NBA/Blazers 2026-27 Thread

[Phalanx]

The best starting lineup was Ja and Jrue. Ja was able to break down defenses and get guys on the perimeter open shots, feed a driving Deni or lob to the centers. He had the offense working great while Lillard mostly stood on the wing and waited for the ball so he could huck up a low percentage shot. Wake up, dude, the guy can't take anyone off the dribble anymore. Without Ja, the offense will not be nearly the same. The best starting lineup now is Jrue and Scoot because they can at least play defense and drive and dish to some degree. I am sure that Lillard will still start, but he shouldn't. We just have to hope that Scoot can rise to the occasion and take advantage of the opportunity he has. A couple of those passes he made against the Lakers made me wonder if he should get his vision checked.

[pezsez1]

The best offense is with Dame and Deni on the floor. Ja breaking things down in the paint removes Deni from doing what he does best, which doesn't really make sense as our bedrock system. Dame, meanwhile, is making Toumani into a 50% spot-up shooter simply by being on the floor. Playing Jrue alongside Dame makes far too much sense, and it's what Nori should have been doing from the start. Now we'll get to establish this offense so that Ja can assume the sixth man role when he returns. This is actually the perfect strategy move by Coach Nori, waiting until just the right moment to bring Jrue up into the starting lineup to play alongside Dame. Masterful coaching.

[bellsduck]

The best offense is with Dame and Deni on the floor. Ja breaking things down in the paint removes Deni from doing what he does best, which doesn't really make sense as our bedrock system. Dame, meanwhile, is making Toumani into a 50% spot-up shooter simply by being on the floor. Playing Jrue alongside Dame makes far too much sense, and it's what Nori should have been doing from the start. Now we'll get to establish this offense so that Ja can assume the sixth man role when he returns. This is actually the perfect strategy move by Coach Nori, waiting until just the right moment to bring Jrue up into the starting lineup to play alongside Dame. Masterful coaching.

When a team relies on only one elite driver, the defense can easily "load up" on that player by collapsing the paint, using zone principles, or sending early help. Ja's ability to penetate ultimately helps Deni and spot up shooters like Dame. Ja is not a sixth man on this team. His offensive style of play is what they sorely need.

[Phalanx]

Dame, meanwhile, is making Toumani into a 50% spot-up shooter simply by being on the floor.

This is utter nonsense.

I think we are about to find out what Ja did for the offense. I'm sure you will blame the regression on Jrue and Scoot.

[pezsez1]

I think we are about to find out what Ja did for the offense. I'm sure you will blame the regression on Jrue and Scoot.

We are about to see what happens when we don't have a great facilitator on the bench. We will miss Ja in that way.

[pezsez1]

Another shaky game by Dame. Didn't get to watch it, but hoping the Achilles injury didn't do him like Klay. Also alarming that nobody else other than Deni really asserted himself.

[TheDrake]

Last I looked it was a total blowout!!

[Boom]

Another shaky game by Dame. Didn't get to watch it, but hoping the Achilles injury didn't do him like Klay. Also alarming that nobody else other than Deni really asserted himself.

I think he had a pretty decent game for a 36 year old. As the season wears on I think it's going to be difficult for him to play great more than once per week.

I'm really hoping Scoot can develop some consistency and show something while Ja is out. He has the potential to be a really nice point of attack defender.

[bellsduck]

Scoot played decently after a slow start. His defense is not bad. Dame started out good but then started to force stuff and he did t have to That's what led to bad shooting and team high turnovers. Utah had no answer for Deni.

[Phalanx]

Congratulations to Damian Lillard who in this game passed Clyde Drexler on the all-time list for missed shots, and he did it in 181 less games than Clyde too, which is impressive. I looked to see if maybe he would also pass Clyde for made shots, but nope, not close and likely out of reach for The Second-Best Shooter All-Time in NBA History™. I sometimes wonder what that self-proclaimed title is based on, but maybe it's none of my business. Anyway, Lillard will always have the record for most shots made in his personal gym; nobody can take that away from him.

Nice to see RWIII playing a little bit, although he was not needed in this game. I actually think Nori is doing a great job subbing in the scrubs so far so they can eat minutes. He's holding his better players like Rob and Jrue for when they are needed in tight ball games and maybe they will have something left for the playoffs, meanwhile giving more minutes to guys like Vit, Sidy, Hansen, and Lillard who can lighten the load for the more important guys.

Glad to see the win without Ja, although Utah is a very bad team. This is likely to be a tough road trip for the Blazers, but we'll see.