastly, I'm really confused by how stoked people are on DC's game last night. Ye he scored 21, but he was worse than Ayton on defense, good god that was painful. He makes Jokic look like a ballerina. Waste of a pick imo. He's what everyone said Edey was going to be on defense without any offense outside the rare 3 and dunks.

[zzaj]

Cronin will be basking in the glory of that 11 game stretch for months. He'll probably re-sign Billups, then a year later re-sign Simons and Ayton...and maybe Timelord too....while not trading Grant because no team will meet his two 1st round picks asking price

he might let Thybulle walk though

(sigh)

Right now, there is no indication that he'd do anything differently.

It also makes the makes-me-want-to-hurl-o-meter go very much off the scale...

sorry...can't help myself. There's so much more not-to-like about the Blazers right now than to-like. And any hope for change is trapped between the Vulcan Vortex Of Ambivalence and Cronin's roster evaluations

Honestly, if this team didn't have Clingan to root for and track, Scoot making even a bit of progress, Sharpe keeping my fingers perpetually crossed for a breakthrough, and Deni and Camara's intensity on defense? I am not sure I'd watch...and this is coming from someone who has watched 95% of games since about 1986.