Are the Blazers truly "bad?"

[blazerfan11]

Blazers vs teams ahead of them in the Western Conference:

Sacramento 1-0
Phoenix 2-1 (won series)
Denver 1-3 (lost series)
Memphis 1-1
New Orleans 1-0
Dallas 2-2 (tied series)
Utah 2-1
Clippers 0-1
Minnesota 2-1
Golden State 0-1

That's 12-11 against teams ahead of us in the conference standings.
If the team were truly "bad" in their conference, they wouldn't have a winning record against teams that are supposedly better.

My takeaway is that those teams overall are only better in the standings (by beating those other teams the Blazers have trouble with) until proven otherwise.
It'll be interesting to see what happens against the Warriors (in the western conference ahead of the Blazers in the standings) , a team that has a times looked pathetic in road games.

 

[Cugel]

they are average

 

[Natebishop3]

Yes.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Depends which quarter it is

 

[wizenheimer]

'bad' is a pretty subjective word unless you're talking about my mom's split pea soup...it was objectively bad

Portland is bad in this way:

what has got Portland into the playoffs so much over the last decade is that they were able to win most of their games against the teams they were ahead of. They beat up the lottery teams. This season they are not winning those games at a good enough rate, and I think it's because this current team has no identity and they have nothing they can rely on. Chauncey, in my view, has not done a good job of establishing any foundation of scheme

it also doesn't help their cause that there are a bunch of teams about at their level. There are no easy wins

another thing that's bad is this post because I'm just pulling it out of my colon

 

[wizenheimer]

Depends which quarter it is

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

They are the epitome of mediocrity.

 

[e_blazer]

They are the epitome of mediocrity.

Like most of the league. They are 3 1/2 games out of the fourth seed in the West.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

You kids and your slang, I take it that bad doesn't mean good anymore and now means sexy.

Yes, the Blazers are sexy!

 

[blazerkor]

We’re really badly constructed both from the standpoint of dispersal of size, talent and skill and then compounded by the way that fits in the system our coach insists on using.

So we are bad and we’re worse than we have to be. I’m not holding my breath but with a couple of Olshey like trades and staying healthy we could be mediocre.

If Joe swung for the fences we could even be good but not great and we would have very few draft assets for the foreseeable future.

 

[Tince]

The Blazers are not bad. Bad is what the second half of last year looked liked. Or what the 04-05 and 05-06 teams looked like. We're just below average.

 

[blazerfan11]

they are average

As are a lot of teams that people think are "good" based on their win-loss record.

 

[blazerfan11]

The Blazers are not bad. Bad is what the second half of last year looked liked. Or what the 04-05 and 05-06 teams looked like. We're just below average.

Just a bit below average. It's not as much as it feels.

 

[riverman]

No, the Blazers are not "bad"...they are inconsistent and have been pretty banged up so far. What they are not as constructed would be contenders. This team would not win most 7 game playoff series against the competition in the west. They don't close out games enough to pull that off.

 

[blazerfan11]

You kids and your slang, I take it that bad doesn't mean good anymore and now means sexy.

Yes, the Blazers are sexy!

 

[blazerfan11]

They are the epitome of mediocrity.

 

[tlongII]

They seem like nice guys to me.

 

[calvin natt]

They are average and happy with it. Since forever.

 

[THE HCP]

Could have told you yes in the middle of October bro.

 

[Fairly-Hard]

If you have UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS and you know it Clap you hands CLAP CLAP!

If you have UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS and you know it Clap you hands CLAP CLAP!

 

[KingSpeed]

Like most of the league. They are 3 1/2 games out of the fourth seed in the West.

This is false. It’s an illusion. We are 3.5 games behind the Clippers but not 3.5 games behind the 4 seed. The teams above us play each other. If the Clippers lose 4 straight and we win 4 straight, we won’t be in the 4 seed. If we were the 5th seed now then yes, we’d be 3.5 behind 4th. Understand?

 

[Fairly-Hard]

This is false. It’s an illusion. We are 3.5 games behind the Clippers but not 3.5 games behind the 4 seed. The teams above us play each other. If the Clippers lose 4 straight and we win 4 straight, we won’t be in the 4 seed. If we were the 5th seed now then yes, we’d be 3.5 behind 4th. Understand?

And if they win 4 straight they could be in the 5th seed. Because other teams have to play as well. So that just says if they win 4 straight that is good. If they lose 4 straight that is bad.
Simple point is the Blazers need to win some games. If they don't win now they are going to be in a very tough spot after the break. These next 4 games are pretty important.

 

[e_blazer]

This is false. It’s an illusion. We are 3.5 games behind the Clippers but not 3.5 games behind the 4 seed. The teams above us play each other. If the Clippers lose 4 straight and we win 4 straight, we won’t be in the 4 seed. If we were the 5th seed now then yes, we’d be 3.5 behind 4th. Understand?

Thanks for explaining the obvious. Yes, I should have worded that more clearly. The point is, there are plenty of games in which to make up ground and get into playoff position. Most WC teams fit the “mediocre” label. The Blazers need to improve their roster by making a trade or two before the deadline, IMO, and they need to get healthy. After that, it’s a matter of winning at a higher rate than the field and then seeing where they’re at when the smoke clears.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

If you have UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS and you know it Clap you hands CLAP CLAP!

If you have UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS and you know it Clap you hands CLAP CLAP!

Funny how my expectations were never unrealistic until the past two seasons

 

[BassPlaya]

This team is way above average in being a tightknit group who cares about each other (Nurk?), tries to help each other succeed (Nurk?), and has each others back (Nurk?). That is a rare thing in most NBA teams.

This team is really bad at height (starting), and depth at height. Injuries have exacerbated this.

They do pretty god damned well with their backs against the wall...but the wall is too tall.

 

[wizenheimer]

Could have told you yes in the middle of October bro.

what do you mean "could have"...?

you've been incessantly yelling it in this forum since before October, like some kind of deranged parrot hooked up to a 700 gallon IV of red bull, espresso, and liquid meth. Explains why Blazer replays are so jittery

 

[SharpeScooterShooter]

Bad is subject to interpretation. Im bad at basketball… compared to Dame…

im great at basketball compared to @hoopsjock

 

[Ed O]

No, the team is not bad. It's average or slightly below that.

But it's a team that has been relatively healthy and is leaning a lot on its starters to get sub-average results. And it's a team that has almost no young players of note, no cap space, pending free agents, and not a lot of draft pick flexibility.

So... no, they're not bad. We could get into the playoffs or even HCA this year with a nice run. But we're not well situated for future success, and as a fan who is more concerned with the long run then the next week or two, I consider it to be a bad situation.

 

[SharpeScooterShooter]

No, the team is not bad. It's average or slightly below that.

But it's a team that has been relatively healthy and is leaning a lot on its starters to get sub-average results. And it's a team that has almost no young players of note, no cap space, pending free agents, and not a lot of draft pick flexibility.

So... no, they're not bad. We could get into the playoffs or even HCA this year with a nice run. But we're not well situated for future success, and as a fan who is more concerned with the long run then the next week or two, I consider it to be a bad situation.

you lost me at relatively healthy…

 

[KingSpeed]

And if they win 4 straight they could be in the 5th seed. Because other teams have to play as well. So that just says if they win 4 straight that is good. If they lose 4 straight that is bad.
Simple point is the Blazers need to win some games. If they don't win now they are going to be in a very tough spot after the break. These next 4 games are pretty important.

The teams play each other so all the teams in front of us can’t all lose. But, you are right, if we really want to play in postseason need to get started winning. I hope if there is no trade and we’re not at .500 at the break, that we will sit the starters and tank the rest of the season.