NBA/Blazers 2026-27 Thread

[pezsez1]

Thank goodness Lillard was playing or we would have lost by even more! He and Ja can't be expected to do everything.

[Phalanx]

So they waived Sochan and are keeping Vit? I mean, I know it's the end of the bench, but I don't get that at all unless they have their eye on a replacement. I looked at Sochan as Thybulle's replacement at a position of greater need. The Blazers are ridiculously thin at forward.

[Boom]

The Blazers are ridiculously thin at forward.

That's what happens when you spend the majority of your payroll on guards.

[Boom]

Predictably the Blazers failed to extend Scoot Henderson. He will be a restricted free agent next summer.

[Phalanx]

Predictably the Blazers failed to extend Scoot Henderson. He will be a restricted free agent next summer.

Yeah,they signaled this would be the case weeks ago. Restricted free agency doesn't mean what it used to. Poison pill offer sheets are much rarer now.

[Phalanx]

Interesting tidbit from the presser. Coach Nori is talking about a 10-11 man rotation. Without Sharpe, I count about 8 players not on vet min deals, excluding Hansen, and the guy I thought would be next in line just got cut. So I am curious who the extra 2-3 rotation guys are going to be. Sidy is entertaining, but he is really not a good player despite all the effort. Potter was good in one preseason game and then he kinda disappeared. Are they really going to be giving regular minutes to Hansen? That seems nuts to me. They did play Vit quite a bit down the stretch, but he is really awful. I can't seem to get to 10, much less 11. We'll find out soon, I guess. It's probably Sidy and Vit just based on positions of need and pre-season usage.

[pezsez1]

From BlazersEdge:

Jrue Holiday on a 10-Man Rotation
Nori reiterated on Monday that he plans to run a 10-man regular rotation this season. Holiday told reporters he appreciates that game plan.

“I think the minutes are split up and you can have maybe shorter bursts where you have a lot more energy and you don’t get as tired,” Holiday said. “As well as just, I think it builds trust throughout the team knowing that you have 10 or 11 guys who are gonna play. We have depth. And I think that’s something that we should use if we have it.”

[pezsez1]

Ja is looking GREAT.

[pezsez1]

Man EVERYONE looks great tonight. Dame hitting 3s, Ja slicing in, Deni and Clingan playing big in the paint, Scoot doing Scoot things, RWIII getting boards, I sure hope this is a sign of things to come!

[Phalanx]

Heh, what a great opening night for all the fans who have had to put up with so much garbage in the news about the new owner and fears of relocation, etc. The Suns look terrible, but tonight who cares? Fans get to see the new team canning shots all over the place. Everything worked tonight - three guard lineup, Lillard iso plays, Ja Morant dealing dimes, Sidy playing defense...it looked like even Hansen was going to score there, but they called a travel. I didn't think traveling was a thing in the NBA anymore, but apparently it still is for the Blazers. Anyway, enjoy this game. Everyone was in their best case scenario tonight.

[Phalanx]

Hansen banks a three in, this is getting very silly.

[Boom]

Interesting tidbit from the presser. Coach Nori is talking about a 10-11 man rotation. Without Sharpe, I count about 8 players not on vet min deals, excluding Hansen, and the guy I thought would be next in line just got cut. So I am curious who the extra 2-3 rotation guys are going to be. Sidy is entertaining, but he is really not a good player despite all the effort. Potter was good in one preseason game and then he kinda disappeared. Are they really going to be giving regular minutes to Hansen? That seems nuts to me. They did play Vit quite a bit down the stretch, but he is really awful. I can't seem to get to 10, much less 11. We'll find out soon, I guess. It's probably Sidy and Vit just based on positions of need and pre-season usage.

Dame and Jrue really need to be in the low-mid 20 minute range and the deep rotation achieves that. It's going to be rough when Deni or Tuamani miss a game though. It's really a shame that Cronin wasted the Yang pick instead of picking up one of the available wings.

[pezsez1]

I know this game isn't over yet, but over most of the first two games what I've really enjoyed most is how much more open our shooters can get thanks to the additions of Dame and Ja. Also plenty of plays where Deni only needs to beat one guy in the paint because the help defense is afraid to leave a shooter alone beyond the arc. Good stuff. I know it's early but what I'm seeing makes more sense than I thought it would.

Edit: Dame and Ja in to close this thing out with Deni, Cling, and Camara. Both are playing very unselfish and getting other guys great looks. Clingan hits a free throw to go up by 7.

Edit edit: Dame with a steal! A few defensive possessions ago he slapped the ball out of bounds, stopping an easy Sabonis bucket. He'll never be an elite defender, but he's continuing his trend of being pesky enough with his hands.

Edit edit edit: Blazers frontcourt players need to be better at free throws. But Toumani doing Toumani things, drawing an offensive foul!

Edit edit edit edit: This roster is still weird but after two games I'm sure having fun watching it.

Edit edit edit edit edit: Tom Dundon needs to drop a few nickels on improving Blazervision. Not sure what happened but the pregame/postgame broadcast quality has been a problem.

[Phalanx]

Nice road win. Blazers were able to overcome Lillard's me-first low-percentage 18-shot game with some otherwise balanced scoring and everyone doing what they do. He really has a problem creating good shots anymore, but he shoots it anyway. Maybe Coach Nori can help him figure out how to pass when he can't do anything against his defender instead of taking those crummy shots. He had the most minutes on the floor of any of the guards, but only two assists compared to seven for Ja and eight for Jrue. Lillard led the team in shot attempts, which should never happen when you have Deni on the team. They need to get the proper balance of shots straightened out before the playoffs or Lillard will be an anchor around the team's neck on the way to yet another first-round failure.

Meanwhile, Deni and Toumani were great offensively tonight as they led the team. Robert Williams is amazing on those alley-oops; what a monster. If he can stay healthy, he adds so much to the lineup. Jrue and him have a great connection on both ends of the court, and it brought the Blazers back from a deficit in the first half. Only 9 turnovers tonight to Sacto's 14. Love to see that. Ja only credited with two turnovers, but it felt like more as he is still a bit off with his control. Even without the jumping he did earlier in his career, he is so good at knifing through a defense and getting shots for everyone. I'm looking forward to watching his upward arc this season, which will hopefully counteract Lillard's inevitable decline as the year goes on.

[Everythingsducky]

Man, your Lillard hate is nuts. His three ball was off (2-10), but he also led the team in +/- (+19). Pick a better battle.