Are you worried about chemistry/playing time issues?

[Idog1976]

I'm going to draw on the collective "wisdom" of this board and see what people think about the recent rumblings in the media. Please vote and share your opinion below on your level of concern or lack thereof.

 

[RoyIsClutch07]

When you have this much talent and you are hearing things that we are hearing. I think you have to be slightly concerned. Do I think there will real issues this year?

Naw.

 

[GrandpaBlaze]

I believe that with the emergence of Oden as a viable force, the addition of Miller and the return of Webster, there is bound to be keen competition for minutes with Nate doing a fair amount of juggling and testing throughout the pre-season and into the beginning of the season as he sees who works best with whom and who deserves time and who does not (perhaps not in our opinion but at in Nate's).

Once the playing time settles down, there is also bound to be some reasonably talented guys on the teams who will be disgruntled with the amount of time they receive.

Gramps...

 

[oldmangrouch]

Right now, the players are focused on competing with each other. Once the season starts and they have a common enemy to focus on, things should get better.

 

[Nikolokolus]

In the short run I'm not terribly worried, but by February I think if KP does nothing to pare down the roster into a more manageable composition that is more rounded with role players and some clearly defined starting roles then I think it's possible you could see some major issues arise as young guys like Jerryd, Nic, and Rudy start feeling like they need to show more on offense, guys like Steve and Travis playing in the final year of their contracts start pressing more to get the stats that will help ensure their livelihood, and too many guys jockey for too few minutes.

I've felt this way since well before last year's trading deadline that a minutes crunch was looming and that some kind of 2 or 3 for 1 deal needs to get done, hopefully bringing an established veteran "star" (or near star like a Gerald Wallace level of player -- not necessarily GW). If KP keeps Ime then I think I'd look long and hard at trading Rudy, Nic, Martell, Jerryd, Travis or Steve (in some combination of 2 or 3) for a single wing or a young prospect point guard with a lot of promise (eg. Mike Conley, et al.)

 

[Masbee]

In the short run I'm not terribly worried, but by February I think if KP does nothing to pare down the roster into a more manageable composition that is more rounded with role players and some clearly defined starting roles then I think it's possibly you could see some major issues arise as young guys like Jerryd, Nic, and Rudy start feeling like they need to show more on offense, guys like Steve and Travis playing in the final year of their contracts start pressing more to get the stats that will help ensure their livelihood, and too many guys jockey for too few minutes.

I've felt this way since well before last year's trading deadline that a minutes crunch was looming and that some kind of 2 or 3 for 1 deal needs to get done, hopefully bringing an established veteran "star" (or near star like a Gerald Wallace level of player -- not necessarily GW). If KP keeps Ime then I think I'd look long and hard at trading Rudy, Nic, Martell, Jerryd, Travis or Steve (in some combination of 2 or 3) for a single wing or a young prospect point guard with a lot of promise (eg. Mike Conley, et al.)

Yep. I have been wanting/waiting for/anticipating/expecting some consolidation moves for a while now. I was very much in favor of the Dallas/New Jesey/Portland deal where multiple players out brought back Devin Harris. I was in favor of making a move for Gerald Wallace at the trade deadline (though agreed that Nic couldn't be part of the deal).

Now this summer, I wanted the best possible free agent we could get with the cap space plan, simply to extract maximum value. Milsap offer was perfect example of that thought. Had to try it on such a young talent.

Miller signing as well, had my approval, considering what few options were left.

The other current of my summer thinking was how can we get some upgrades at "role player" types?

Every time I looked at the Blazer roster, I come away thinking, "Jesus, there are TOOOOO many guys that deserve shots/need shots/have to get shots for us to win. We have too many guys that deserve minutes/need minutes. Dammit, if somebody doesn't get hurt this could get ugly fast."

The players that kept popping into my head (and they are by no means the only candidates) are Shane Battier and Ronnie Turiaf.

It is too late now, of course, but what if we had found a way dangle some combinations of cash, picks, Euros and Joel, Outlaw, Blake and Bayless (only if needed). Don't freak out - not all that should go out for only Battier and Turiaf coming back.

Instead of signing Ime and Howard, we get the equivalent type vet PG & C.

Now we have got Outlaw and Blake's shots to spread around. I know it only helps a little. But, it is a little relief that might have made all the difference.

Miller/ Vet FA
Roy / Rudy
Battier / Batum / Webster
Aldridge / Turiaf
Oden / Vet big

Now we have a 3 man big rotation, and a 3 man guard rotation. The only logjam for the season is at the 3 spot. But all those guys can sneak in minutes at the 2 and 4 spots for certain matchups.

Instead of black and white units, we have one player sub at a time. One of Miller or Roy is always on the floor. One of Roy or Aldridge is always on the floor. Roy runs the offense when Miller is out. Rudy gets to play some point. Batum gets to take some more shots. Rudy, Battier, Webster and (hopefully Batum) provide adequate 3pt shooting to make up for Blake and Outlaw.

 

[LittleAlex]

I said other.

I am far more worried about shot distribution then I am about playing time.

For example, Outlaw may only play 15 minutes, but if he throws 10 shots in the air during that time I would be concerned.

There are only going to be so many shots to go around. Who takes them?

 

[mook]

In the short run I'm not terribly worried, but by February I think if KP does nothing to pare down the roster into a more manageable composition that is more rounded with role players and some clearly defined starting roles then I think it's possibly you could see some major issues arise as young guys like Jerryd, Nic, and Rudy start feeling like they need to show more on offense, guys like Steve and Travis playing in the final year of their contracts start pressing more to get the stats that will help ensure their livelihood, and too many guys jockey for too few minutes.

I've felt this way since well before last year's trading deadline that a minutes crunch was looming and that some kind of 2 or 3 for 1 deal needs to get done, hopefully bringing an established veteran "star" (or near star like a Gerald Wallace level of player -- not necessarily GW). If KP keeps Ime then I think I'd look long and hard at trading Rudy, Nic, Martell, Jerryd, Travis or Steve (in some combination of 2 or 3) for a single wing or a young prospect point guard with a lot of promise (eg. Mike Conley, et al.)

Good post. Yeah, the trade dead line this year could get pretty interesting, although Pritchard has never been much of a fan of midseason deals.

Oden looks like a 28 mpg player now, a 7 mpg bump.
Rodriguez really looks like he's ready to add 2-3 mpg more, at least.
Webster is used to averaging 25 mpg.
Miller is used to averaging 35 mpg.
That's 70 minutes of new PT.

We lost two guys who combined for 26 mpg (Frye/Sergio).

That's a net surplus of 44 mpg guys are used to/expecting to play, but won't be getting. And that's not even counting Bayless, or granting more minutes to Batum (who plays a vital and irreplaceable role as our team's only defensive specialist on the wing).

You can cut back some minutes to preserve Roy and Aldridge better, and probably have to as well with Miller. At most, though, that frees up another 10-15 mpg. You still have 30 mpg of surplus playing time.

Problems are definitely ahead.

 

[Wheels]

Right now, the players are focused on competing with each other. Once the season starts and they have a common enemy to focus on, things should get better.

This. Its actually a smart thing in practice to get people so pissed and sick of eachother, that come gametime they want to KILL the opposition.

 

[magnifier661]

Not at all. I think we are in pre-season and only 2 players changed (Sergio for Miller and the addition of Webster back from injury). Clearly Sergio wasn't enough of an impact player to completely change the chemistry and if Webster doesn't work out, we have two other players that can play SF at a decent level.

What I'm concerned with is Oden and Oden alone. This is a big year for him, because he had such a disappointing season last year. I think he really wants to be a strong impact this season. That may cause a problem if things aren't going his way.

 

[Idog1976]

Not at all. I think we are in pre-season and only 2 players changed (Sergio for Miller and the addition of Webster back from injury). Clearly Sergio wasn't enough of an impact player to completely change the chemistry and if Webster doesn't work out, we have two other players that can play SF at a decent level.

What I'm concerned with is Oden and Oden alone. This is a big year for him, because he had such a disappointing season last year. I think he really wants to be a strong impact this season. That may cause a problem if things aren't going his way.

I have a feeling Oden won't be an issue this year, at least not for OUR team. Other teams I think might find Oden to be the BIGGEST issue for them to deal with and I mean impact not player size. Seriously, if Oden gets it going there are only a handful of teams that have a prayer of stopping him with his physical gifts.

 

[mook]

Not at all. I think we are in pre-season and only 2 players changed (Sergio for Miller and the addition of Webster back from injury). Clearly Sergio wasn't enough of an impact player to completely change the chemistry and if Webster doesn't work out, we have two other players that can play SF at a decent level.

Not really true. We also got rid of Frye. And it's not the number of players that's really at issue. Who really cared if Sergio or Frye got pissed off? We had no use for them anyway. Let them gripe.

It's now the quality of players that matters. Outlaw, Blake, Webster, Rudy, Przybilla and Bayless all have some value in this league (unlike Frye and Sergio). When guys with decent talent or upside start complaining, it can affect the value of those players on the market. It can force our hand to trade when we don't want to. And it can become a real distraction to the team.

Regardless, with a team this young and this talented, even if we had an exact equal number of players commanding minutes as we did last year, we'd have more problems with it this year. Good players who get closer to their prime generally deserve more minutes. Rudy Fernandez, for example, is not going to be happy forever playing just 25 mpg.

What I'm concerned with is Oden and Oden alone. This is a big year for him, because he had such a disappointing season last year. I think he really wants to be a strong impact this season. That may cause a problem if things aren't going his way

If Oden really does blow up into a top center this year, it'll completely overshadow any minutes crunch or practically any other problem this team has.

 

[BlazerWookee]

Not even the faintest hint of worry.

There may be heartburn, there may be dissatisfaction with roles, there may be personal conflict between players. But I'm not worried, because of the caliber of leadership we have in Brandon, Nate, and KP. The level of character and integrity on this roster is off the charts.

 

[STOMP]

I've felt this way since well before last year's trading deadline that a minutes crunch was looming and that some kind of 2 or 3 for 1 deal needs to get done, hopefully bringing an established veteran "star" (or near star like a Gerald Wallace level of player -- not necessarily GW). If KP keeps Ime then I think I'd look long and hard at trading Rudy, Nic, Martell, Jerryd, Travis or Steve (in some combination of 2 or 3) for a single wing or a young prospect point guard with a lot of promise (eg. Mike Conley, et al.)

If Greg is healthy and a lot more foul free then last year, then I'd definitely include Joel in that list of trade assets. Of course he's got an out after this season and I suspect he'd like both more $$$ and PT. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but overall he's probably at least as valuable a chip as anyone on your list. Packaging him and Travis for a stud PF (with many years left in his career) who could team either with Greg or LA in the frontcourt would shore up their Bigs rotation and deflate some of the minutes crunch. I'm fine with LA being the primary backup 5.

I'm actually not that concerned about the ramifications of Blake Webster and Bayless sitting more then they'd like.

STOMP

 

[MARIS61]

I get along fine with everybody, and I don't expect to step on the court this season, so I'm not overly concerned.

But while we're on the subject, let's look at the Blazers in the same light.

I've been concerned about them from the day it became clear Nate didn't want Sergio (the only guard so far who has been able to get everybody enough quality touches to keep the chemistry working smoothly) to be the PG of this team.

Then it went to alarm when a desperate KP annointed Miller (an anti-social oddball among PG's who failed so miserably on his previous 4 teams that none tried to keep him, none want him back) as some sort of savior, despite the obvious style conflicts with Roy, LaMarcus, Rudy, Travis and others.

Now his me-first fuck-the-fans attitude (refused to sign an autograph in his new town) has worn thin, the players realize what a ballhog he is, and he's called the coach (lied about starting) and assistants (lied about other's conditioning times) dishonest.

He has managed to alienate just about everyone who has heard him speak.

Chemistry?

Blazers = oil
Miller = water

 

[PapaG]

I'm actually not that concerned about the ramifications of Blake Webster and Bayless sitting more then they'd like.

STOMP

I'm certainly not concerned about Webster and Bayless, but the shooting/spacing that Blake delivered in the offense may not be as easy to dismiss. Of course, if this is offset by Miller constantly feeding Oden in the post, it may not matter. So, at this point, I am somewhat concerned about Blake seeing a dramatic reduction in PT, at least without knowing where or how what he does is replaced.

 

[ebott]

I'm worried. It feels like the wheels have come off the chemistry bus. Our talent alone is gonna win us a ton of games. But I'm still worried that a few guys saying "I gotta get mine" is gonna transfer to the whole team. Especially if Brandon Roy is one of those guys. If such a thing comes to pass I could see us losing a lot of games that we should win because guys are "getting theirs" rather than trying to win the game.

 

[BlazerWookee]

Funny thing is, if Miller pisses Nate off, his consecutive games streak will come to a screeching halt with a DNP-CD.

 

[Rodolfo]

Slightly worried. Top Priority should be a consolidation at some point this season.

 

[Idog1976]

Slightly worried. Top Priority should be a consolidation at some point this season.

I feel like it ought to be sooner then later. I would love to see a consolidation trade that netted us Mike Conley Jr. for our sake AND for poor Mikey stuck with Z-bo the ghost of AI, Rudy Gay and Mayo. Poor Conley...Poor, POOR Conley!

 

[Chuck Taylor]

I've been concerned about them from the day it became clear Nate didn't want Sergio (the only guard so far who has been able to get everybody enough quality touches to keep the chemistry working smoothly) to be the PG of this team.

Isn't it possible that Nate didn't think Sergio was talented enough for this team? C'mon, he's currently the 3rd string point guard for Sacramento! Making this out to be a chemistry issue is a very weak argument.

Then it went to alarm when a desperate KP annointed Miller (an anti-social oddball among PG's who failed so miserably on his previous 4 teams that none tried to keep him, none want him back) as some sort of savior, despite the obvious style conflicts with Roy, LaMarcus, Rudy, Travis and others.

The clippers and the 76ers couldn't afford him. The Cavs and the Nuggets traded him (the Nuggets got Iverson for him, by the way). I don't see how they didn't try to keep him, nor want him back (which is obviously complete speculation). The obvious style conflicts comment is more speculation. Lets give them some time to meld before we we say they have conflicting syles.

Now his me-first fuck-the-fans attitude (refused to sign an autograph in his new town) has worn thin, the players realize what a ballhog he is, and he's called the coach (lied about starting) and assistants (lied about other's conditioning times) dishonest.

The guys on Courtside tonight said they asked him about not signing an autograph at the Lloyd Center. He said he had never been. Either you believe some random fan, or you give Miller the benefit of the doubt on this one.

A ball hog? The guy averages more assists for his career than anyone else on our team. If he's a ball hog, the rest of the team are black holes.

I don't know when he called the coaches dishonest. There appears to be some sort of misunderstanding about the summer meeting which addressed his role, but I don't see where he called Nate dishonest. As for the conditioning tests, Andre merely pointed out that he wasn't the only one who failed, which is true.

He has managed to alienate just about everyone who has heard him speak.

Chemistry?

Blazers = oil
Miller = water

More speculation. Congratulations on maybe my least favorite post of the young season.

 

[jlprk]

Funny thing is, if Miller pisses Nate off, his consecutive games streak will come to a screeching halt with a DNP-CD.

Don't underestimate this as Miller's main motivation in wanting so desperately to be a starter right from the 1st game.

In his career (10 years), he has missed 3 games, plus 2 due to scheduling (the Dec. 2006 trade from Denver to Philadelphia).

In the 9 years after his rookie year, he has started every single game except 1, his first Philly game.

That tremendous 2nd streak, McMillan is taking lightly. Miller is amazed that he will sub behind someone half as good as he is.

 

[PapaG]

Don't underestimate this as Miller's main motivation in wanting so desperately to be a starter right from the 1st game.

In his career (10 years), he has missed 3 games, plus 2 due to scheduling (the Dec. 2006 trade from Denver to Philadelphia).

In the 9 years after his rookie year, he has started every single game except 1, his first Philly game.

That tremendous 2nd streak, McMillan is taking lightly. Miller is amazed that he will sub behind someone half as good as he is.

I wonder how many 9 consectutive year starters in NBA history have never won a playoff series? That's an impressive streak as well, in another direction.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

This team needs a consolidating move this season.

Sergio said it best when he said there are players on this team who NEED to play but wont be able to because the team is about 3-deep at every position.

I have a sense KP is biting the bullet on this on hoping nobody will lash out. He's just too damn close to the players.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

I know NJ will be in the LeBron race and wont move any major pieces but here's a consolidating idea

Rudy Fernandez to NJ
Jerryd Bayless to NJ
Travis Outlaw to NJ
Steve Blake to NJ
1st round pick/Euros to NJ

Devin Harris to POR
Trenton Hassell to POR

 

[magnifier661]

I have a feeling Oden won't be an issue this year, at least not for OUR team. Other teams I think might find Oden to be the BIGGEST issue for them to deal with and I mean impact not player size. Seriously, if Oden gets it going there are only a handful of teams that have a prayer of stopping him with his physical gifts.

Oden doesn't even have to be the main focus on offense to be a huge factor on our team. As long as he can put up some 20-30 point games every once in a while, it will force teams to design defenses to stop that from happening. That would open things up for the other offensive players.

I would be extremely satisfied if Oden can have a season average of 12 points 12 boards and 2 blocks a game (With 10 or more games with 20+ scoring).

 

[magnifier661]

It's now the quality of players that matters. Outlaw, Blake, Webster, Rudy, Przybilla and Bayless all have some value in this league (unlike Frye and Sergio). When guys with decent talent or upside start complaining, it can affect the value of those players on the market. It can force our hand to trade when we don't want to. And it can become a real distraction to the team.

Well I have to say I woudn't be too surprised if some players want more playing time, but in all honesty, I think the ones we should worry about are Oden, Roy, Aldridge and Fernandez. That core is explosive and should be the main focus for management to keep together.

Good players who get closer to their prime generally deserve more minutes. Rudy Fernandez, for example, is not going to be happy forever playing just 25 mpg.

I couldn't agree with you more on this. In fact, I believe we may see Fernandez starting even as early as this season. I am advocating this line-up: Miller, Roy, Fernandez, Aldridge, and Oden. Main back ups: Batum, Outlaw, Blake, Webster and Pryzbilla

If Oden really does blow up into a top center this year, it'll completely overshadow any minutes crunch or practically any other problem this team has.

I think having a 12/12 season would be a successful improvement IMO.

 

[Nikolokolus]

I know NJ will be in the LeBron race and wont move any major pieces but here's a consolidating idea

Rudy Fernandez to NJ
Jerryd Bayless to NJ
Travis Outlaw to NJ
Steve Blake to NJ
1st round pick/Euros to NJ

Devin Harris to POR
Trenton Hassell to POR

They wouldn't go for it (I guess), but I'd do it.

 

[Nikolokolus]

Well I have to say I woudn't be too surprised if some players want more playing time, but in all honesty, I think the ones we should worry about are Oden, Roy, Aldridge and Fernandez. That core is explosive and should be the main focus for management to keep together.

A lot people don't want to hear this but Rudy is as pure a 2 guard as you are ever going to see and despite what some people advocate in moving Roy to the 3, he's not ideally suited at that position. Rudy is going to be a complimentary player on this team, not a core piece ... that doesn't mean that some day he wouldn't be talented enough to be a core piece for some team, but he's suffering from Drazen Petrovich syndrome with this squad -- he's going to need to be traded sooner or later.

I couldn't agree with you more on this. In fact, I believe we may see Fernandez starting even as early as this season. I am advocating this line-up: Miller, Roy, Fernandez, Aldridge, and Oden. Main back ups: Batum, Outlaw, Blake, Webster and Pryzbilla

This is exactly the problem Roy and Aldridge were complaining about the other day in that a lot of talent is on the team but not a lot of touches. This starting 5 of Miler, Roy, Rudy, Aldridge and Oden has 5 guys who all need to score ... perhaps to a lesser degree Oden and Miller don't "need" to, but that is a purely offensive minded unit with very little balance in terms of players who can fill a role or focus mostly on defense.

 

[BlazersBlood]

I think everything will work itself out. The best team will be on the floor most of the game and any personal feelings that certain players have about others, it just won't matter when we're winning. Some players won't be happy with their PT, but who really cares? If they're not good enough to get on the floor, then they're not good enough....period. The fact is Roy & Aldridge are our only 2 stars that deserve heavy minutes, and you could add an emerging Oden to that if he makes the leap this year. Anybody beyond that is gonna have to compete for playing time. A lot of people around here seem to think that competition is a new thing and the winner won't get the minutes.