Game 64: Portland vs Phoenix 6:00pm SNW

[Epicurus]

for those wanting to blame Whiteside for Baynes having a career night:

https://www.nbcsports.com/northwest/portland-trail-blazers/hassan-whitesides-teachable-moments-could-be-key-trail-blazers

the defensieve problem really wasn't Whiteside, it was perimeter rotations. Any doubt that is the PF had been Aminu rather than Melo, Baynes wouldn't have had so many open looks

I really don't want Melo back next year

True, or Collins rather than Anthony; or Skal rather than Anthony; or Vonleh rather than Anthony.

Re. Whiteside---His rim protection may be so good that opponents are taking more 3s (and making them). It would have been interesting if he had next to him a four who could move enough to cover with the other three on the perimeter and also slide down to help him directly. In Anthony (and in Tolliver) he has/had neither.

[d-train]

Tonight showed how important it is to have EVERY position able to hit 3pters in today's NBA. It's a big reason why "traditional" centers are getting undrafted, or DNPs.

I'll say it again...coach Vanterpool left for Minny, Tibbetts was promoted and the Blazer perimeter defense has looked terrible all year. Obviously, not having Zach on stretch Centers and the length of Aminu, Harkless has been a big part of the Blazer woes defensively...but I still feel that coaching change has had an effect on the attitude. Whiteside is a great rim protector, but the team needs to think of that as an asset to good team defense not a fail-safe. Of course having poor defensive players like Melo and CJ at key positions doesn't help either...

whiteside gets blocks but That doesn’t make him the best defender I’d say. I’m curious what he asks for contract wise but after the Miami stuff I’m very leery of giving him a contract like he has now for 4 years so he’d better be cheap if we get him. 5-10 mil range and 2-3 years at most

whiteside may be the best defender on the Blazers...there's not a lot of competition

Portland opponent FG% at Rim (0-3') & league rank:

2018-19 - .633 (6th).....Nurk + Kanter + Zach + Aminu + Meyers
2019-20 - .614 (2nd).....Whiteside + Skal (23 games) + Tolliver + Melo

Portland opponent FG% in the 3-10' zone & league rank:

2018-19 - .411 (24th)
2019-20 - .377 (6th)

I can't really think of a way to look at those numbers other than those being the zones on the floor most impacted by a rim protector's defense. Whiteside definitely has his faults including slower reactions and limited mobility, but he protects the paint really well

meanwhile, opponent FG% in the mid-range 16-23' zone has gone from .399 last year to .409 this year. And, more importantly, Portland's opponent 3pFG% has jumped from .359 last season to .374 this season. There's a price to pay when a GM sacrifices perimeter defense in favor of perimeter offense that doesn't really show up enough to offset the defensieve loss

The price for having an inside defender who doesn't defend the perimeter as well is opponents getting better shots from the perimeter.

Edit: I don't think the loss of Collins should be underestimated. He is the defender that can defend inside and outside. Collins is also an inside defender with great range, meaning he can recover from the perimeter and defend the rim. NBA defense is mostly team defense. Who knows how well having both Whiteside and Collins would have worked?