Game Thread 2023-24 Game #24 - BLAZERS VS MAVERICKS - DECEMBER 16, 2023 - SATURDAY - 6:00 PM PST - ROOT

We have just completely lost that intensity that made this team fun.

 

Ant makes scoring look so effortless -- 33 pts on 22 shots. Also 8 reb, 6 assts, 2 stls, plus-4 in a loss. He's working hard on the defensive end even if he's not there yet. He looks like a future all-star.
When Scoot is getting the game, he looks great, too. I have no reason to think he can't be as good as Westbrook, or better. He won't average 10 reb a game, but I think his style of game and willingness to learn make him more the kind of player you see playing a key role on a championship team. His defense is ahead of where I thought it would be; big jump from just a few weeks ago. He's taking on guarding much taller, proven scorers and makes them work. His flashes are like something out of "Oppenheimer."
Shaedon needs to get more than 7 shots. He defers a little too much. Probably youth, but he seems so laid back that it might also be his personality.

All in all, not disappointed tonight. The Mavs are very good, they've put talent around Luka that fits really well together. We got way down and fought back and competed. Lot to feel good about.

 

Coincidence with certain personnel returning from injury?

 

Defense is the problem

 

Wow, it's amazing how the return of Anfernee and Jerami has just made Shaedon disappear... And a grand total of 5 shots for our maxed-out center.

 

Doncic has a certain kind of magic power: he looks like he just makes people get out of his way as he waddles to the hoop. You have to think there's SOMEBODY who can make him work a little harder (or at least two somebodies, since he uses picks as much as any player ever).

 

Ayton doesn’t bother me. We won that trade. We didn’t give up anything to get him and we got Toumani.

I just want to see development this season. I don’t like that Scoot got 24 minutes. Especially since he was starting to play better. I don’t see the point in having Grant and Simons put up a bunch of shots in a loss. But oh well.

Need to trade Brogdon to free up some minutes.

 

Ayton is... Not a good player

 

The quality of defense is part of it.

Portland shooting 22% from 3 had nothing to do with their defense. Reath, Thybulle, Camara, and Walker going 1-12 on potentially assisted 3's was costly. If those guy shoot 33% on wide open 3's, those 9 extra points changes the game.

 

They look much worse at home for some reason. They had an almost 5 game winning streak on the road, come home, and get blown out to Utah(missing half their players), and were never really in this game either.

 

Last year it was Dame (supposedly) making him disappear and now it's Grant/Ant. I think we might be closer to dialing in on what the real issue is.

 

I have a feeling this team will look different after the trade deadline.

 

Sharpe not getting shots isn't the problem. Grant and Simons scored 60 points on 44 attempts. That's really good. Sharpe was only 2-7.

 

Simons was actually +4 this game. This is not his fault.

 

Blazers only had 1 really bad quarter compared to 3 in the last game. That's a big improvement.

 

Damn didn’t see the game or anything but Shaedon needs to be an alpha and demand the ball. Regardless there’s to many shot takers on this team. Grant definitely needs to be traded and Malcolm too

 

that appears to be true.

on the other hand, Simons and Grant were aggressive and efficient. Kind of hard to slam them for their offense when they shoot like that. And Sharpe is too deferential, IMO. On the other other hand, Portland had 17 assists on 47FG's. That's an assisted FG rate of 36.1%; they entered the game with an assisted FG rate of 57.1%. Last season, with Dame, their rate was 59.7%. So yeah, the Blazers, basically Ant and Grant, went overboard with one-on-one tonight

 

3 games in a week in two citites. Think I'll give this a rest and pass on tmrw.