Game Thread 2022-23 Game #18 - BLAZERS @ CAVALIERS - NOVEMBER 23, 2022 - WEDNESDAY - 4:00 PM (PDT) ROOT

[THE HCP]

I see a lot of people turning on Sharpe that sucks

1 week ago he was the next Kobe and now is a fraud

don't jump on the bandwagon when the time comes...

No. People with common sense and realistic expectations are no more down on him now than they were high on him 3 weeks ago. This place FAMS!!!

 

[OneSport3]

Here’s some perspective. We’ve played one of the toughest schedules to date (ranges from 3rd to 5th). Dame has missed a majority of those games. Yet we are still 10-8 and 1.5 games out of 1st place.

 

[Fairly-Hard]

You know who else used to get hot at the end of games we would lose? Luke Babbitt....the "yea we won chalupas" hero.

Chalupa LUKE!

 

[AldoTrapani]

Those two home games we let slip away were brutal.

needed those wins with this road trip coming up

Yup! And remember we got lucky that SA game before that. Something happened after that wonderful road trip that you wouldn’t expect to happen.. instead of building off a successfully road trip it seems like the team collapsed

 

[Fairly-Hard]

So we are here guys. We all said 20 games was a fair sample size.
NOT GOOD!

Sorry but I’ve said all along 10-10 at 20 games and I’m ecstatic! Very happy with what we have and what they can accomplish still this year.

 

[RR7]

So we are here guys. We all said 20 games was a fair sample size.
NOT GOOD!

10+8=20. NOT GOOD!

 

[OneSport3]

I don't fault him for his contract...I ask him to live up to it....I'm only disappointed in Ant for his recent stretch of play and not trying to make false equivalencies about it. He's a starter...I expect him to play better for 4 qtrs, not just one qtr a game.

Look at the bright side. At least we weren’t the Warriors and paid Jordan Poole $40M more than Ant for even less production than Ant.

 

[Chris Craig]

Look at the bright side. At least we weren’t the Warriors and paid Jordan Poole $40M more than Ant for even less production than Ant.

True

 

[riverman]

Some of y'all need a break.

nah...it's totally ok to vent about a disappointing stretch of play after seeing things click and the ball move early in the season. I cheer most of the time....if I need to vent, it's allowed. Doesn't mean I'm melting down. It's just a game. Maybe some folks take it seriously but I still enjoy the team. Ant just needs to play 4 qtrs or come off the bench.

 

[blazerfan11]

So we are here guys. We all said 20 games was a fair sample size.
NOT GOOD!

Your math is NOT GOOD! (Hint: look at our win/loss record.)

 

[THE HCP]

So we are here guys. We all said 20 games was a fair sample size.
NOT GOOD!

You’re crazy son! They have so outplayed what I was expecting. This is fabulous!

 

[THE HCP]

Get mad if you want, but it seems like the only people all upset and disappointed are those who thought this team was the best team
In the west. We are ahead of my predicted pace and I’m very happy and proud of what this team
Has accomplished so far.

 

[TBpup]

From #1 to #9 in the span of a week. Sigh....

 

[wizenheimer]

From #1 to #9 in the span of a week. Sigh....

lol...yeah, they just got buried. they are 1 game out of 2nd and 1.5 games out of 1st

 

[blazerfan11]

Do they have 1 play for Sharpe? I feel like his direction from Billups is to go stand in the corner and look to cut baseline if its open.... I see some people saying how Sharpe has been playing bad but unless I'm missing something I feel like there is no effort to try to get him the ball at all on offense... even on fast breaks you can see him ahead of everyone anticipating a lop or a pass but the ball handler either goes 2 on 1 or slows the break... I might be wrong becasue im often working while watching games but it seems like whenever im watching he's basically the 5th option on the court.

They need to run more offense in general with Dame not playing. Running some plays for Sharpe would be nice.

 

[riverman]

Get mad if you want, but it seems like the only people all upset and disappointed are those who thought this team was the best team
In the west. We are ahead of my predicted pace and I’m very happy and proud of what this team
Has accomplished so far.

uh..sorry to break it to you but this team WAS the best in the West and is now 1 game or 1.5 games behind best of the west. The west is a total crap shoot except for the purple and piss puddle down south

 

[RR7]

lol...yeah, they just got buried. they are 1 game out of 2nd and 1.5 games out of 1st

Seriously! Sigh? What a shit take. We're 18 games in. Oh dear, look how far we've fallen! Shit takes galore!

 

[Fairly-Hard]

From #1 to #9 in the span of a week. Sigh....

9 is about what a bunch of us expected. Now can Chauncy Billups and the team stay at 500 through the next quarter of the season and keep some players healthy doing it. Now the question is where will they be when they are at the halfway point?
This has been a huge stretch that very well could have had them in the bottom of the conference. They lose 3 or 4 of those close games and this team is tanking. They very easily could have dropped a few more games.

 

[Fairly-Hard]

lol...yeah, they just got buried. they are 1 game out of 2nd and 1.5 games out of 1st

Yeah but standing at this point? Look at what you are watching in the games. They need to work on things and they will for sure. They need to stay healthy and they need to find some offense.

 

[wizenheimer]

Yeah but standing at this point? Look at what you are watching in the games. They need to work on things and they will for sure. They need to stay healthy and they need to find some offense.

sure...worrying about standings 18 games into an 82 game schedule is foolish, especially considering there is more context to reality in the current standing since variance is so wide for different teams.

how about SOS; strength of schedule:





that certainly may have a much bigger impact at this point in time when the separation between teams is so small. I mean, compare the Blazers SOS to Sacramento. Blazers have played a top-2 toughest SOS and Kings have played one of the easiest. Yet the Kings are only a half game ahead and the Blazers own the tie-breaker, at this point. Which team is really in a better position right now?

 

[AldoTrapani]

Sorry but I’ve said all along 10-10 at 20 games and I’m ecstatic! Very happy with what we have and what they can accomplish still this year.

We have the same record as last year at this time lol

 

[AldoTrapani]

Ant Simons smh

 

[Fairly-Hard]

We have the same record as last year at this time lol

Did you expect much better results than having CJ, Rocco, Powell Dame and Nurk, Nance? Seriously?

 

[Tince]

Well he has certainly been paid like one.

That's not his fault. That's on the GM. Money doesn't make you more talented.

 

[Tince]

I absolutely have higher expectations for Ant this season because of his starting role, his money and his years as a Blazer...it's time for him to impact the team and right now, he's disappointing me when it comes to that. See if he turns it around. Shaedon is the project on this team, not Ant

It's fair to having higher expectations, but if Ant being paid more is causing you to think he will be better, I think you're setting yourself up to be disappointed. If Cronin paid me $1k/year of $100m/year, I'd be an equally unqualified NBA player.

Ant had never produced as a top 4 player on a winning team in the NBA prior to his contract extension. In my opinion there was no reason to think he'd magically turn into a top 2 player on a .500ish team because of the amount of 0's in his contract.

 

[Tince]

sure...worrying about standings 18 games into an 82 game schedule is foolish, especially considering there is more context to reality in the current standing since variance is so wide for different teams.

how about SOS; strength of schedule:

View attachment 51389

View attachment 51390

that certainly may have a much bigger impact at this point in time when the separation between teams is so small. I mean, compare the Blazers SOS to Sacramento. Blazers have played a top-2 toughest SOS and Kings have played one of the easiest. Yet the Kings are only a half game ahead and the Blazers own the tie-breaker, at this point. Which team is really in a better position right now?

I agree with the first part. Of course, strength of schedule metrics after 18 games are also somewhat meaningless. I would've taken 10-8 after 18 games with a healthy team. I'm certainly going to take 10-8 with Dame missing 7 of those games.

I believe this was a play-in team heading into the season and I haven't seen enough to change that stance, yet.

 

[HailBlazers]

Ants contract was an investment. These things take time to pay off.

 

[riverman]

It's fair to having higher expectations, but if Ant being paid more is causing you to think he will be better, I think you're setting yourself up to be disappointed. If Cronin paid me $1k/year of $100m/year, I'd be an equally unqualified NBA player.

Ant had never produced as a top 4 player on a winning team in the NBA prior to his contract extension. In my opinion there was no reason to think he'd magically turn into a top 2 player on a .500ish team because of the amount of 0's in his contract.

I've been a die hard fan since 77 my friend....I never set myself up for disappointment ...I react to the current state of play and call it like I see it...whether highly paid or a rookie...if they only produce for a qtr of a game, they shouldn't be a starter regardless of the paycheck...that's a Jamal Crawford role to come in and chuck late in a game you're losing. I've said several times...shooting 16.7% for a half is not a rotation players stat. I'm not a huge Ant fan as some here are....I ate crow about Ant after that great road trip and since then I've sort of thrown it all back up. I hope he wakes the fuck up...as a fan for sure. Right now the kid has taken seveal steps back and he's stopped attacking the rim...doesn't get to the line and throws the ball away...I put an address on it.

 

[Tince]

I've been a die hard fan since 77 my friend....I never set myself up for disappointment ...I react to the current state of play and call it like I see it...whether highly paid or a rookie...if they only produce for a qtr of a game, they shouldn't be a starter regardless of the paycheck...that's a Jamal Crawford role to come in and chuck late in a game you're losing. I've said several times...shooting 16.7% for a half is not a rotation players stat. I'm not a huge Ant fan as some here are....I ate crow about Ant after that great road trip and since then I've sort of thrown it all back up. I hope he wakes the fuck up...as a fan for sure. Right now the kid has taken seveal steps back and he's stopped attacking the rim...doesn't get to the line and throws the ball away...I put an address on it.

Sorry, I thought you said one of the reasons you had higher expectations was because of the money Ant makes. If I read that (direct quote) wrong, I stand corrected. I know you say you've never set yourself up for disappointment, but your post reads of disappointment. I'm certainly not questioning how many years you've been a fan and I'm happy to hear you've been one for 45 years.

To me, he looks slightly improved over his average production in the previous 3 years. I strongly disagree he's taken several steps back. He does have a lot of the flaws he's always had. I don't try to gauge improvement over 5 game stretches and like to allow the law of averages to work themselves out.

 

[Strenuus]

From #1 to #9 in the span of a week. Sigh....

In November. No one should care about standing slides.