Can the Blazers focus!!

[Ghost Pepper]

Long enough to win a playoff series? I have my doubts! Last night a good team would have destroyed Golden State and really started to flex their playoff ready muscles. The Blazers showed that on a night where they could have clinched a playoff birth on their own merit, showing up was not on their agenda yet again! They allowed a jump shooting team to do just that and more concerning unguarded for a vast majority of their makes.

When does the urgency show up for this team! By this point of the season in a tight playoff race, being blown out on your home court by 20 is unacceptable. It's speaks to the coaching, the prepartion, and the want to be better than a one and done in the playoffs.

The Lakers want to be a 1 seed in the playoffs, think they'll sleep on Golden State tonight?

 

[3RA1N1AC]

id like to hope so, i think we could get lucky and make a run, and i truly think we can beat anyone in the west if we get hot, even the lakers, same goes for the east obviously.

and secret conspiracy theory says that we are trying to match up with san antonio

 

[magnifier661]

Come on man! Dallas lost to this very same team. And P.S., Golden State has beaten some of the best teams in the NBA this season. I think the Blazers have proven that they are seriously focused beating all the play-off bound teams more than losing after the allstar break. I had us losing that game in my last 10 game prediction. Golden State has and always had caused us problems.

 

[Ghost Pepper]

That's quite a gamble not knowing where the Lakers and Spurs may end up. Something tells me the Lakers/Spurs game will be the one that decides our fate! The Blazers want no part of the Lakers in the first round!

 

[3RA1N1AC]

Come on man! Dallas lost to this very same team. And P.S., Golden State has beaten some of the best teams in the NBA this season. I think the Blazers have proven that they are seriously focused beating all the play-off bound teams more than losing after the allstar break. I had us losing that game in my last 10 game prediction. Golden State has and always had caused us problems.

thats true, for whatever reason, GS just runs us out of the gym most nights

 

[Ghost Pepper]

It's not that they lost, it's that they played without any energy on a night that they had something to really play for! Their defense was non existent and they didn't lose by 5, they lost by 20 and it wasn't even close for the entire 2nd half! These Blazers are not good enough to pick and choose when they are going to play hard, they need to be playing hard every game.

 

[3RA1N1AC]

That's quite a gamble not knowing where the Lakers and Spurs may end up. Something tells me the Lakers/Spurs game will be the one that decides our fate! The Blazers want no part of the Lakers in the first round!

and i agree its risky, but san antonio basically has the #1 wrapped up, up 3.5 with 4 to go, magic number is 1 i believe, so one win or one laker loss...actually la has 5 to go, so they would have to lose twice? anyhoo, spurs look to have the #1, so all we need to do is drop to the #8 and we got them, not that i even think that is a good idea

 

[KingSpeed]

A). Are the Lakers a good team? They certainly didn't flex their playoff muscles at home against the horrible Jazz last night. That pretty much blew their chance to get the 1 seed, I think.

B) To answer your question, I think the answer is no. We are a very good team and we have had a very good season, but Dallas, SA, Lakers, OKC have played better and they have HCA. Nothing for us to be ashamed of though. I'm proud of our team.

 

[magnifier661]

I will never endorse a team purposely tanking games to match up with other teams. It sets a terrible tone for the team. How would any player have confidence if the coach says "Hey we can't beat the Lakers, so let's drop a game to avoid them!" <--- Sorry excuse for a coach if they said this.

Fact is, we need to tell the entire team, players, fans, hell even the owner that WE FEAR NO ONE! Realists believe and I would have to agree that the one team they don't want to face is the Lakers, but it is what it is.

 

[Ghost Pepper]

That still doesn't address the point of focus and I think the Blazers lack it. I don't think this team is mentally ready to win a playoff series yet!

 

[THE HCP]

If we had a healthy Greg Oden and Brandon Roy........... would we be "mentally ready" enough?

 

[Ghost Pepper]

B Roy is now a liability out there and everyone except McMuffin knows that! Every time he's in, our offense and defense retard! The experiment is over, B Roy is DONE!!!! As for Oden I totally agree! He'd make a huge difference for this team if healthy!

 

[3RA1N1AC]

playoffs are a battle, we need to be willing to kill, and sacrifice all we care for

 

[magnifier661]

That still doesn't address the point of focus and I think the Blazers lack it. I don't think this team is mentally ready to win a playoff series yet!

The terrible teams are the ones that can't play against the better teams in the league. Golden State is a rare breed nowadays. Not too many "run and gun" style teams left in the league. When you have been grinding it out with so many multi-dimensional teams; it's hard to focus back to 5% of the teams in the league style of play. Golden State is an anomoly. They have always played us well. I would agree after our loss to Charlotte. That was a team we should have smoked. There was no excuse for that loss. Last night, our players were too tired to run with the thoroughbreds of the league. I think Golden State will even give the Lakers problems tonight. The Western Conference playoff teams have been fighting tooth and nail for positioning in the playoffs. There hasn't been a single night off for the entire season. That puts a serious toll on players and the coaching staff.

 

[3RA1N1AC]

If we had a healthy Greg Oden and Brandon Roy........... would we be "mentally ready" enough?

who cares, we would be undefeated!

 

[THE HCP]

I still think Brandon gets enough respect from opposing players and the refs to be of some value for us out there.

 

[magnifier661]

I still think Brandon gets enough respect from opposing players and the refs to be of some value for us out there.

THIS...

 

[3RA1N1AC]

I still think Brandon gets enough respect from opposing players and the refs to be of some value for us out there.

but wouldnt the coaches know better, and then coach their players? its tough, but i think basically is if he can get to the line in the playoffs, he will be useful for sure.

 

[Ghost Pepper]

I disagree... B Roy has shown the league he has no lift, no seperation, can't play defense, and his ball handling skills are not sufficient to play the point as he's been doing.

If I'm playing the Blazers in the playoffs, I know that McMuffin will put Roy in for substantial minutes and run the offense through him. That's when I would attack all of the above mentioned areas of his game.

This team has lost many leads watching Roy fumble all over himself out there. Roy has no knees... it's over. He WAS a great player, but if this team is going to advance his role is all but done here.

 

[maxiep]

It's not that they lost, it's that they played without any energy on a night that they had something to really play for! Their defense was non existent and they didn't lose by 5, they lost by 20 and it wasn't even close for the entire 2nd half! These Blazers are not good enough to pick and choose when they are going to play hard, they need to be playing hard every game.

Perfectly said. Repped.