Are we worse than last year?

[Binx]

Three blowout losses in the first 10 games? What the heck?? I don't recall many blowouts at all last year. Even when we lost, the games were usually very competitive. I thought we had gotten better in the off-season but it looks like we have gotten worse.

Doesn't help that Evan Turner can't shoot, and that Myers Leonard is still a stiff (and always will be), or that Harkless barely seems to be interested, or that . . . Blah, blah, blah.

The point is, we stink. Against the better teams, we can't even compete. Very discouraging start to the season.

 

[BrunoSOC]

Im thiking about that.

Turner is AWFUL! He is overpaid. We need a trade or we go out in the first round again (If we make the playoffs).

Im very sad after a blowout to the bulls. Dont get me wrong, thats ok to lost to the bulls, but i expected a close game.

 

[TBpup]

It's because they cut Montero.

 

[Sinobas]

They seem to play a bit more relaxed, like they think they're good. Last season they were really trying to prove that they didn't suck, and no one had any expectations of them. If this were last year, everyone would be impressed that they were above .500.

But last year we knew the roster wasn't finished, we had a lot of cap space coming up and Neil was going to add a major piece. Little did we know that piece would be Evan Turner, and that Crabbe and Leonard would be given insane raises.

Now the Blazers have the 2nd highest payroll in the league (and that's before CJs max kicks in). Doesn't quite have the same charm.

 

[TBpup]

Now the Blazers have the 2nd highest payroll in the league (and that's before CJs max kicks in). Doesn't quite have the same charm.

Plumlee also has a significant raise coming.

 

[Denny Crane]

Blazers forgot they have to work harder than the other teams.

And play defense.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

If we're playing like this come January, no doubt.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Something that worries me: we're getting blown out AT HOME. Seems to me that we were pretty solid at home last year even when we were sucky on the road.

 

[trailblazer18]

No, we are better than last year. See the first 12 games we played last year (4-8) and multiple 10+ point losses.

http://www.espn.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/por/year/2016

 

[trailblazer18]

Does anyone remember the Detroit game last year? Game number 7 of the season. That sucked. Compared to expectations we may be worse, but overall, definitely better. We will get it together.

 

[illmatic99]

It's effort. We look complacent, and outside of Dame and maybe Moe, no one seems to give a shit.

With such a young roster and no real old heads, Terry needs to tighten the reins a bit. No need for off days in practice and more yelling/benching. These guys need to be held accountable. For all the talk of great character, everyone needs a kick in the pants.

 

[KingSpeed]

Cavs were blown out a bunch of times last year (including by us!) and they won the championship. We're having a great start to this season. 7-5 isn't bad at all given our schedule.

 

[Strenuus]

Plumlee also has a significant raise coming.

Hopefully not by us.

 

[Natebishop3]

Hopefully not by us.

Then we better trade him, because you know that Paul doesn't like to let people walk for nothing.

 

[Strenuus]

Then we better trade him, because you know that Paul doesn't like to let people walk for nothing.

It wasn't until yesterday when it hit me that Plumlee is just not that good... he just doesn't offer much consistently.

 

[Natebishop3]

It wasn't until yesterday when it hit me that Plumlee is just not that good... he just doesn't offer much consistently.

If he had a reliable jumpshot he'd be great.... but he's not a very good defender and he's too limited offensively. Pair that with Aminu and/or Meyers and you have a really shitty frontcourt.

 

[Strenuus]

If he had a reliable jumpshot he'd be great.... but he's not a very good defender and he's too limited offensively. Pair that with Aminu and/or Meyers and you have a really shitty frontcourt.

It sucks - in the back of my mind I had a fear we didn't have enough "experience" from many to say we were going to be good. Hurts that it's looking like this might be our team for awhile... and that they aren't as good as I hoped.

Neil just had his most important offseason, and in the end it was meh if it looks like this... but now, this trade deadline just became of most importance.

 

[Tunchi]

It wasn't until yesterday when it hit me that Plumlee is just not that good... he just doesn't offer much consistently.

I've always said he'd be a damn good backup center. No way he can be a starting center for a team competing for a championship.

 

[blue32]

When your Centers (Plums and Beiber) can't shoot, block, defend, etc. You're in for a long season! We need some damn rebounding and muscle!

 

[BBert]

It's because they cut Montero.

Luis "The Glue" Montero.

We hardly knew ye.

 

[tlongII]

It's all about Festus.

 

[Binx]

Ok, this is getting ridiculous. We are not even competing with the better teams. Our defense is a joke. The coaching staff better figure this out fast, or they are going to be out of jobs.

 

[TBpup]

Stotts has always been an offensive coach. There were times it was better but that was more because of personnel than scheme or strategy. Having Lopez, Aldridge, Batum and Matthews was going to make you at least somewhat better just by the type of player that they were.

This team lacks a real element of toughness. Time after time you see straight-line drives to the basket from 20+' away without so much of a hint at redirection. That is coaching, scheme and mental toughness which sadly this team is lacking in a big way right now.

 

[Kaydow]

None of the bigs/front court have played well so far. Ed Davis 2 pts/4 rbs and 41% FG. He was 6/7/ and 61% last year. Meyers shooting has been BAD (35% FG/25% 3 pt FG) and that's the only reason he's out there. Vonleh shooting 38% FG, horrid for anyone, but even worse for a PF. Amina shooting 27% FG before he went down. Plums is the only big with PER over 10. If not for some exceptional games from Dame & CJ, it might look a lot worse than 7-6.

A regression towards the mean statistically seems likely. I don't buy "they got paid, so now they're not motivated " theory, especially with the bigs because Meyers is the only one who signed an extension last offseason. They're just in a funk. Bad offense hurts your defense. Missed shots = More transition opportunities = better shots and we're not the greatest defensively when we MAKE shots. But we're not this bad either. Eventually we'll need a rim protecting, rebound snatching big to really compete with elite teams, but until then the play should level out to look more like the team we saw at the end of last year. Still 69 games to go . . .

 

[Harry's Raincoat]

Our backcourt is fine/really good. Dame, CJ, Crabbe and Turner will be very good for the now and future.

Our frontcourt players need some change! Keep Vonleh and figure out how to get Noel from 76ers. What can we get for Plumlee, Leonard, Davis?

I could see a starting lineup in a year of Lillard, McCollum, Layman, Vonleh and Noel!! Active and determined!

 

[DroppinDimes]

I honestly think the Blazers are playing really hard on defense, and they are still abysmal... which is way worse than lack of effort.

 

[blue9]

I honestly think the Blazers are playing really hard on defense, and they are still abysmal... which is way worse than lack of effort.

LOL! Last night I think it was Hurd who said something along the lines of "it's not for lack of effort", to which my response was "the alternative explanation is that we just aren't good, if we can't blame it on effort". Either way you slice it, it's not good.

 

[ebott]

I forgot how bad we were to start the season last year. I was all excited about getting a top draft pick in November. Then in December we were all mediocre. We were 14 and 20 before we got hot in January. It wasn't until March that it looked like we were going to make the playoffs. MARCH. That's five months away. If they go oh fur on this road trip maybe I'll start saying they're worse than last year. Right now I'm saying they're the same level of bad as last year.

 

[blue9]

I forgot how bad we were to start the season last year. I was all excited about getting a top draft pick in November. Then in December we were all mediocre. We were 14 and 20 before we got hot in January. It wasn't until March that it looked like we were going to make the playoffs. MARCH. That's five months away. If they go oh fur on this road trip maybe I'll start saying they're worse than last year. Right now I'm saying they're the same level of bad as last year.

The thing is, continuity was suppose to work in our favor. While other teams are working several new players into their rotation, or new coaches are trying to get to know their rosters, we brought back our entire roster from last season with one minor change (Henderson/Evans).

I have no doubt that we'll rack up wins later in the season - if you look at the last 6 weeks of our schedule it's laughably soft. But that's just going to further obfuscate the problems this team has. Most will be blinded by the wins, while forgetting how poorly we played against the moderately good teams.