Batum Back 1/18??

[Kaydow]

Jason Quick just said on 95.5 that the Blazers are targetting the road trip that starts 1/18 for Nic to come back (provided no setbacks) He is WAY ahead of schedule.

Nice.

 

[Kaydow]

And Patti Mills has been cleared to play. He's practicing at full speed and it's up to the coaches (according to Quick)

 

[BrianFromWA]

that's also when Rudy's targeting, correct?

And didn't Nic say about a week ago that he hoped to be back by the ASG? How do you get a 1-month bump to the left in schedule?

 

[MIXUM]

you sure he didnt mean rudy?

funny thing about rudy coming back is... thats the spot we dont need help

maybe he can play sf

 

[BrianFromWA]

And Patti Mills has been cleared to play. He's practicing at full speed and it's up to the coaches (according to Quick)

Good news in that we get another warm body, but getting guards back probably won't help us much.

I mean, aside from the Miller/Roy/Bayless triumvirate I'm hoping for Blake's still playing 30mpg. (Which he's doing well at recently since coming off the bench). When Rudy comes back that's another guard to juggle. When Batum comes back Roy's minutes at the 3 will go down and he'll play more 2, squeezing the minutes even further. Mills may not see the floor outside of garbage time.

 

[Kaydow]

that's also when Rudy's targeting, correct?

And didn't Nic say about a week ago that he hoped to be back by the ASG? How do you get a 1-month bump to the left in schedule?

Yes, Rudy is targeting the same return.

Quick just said the Doctors have determined recently that Nic is way ahead of schedule.

He also just said Blazers don't feel like they need to make a move . . . they are targetting some Big Men from the D-Leauge (they just got another injury exception from the league for Joel) They mentioned some names that I've never heard of. Rod Benson? I dunno. He said they will probably be released when Nic/Rudy come back.

 

[andalusian]

I have no idea when he is coming back, but Batum, imho, is the one that will give us the best "lift" when he returns. Not Rudy, not Travis and not likely Mills. That kid has the highest immediate impact and the highest ceiling of these guys, imho.

I hope Rudy comes back on fire and proves me wrong, however.

 

[RR7]

I can see Batum getting some minutes at the 4 in a small ball lineup, with Aldridge at C, and our 3 Gs. If Outlaw can play there, Nic can as well, with the same faults in his game of being too small.

 

[MIXUM]

need his shot blocking and defense BADLY.

great news though if true. didnt hcp say he was out for season? cant lie i kinda agreed with him.

 

[andalusian]

I can see Batum getting some minutes at the 4 in a small ball lineup, with Aldridge at C, and our 3 Gs. If Outlaw can play there, Nic can as well, with the same faults in his game of being too small.

I want to see a Batum/Aldridge/Jeff-P at the bigs rotation for a little. Batum drove people crazy with his defense last year (remember Wade trying to elbow him?), and it seems like Pendergraph is already starting to drive people upset as well ('Melo, last game). Put these two with Bayless/Roy/Aldridge for offense, and this could be a real pain in the rear unit to deal with.

 

[Nikolokolus]

Yes, Rudy is targeting the same return.

Quick just said the Doctors have determined recently that Nic is way ahead of schedule.

He also just said Blazers don't feel like they need to make a move . . . they are targetting some Big Men from the D-Leauge (they just got another injury exception from the league for Joel) They mentioned some names that I've never heard of. Rod Benson? I dunno. He said they will probably be released when Nic/Rudy come back.

BOOM-THO!!!

Sounds like a decent big, if a little skinny. Ben from Blazersedge.com broke him down last week when Joel went down.http://www.blazersedge.com/2009/12/24/1218783/the-search-for-the-17th-man

Excited yet?

 

[BlazerWookee]

Yes, Rudy is targeting the same return.

Quick just said the Doctors have determined recently that Nic is way ahead of schedule.

He also just said Blazers don't feel like they need to make a move . . . they are targetting some Big Men from the D-Leauge (they just got another injury exception from the league for Joel) They mentioned some names that I've never heard of. Rod Benson? I dunno. He said they will probably be released when Nic/Rudy come back.

Rod Benson cracks me up...

[video=youtube;DjdcywpkxlU]

 

[RR7]

Cut Mills, sign Benson. team needs a new blogger/favorite son. Come on Portland, be part of the BoomTho movement!

 

[Nikolokolus]

All I can think of after reading that Mills, Batum and Rudy will be back sooner rather than later, is just how in the fuck are they going to get 6 or 7 guards on the floor?

 

[e_blazer]

All I can think of after reading that Mills, Batum and Rudy will be back sooner rather than later, is just how in the fuck are they going to get 6 or 7 guards on the floor?

One option is to have Mills ride on Batum's shoulders and start them at center.

Just a thought.

 

[Luther]

I really don't feel comfortable with Batum coming back early...As much as he would help right now I would much rather him get into better shape and make sure his shoulder is 100% before throwing him out on the court. I know injuries happen in basketball but I really don't trust our medical staff at this point.

 

[magnifier661]

I can't wait for Batum to come back. I really think Webster and Batum are perfect for each other. They compliment each other so perfectly, and it would really finalize who really needs to be dealt, which is Outlaw. Give us a banger to compliment Aldridge. Who knows, we may already have one with this penegraph dude. Howard seems like he's filling in well too. It would be nice to right Howard until Penegraph can actually take over the back-up role.

 

[BlazerWookee]

All I can think of after reading that Mills, Batum and Rudy will be back sooner rather than later, is just how in the fuck are they going to get 6 or 7 guards on the floor?

Give 'em referee uniforms?

 

[Nikolokolus]

One option is to have Mills ride on Batum's shoulders and start them at center.

Just a thought.

Maybe we could roll with Pajeff Pendermills?

 

[STOMP]

Quick always wants to out-scoop everyone even at the expense of accuracy. I'll believe NB is back when he is and then be happy about it rather then disappointed if he misses some arbitrary deadline. It is good to continue to hear that the various injured guys are at least on track with their respective recoveries though.

STOMP

 

[Kaydow]

All I can think of after reading that Mills, Batum and Rudy will be back sooner rather than later, is just how in the fuck are they going to get 6 or 7 guards on the floor?

Mills probably won't play much - he may get shipped down to the D League. Apparently he gained some weight while injurred.

Getting Rudy back is a good thing. Brandon can't play 40+ minutes all year - we know that. He needs to be around 35 MPG. Plus they like playing Brandon, JB, & Blake (a shooter and two guys who can get to the basket) with Blake mostly standing on the wing/baseline for catch-and-shoots. Rudy can do that just as good, and he's more of a threat to go back door behind the defense. Rudy takes some of Roy's minutes, and some of Blake's/Miller's. I don't expect to see Bayless play less, unless he's playing horrible for an extended period of time.

Nic? I have no idea what to expect. How long will it take him to get in game shape? If he's playing well, he takes minutes from Martell. I've heard people say Martell is playing well during this win streak - not sure I agree. He's played pretty good defensively, and he's hit some timely 3's but he's 22-56 (39%) over the last 7 games, and has averaged 9/4 over that span. Basically, pretty close to what he's been doing all season. It all depends on how Nic is when he comes back.

 

[Pinwheel1]

need his shot blocking and defense BADLY.

Don't quote me on this...but I agree with you. There are certain players in this league that we need multiple guys to help guard. (Kobe being one) I would rather not have Roy in foul trouble trying to do it by himself. Although Webster has been doing a great job, we need the depth guarding those strong wing players.

 

[BlazerBeav]

That's the story!

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2009/12/rudy_fernandez_and_nic_batum_o.html

 

[MIXUM]

getting batum, rudy back is big... if we trade for a center... we will make the playoffs 100%


im thinking its us or okc

 

[alex42083]

All I can think of after reading that Mills, Batum and Rudy will be back sooner rather than later, is just how in the fuck are they going to get 6 or 7 guards on the floor?

Yeah, no doubt... we actually are pretty guard-heavy right now with Jerryd, Andre, Brandon and Blakey. We need some bigs in the worst way.

 

[MickZagger]

getting batum, rudy back is big... if we trade for a center... we will make the playoffs 100%


im thinking its us or okc

The Thunder are currently 1 game over .500. We are soon to be 10 games over .500 after the next two games. Thunder are an afterthought right now. You act like they are a legitimate threat to our playoff chances, its kind of funny.

 

[andalusian]

The Thunder are currently 1 game over .500. We are soon to be 10 games over .500 after the next two games. Thunder are an afterthought right now. You act like they are a legitimate threat to our playoff chances, its kind of funny.

The Thunder are playing nice. They are an interesting team to compare to us, with us having no centers (just like the... wait for it... Thunder), with a superstar wing (Roy vs. Durant) and lots of young talent.

To be fair, however, I think Roy is much more of a bad-ass than Durant is at this point (but Durant is getting better, you have to admire that), and our quality big still standing (LMA) is a better player than any combination of bigs that OKC has.

Our biggest advantage, quite frankly, is that we have 2 reliable scorers and one upcoming one, where the Thunder have 1 reliable scorer, one upcoming one (in Westbrook) and one probably where Bayless was last year (Harden). When Rudy/Nic and maybe Travis come back - our bench will be much better as well.

But, with that said, OKC is a threat. There is no doubt about it. I would still think that realistically, we should be a better team, even without the centers, but you can not ignore them all-together.

 

[MickZagger]

The Thunder are playing nice. They are an interesting team to compare to us, with us having no centers (just like the... wait for it... Thunder), with a superstar wing (Roy vs. Durant) and lots of young talent.

To be fair, however, I think Roy is much more of a bad-ass than Durant is at this point (but Durant is getting better, you have to admire that), and our quality big still standing (LMA) is a better player than any combination of bigs that OKC has.

Our biggest advantage, quite frankly, is that we have 2 reliable scorers and one upcoming one, where the Thunder have 1 reliable scorer, one upcoming one (in Westbrook) and one probably where Bayless was last year (Harden). When Rudy/Nic and maybe Travis come back - our bench will be much better as well.

But, with that said, OKC is a threat. There is no doubt about it. I would still think that realistically, we should be a better team, even without the centers, but you can not ignore them all-together.

Even with the injuries we are a better team. That team doesn't impress me really outside of Durant, Green and Harden. I'd take our main trio right now of Roy/LMA/Bayless anyday. Westbrook is a crazy athlete, but is a sloppy player with no jumpshot at all and has always been a horrible decision maker. They remind me of our 07/08 Blazer team that pulled off some big wins, but lost too many winnable games. For me, they aren't even a thought as a playoff team this year.

 

[andalusian]

Even with the injuries we are a better team. That team doesn't impress me really outside of Durant, Green and Harden. I'd take our main trio right now of Roy/LMA/Bayless anyday. Westbrook is a crazy athlete, but is a sloppy player with no jumpshot at all and has always been a horrible decision maker. They remind me of our 07/08 Blazer team that pulled off some big wins, but lost too many winnable games. For me, they aren't even a thought as a playoff team this year.

I am pretty sure that this is exactly what I said. I think we are a better team, but they are not out of the conversation.

Another advantage we have, is that our coaching staff seems better as well...

 

[handiman]

All I can think of after reading that Mills, Batum and Rudy will be back sooner rather than later, is just how in the fuck are they going to get 6 or 7 guards on the floor?

That's why we pioneered the 6-man play against Boston last year.