Gme 27: Portland vs OKC 5:00pm SNW

[Matt800]

Little is nice! He's not exactly just filler in a trade... He's got game.

Have to say I am a bit "glad" for the injuries' as the young guys have really stepped up like ANT and Little and of course GTJ becoming better and better and we are winning without CJ/NURK/Collins and Hood still so so, Roco and Jones Jr playing well and gelling with team, fun to watch, moreso for me then at anytime in past couple years

Yeah I think if this team wins enough the coaches and players will be thinking about that and looking at why. And it should be pretty clear what's happening because CJ wont be back for at least a few more weeks. That's a lot of games to look at what has been working and not working.

[DaVoiceMaster]

What's wrong with Giles? Is he gonna miss significant time?

[Brandon-Clyde]

Victory GLB pic

Spoiler:

[monopoman]

Lillard is just incredible, this is clearly his true peak right now. He might be the most dangerous scorer of all NBA players in the 4th quarter. Even when teams try to sell out to stop him he just finds a way to score with 3 minutes to go.

[Matt800]

What's wrong with Giles? Is he gonna miss significant time?

He has a calf strain and was reported as in a walking boot at the game. If he's in a boot my guess is at least a few weeks, but who knows.

[PDXKnight]

kanter turned out to be a significant addition in the off season, 21 rebounds another huge game for him

i really like this team minus cj. I’m almost afraid of what happens when cj returns at this point

I’m as certain of this as i ever was: Anthony will not be a blazer in 2022. little and simons are really needing more minutes, at this point melo is hampering their development when we get fully healthy

[Norm2953]

With the exception of the Dame/LA led teams, Portland teams have always seemed to be racked with
injuries but its no mistake this team has gotten consistent play from a group of 7-8 players who have
managed to stay healthy, with roles defined. I do wonder how Stotts is going to handle the return of
CJ for both GTJ and Simons are playing well and will only get better as they continue to get consistent
PT.

[mojomarc]

With the exception of the Dame/LA led teams, Portland teams have always seemed to be racked with
injuries but its no mistake this team has gotten consistent play from a group of 7-8 players who have
managed to stay healthy, with roles defined. I do wonder how Stotts is going to handle the return of
CJ for both GTJ and Simons are playing well and will only get better as they continue to get consistent
PT.

Just wondering out loud if trading CJ and playing Dame/GTJ with Simons as the third guard isn't the best option. CJ was playing great, but it is clear that Dame draws so much gravity any quality player would look great. I like GTJ for the cost and the added size/defense

[BlazersBroncos]

The trick isnt to trade CJ, its to get Stotts to play CJ in a similar role as GTJ. If they didnt revert to give-one-get-one ISOs w/ Dame / CJ and instead played CJ more as a shooter, not creator, this team wouldnt just be better but CJ would flourish.

Lets not forget he was the best player on this team until he went down. Moving him for some package of high level role players isnt going improve Dame's chance of hoisting a trophy. And lets also not forget that the playoffs are a different animal. Star power matters more in terms of getting calls and such. GTJ was absolute booty against LAL, CJ was quite good.

I am not strongly against moving CJ if we could get a player of similar talent at SF or PF, but that guy isnt out there.

[DaVoiceMaster]

What's wrong with Giles? Is he gonna miss significant time?

He has a calf strain and was reported as in a walking boot at the game. If he's in a boot my guess is at least a few weeks, but who knows.

I did see someone walk across the court just after the game ended last night in a walking boot. I thought it was him. That can't be good. If Kanter gets into foul trouble tonight, Adam's will kill the Blazers. I get injuries happen, but WTF? This many injuries should not happen. Either the trainers aren't doing their job very well or the players are simply fragile. Some fragility is going to happen, but more than two-thirds of the team has missed time this season.

[Matt800]

What's wrong with Giles? Is he gonna miss significant time?

He has a calf strain and was reported as in a walking boot at the game. If he's in a boot my guess is at least a few weeks, but who knows.

I did see someone walk across the court just after the game ended last night in a walking boot. I thought it was him. That can't be good. If Kanter gets into foul trouble tonight, Adam's will kill the Blazers. I get injuries happen, but WTF? This many injuries should not happen. Either the trainers aren't doing their job very well or the players are simply fragile. Some fragility is going to happen, but more than two-thirds of the team has missed time this season.

It's possible they use boots in that scenario even if it is a minor strain to help it heal. But also any time in a boot will also mean a rehab phase.

The franchise history of notable injuries is perplexing. I think there are a variety of reasons why portland may be getting a lot of injuries in the last couple seasons, but I don't really know. Things where players are playing differently or harder/out of control would seemingly increase chances of injury. And we see a lot of that with young guys trying to prove themselves, guys like Nurkic trying to prove himself after a bad start, guys playing different roles due to others being hurt, guys trying to play harder, gamble, and play heavy minutes, to get wins when the team is at risk to miss the playoffs, etc.