Blazers/NBA 2021-2022 Thread

[pezsez1]

I think Dame's head is in the right place. He knows he can stay in Portland, maximize his dollars, and be remembered by many (or most) as the best Blazer in franchise history. And he's good enough that as long as he's on the team, we'll have a puncher's chance in the playoffs... and if he's healthy, we'll always get there.

Sure, he wants to win, but I think, for him, it's enough to see the organization trying. He could chase rings like other superstars do, but that isn't a guaranteed recipe for success either. The only thing he can guarantee are his max contracts in Portland.

Also, I don't think Abbott's stories were off base at all. Dame was clearly unhappy with the organization's lack of progress/evolution, and he basically said he'd leave if nothing change. Like Phalanx said, no inside sources needed once Dame said that. I don't have the link on hand, but he flat-out said that in a press conference. He said Portland wasn't good enough and he needed to see changes.

I'm happy to see the Blazers clean house but wish we had a real GM. Liquidating assets is the easy part... meanwhile, Portland has a terrible track record of attracting quality free agents. Not sure what we'll do with all of our cap room. I feel like the plan is try to get really lucky in the draft and then see if Dame wants to stick around depending on who we can get.

I personally hope Lillard stays and that we get to see him play out his career here. The chances of us trading him and rebuilding as a championship contender around Simons/Little seems less likely than keeping Dame with his huge contract. But if he goes, then there would be worse things than a Simons/Little rebuild... both are young, exciting players.

[Phalanx]

I'm happy to see the Blazers clean house but wish we had a real GM. Liquidating assets is the easy part... meanwhile, Portland has a terrible track record of attracting quality free agents. Not sure what we'll do with all of our cap room. I feel like the plan is try to get really lucky in the draft and then see if Dame wants to stick around depending on who we can get.

I don't know - the moves Cronin made are growing on me. Hart and Winslow look like legitimate contributors, and the Blazers would have been pretty happy to land Keon Johnson in the draft last year, so picking him up does something toward mitigating the damage for coughing up two first-rounders for Covington. If the Pelicans can continue sucking for 26 more games, the Blazers could potentially have two picks in the top 10 in the upcoming draft, as well as a couple of second-round stabs in the dark.

I thought the post-trade deadline presser was interesting - confirmed a lot of things I was thinking while watching Cronin work. For example, the first trade was important to get them under the tax, so that when they traded McCollum, other teams couldn't use their luxury tax status as a point of negotiation. Also, for people who have been saying the cap doesn't matter - it very clearly does if you listen to Cronin.

https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/ ... 07afc4d2fc

He has a plan at least, and I think there is potential for a nice rebuild. At least the Blazers are interesting again.

[Phalanx]

Wow, break up the Blazers. 4-0 since trading McCollum, and all four wins against teams ahead of them in the standings. Simons is making millions for himself, averaging 30 points over the 4 games, Hart and Winslow are making Cronin and the staff look like geniuses for trading for them, and Nurkic is playing like he did when he first got traded to Portland. Hope they can keep it up, and I'd love to see what Keon Johnson looks like when added to the lineup. It would be ironic if they made the playoffs with this group, especially after Lillard's comments about not wanting to hurry back. Don't get up, Dame, they got this.

[gogreen55]

These last two games have definitely been the most fun of the season to watch.

[greenyellow]

Even when Portland signals they're going to try tanking by trading away multiple starters and shutting down their All-NBA PG, they can't even lose right.

[Phalanx]

Even when Portland signals they're going to try tanking by trading away multiple starters and shutting down their All-NBA PG, they can't even lose right.

Yep, plus Nurkic and Simons are playing out of their minds right before they hit free agency, and will cost millions more to retain. These entertaining games are coming at a great cost, so you might as well enjoy them. If you want to root for a team to lose, root against the Pelicans. The Blazers need to stay ahead of them in the standings anyway, to help that pick convey to Portland.

[Phalanx]

Blazers convert Watford's two-way contract into a four-year deal, and cut Dennis Smith Jr to make room. Apparently two-way players can't play in the playoffs, so this looks like a move in anticipation of making the play-in. Could it be that management is now endorsing this winning streak, and facilitating further winning? I wonder how many more wins before Lillard feels pressure to come back.

[greenyellow]

Smith is going to be out for several weeks while getting Watford signed to a guaranteed deal really does nothing to hurt Portland's salary cap situation. Plus it's a team-friendly deal since the only guaranteed years are this season and next season and Watford is a good, young player who could develop into something more.

[Phalanx]

And now, the Blazers are shutting Nurkic down for at least a month. They probably knew what they were going to do when they signed Watford last week and then brought in Eubanks. Hard to imagine the winning continuing without Nurk, which I'm sure is what management had in mind. It also makes me wonder what kind of contract negotiations are going on behind the scenes, this has to be eroding his market value. Maybe they already have a deal worked out.

If the winning continues, I expect Simons to catch a really bad cold or something.

[nogerO]

And now, the Blazers are shutting Nurkic down for at least a month. They probably knew what they were going to do when they signed Watford last week and then brought in Eubanks. Hard to imagine the winning continuing without Nurk, which I'm sure is what management had in mind. It also makes me wonder what kind of contract negotiations are going on behind the scenes, this has to be eroding his market value. Maybe they already have a deal worked out.

If the winning continues, I expect Simons to catch a really bad cold or something.

Oh, you mean Covid-999?

[greenyellow]

Let the regularly schedule tanking programming resume.

[alxtw]

Haven't been following college basketball this year. How deep is this year's draft and what draft range would we need to be in to select a very good, high potential player? It felt like there were 5-6 players in that category last year before draft day.

[Phalanx]

Blazers lose the second straight to the last place team in the conference, the Houston Rockets, so the tanking is going really well. Trendon Watford, who has been one of the leading scorers on the team full of scrubs that the Blazers have been fielding, hobbled off with a knee injury at the end of the game. I wonder if that means they will actually have to bring someone back from 'injury' to fill his spot. There are two games coming up vs. the Pelicans that would be really nice to win to help ensure that their pick conveys to Portland, so we'll see if they actually try to compete in either of those games.

So far, the Blazers are in the 7th-worst position, but the Kings are only a half-game behind with their win tonight, so Portland could move into the #6 spot (depending also on the lottery results). The Pelicans, meanwhile, have been moving up in the standings, and are poised to pass several teams into about 12th in the draft order (currently 9th). So, for that pick it looks like they will stay in that 5-14 range, but it will likely come down to the two play-in games. If they win both, which seems like a strong possibility, they will make the playoffs and Portland would lose the pick. There are also two games coming up vs. the Spurs, who are trying to pass the Pelicans into the playoff picture as well. So what do you do if you are Blazer management? Do you keep pretending everyone is injured and lose every game, or bring back some guys to try to beat the Pelicans, but still lose to the Spurs? Tough decisions.

[greenyellow]

At this point, just keep tanking as much as possible.

[Phalanx]

Paul George returns from injury and has a monster game in the win vs. the Jazz. Huge for Portland's chances for getting that pick from New Orleans. L.A. staying ahead of the Pelicans in the standings forces the Pelicans to win two play-in games instead of just one. It also ensures that the Pelicans will actually have to beat a team with a pulse in the play-in - either the resurgent Clippers, or the Timberwolves.