Courtside is On

[LameR]

I don't know how much I'll be able to listen to, so feel free to post anything interesting that happens. Man, the off-season is hard to get through!

 

[Nikolokolus]

HCP, you're killing me.

But I like your McDyess and Miller suggestion.

 

[THE HCP]

HCP, you're killing me.

But I like your McDyess and Miller suggestion.

You know how I roll Nik!

 

[Uther TheGardener]

can you recap for the people (me) who can not listen to the program?

 

[Nikolokolus]

can you recap for the people (me) who can not listen to the program?

http://fans.blazers.com/blogs/trailblazerspodcast/

Maybe some kind soul will come along and give you the run down, but two hours is quite a bit to cover (basically lots of speculation on trades, the draft, free agency and an interview with Ian Thomsen from SI.com and the guy who runs ProBasketballNews.com)

This is the Blazers podcast link where they'll probably upload the show tomorrow and you can also subscribe to the link as an rss feed or download the shows for free from Itunes.

 

[RickyRubio]

It was lame. Rice is a freaking idiot. He needs to stfu and stop talking over everyone. He acts like a damn child on the show.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

Ian Thomsen did say he heard whispers that Portland wants to trade up to #2 for Ricky Rubio.

 

[RickyRubio]

Ian Thomsen did say he heard whispers that Portland wants to trade up to #2 for Ricky Rubio.

How freakin' awesome would that be!?! Not even to get Rubio, just that KP could pull it off would be equally as cool IMO!!

 

[BrianFromWA]

I don't have any doubt that, without giving up much that people here would scream about, that KP could get Rubio. I think the next 3 weeks will entail him trying to drive down the cost of the dreck we have to take back to a level he and PA agree with.

 

[RR7]

Step one in that plan was having Rudy come out and say Rubio wasn't ready. And people think we can trade him. Look how good of a company man he is.

 

[blue32]

Why do you think Rubio would help this team so much? It seems to me, he's just another Sergio, on a team that is half court and doesn't run. Now if your saying we trade up to get #2 then trade it....now were talking.

 

[andalusian]

Why do you think Rubio would help this team so much? It seems to me, he's just another Sergio, on a team that is half court and doesn't run. Now if your saying we trade up to get #2 then trade it....now were talking.

He is an upgrade at least in the backup role - since he plays defense...

Assume that Roy plays 36MPG - and Rubio plays on the faster 2nd unit - all we really need is to have him handle the ball for 12 minutes next to Roy per game, while also playing defense. This replaces our god-awful backup PG and gives us a different look next to Roy for some of the time also allowing Rubio and whoever our other PG is (hopefully JB in the future) to share the PG duties for 24 minutes..

That is a big help, especially if he is able to set Oden and LMA in the half-court game - something Sergio really was not good at. Sergio is only good at the fast-break - but once the game slows to a half-court game - he is not effective. If Rubio can be effective in the half-court game (and I suspect he will - he looks like a good finisher in the post like Rondo - something you can not accuse Sergio of) - he can play next to Roy even if he is not a great catch and shoot PG like Blake.

 

[Mediocre Man]

How does Rubio help us exactly? He is basically Sergio at this point. I will say that in some ways I hope KP goes after him because in my mind it will show that he is at least serious about pushing the tempo, and it may force Nate to change his slow paced ways.

 

[andalusian]

How does Rubio help us exactly? He is basically Sergio at this point. I will say that in some ways I hope KP goes after him because in my mind it will show that he is at least serious about pushing the tempo, and it may force Nate to change his slow paced ways.

Rubio is not Sergio for the following obvious reasons:

1. He plays defense.

for point 1:

Defensively, Rubio is quick enough to stay in front of most opposing point guards laterally and he has really quick hands for deflections on dribblers and in the passing lanes. He anticipates extremely well, shows consistent effort and that seems to be a simple byproduct of his natural love, feel and IQ for the game, which seems to all be higher than anyone else in this draft.

2. He is a much better scorer near the basket leading him to be effective in the half-court - since the defense has to respect him near the basket opening the passing targets when he gets to the rim at will (Sergio gets there as well - but the defense never needs to collapse on him).

for point 2:

His perimeter shot is more set shot than jump shot, with not a lot of lower body in it. His follow-through is too horizontal rather than up and vertical, which doesn’t allow him to get enough arc into it. Rubio’s shot, nevertheless, is good enough where it must be respected. In order for Rubio to become elite and truly let his magic as a penetrating point guard happen, his shot must improve dramatically in order to draw his defender out to the perimeter.

Rubio is more skilled as a scorer when he is finishing at the basket. He is very clever when he smells the basket and though he almost always considers pass his first option, he will go up for acrobatic lay-ups. His lack of elite elevation hurts him, so he relies on using his body as a shield and his imagination. He is tall and athletic enough to finish with dunks on occasion, though it isn’t something that will happen very often in the halfcourt. But as he gets stronger, finishing at the basket will become more consistent.

 

[Nikolokolus]

Ian Thomsen did say he heard whispers that Portland wants to trade up to #2 for Ricky Rubio.

I'm going to have to listen to the show again once it gets posted as a podcast, I don't recall Thomsen saying that. I just remember him talking about how the Blazers might be interested in Jason Kidd because Nate likes him so much and how Kidd had talked to him the year prior about envisioning himself moving to a situation where he could play twenty minutes a night and help mentor a younger guy.

 

[RR7]

Do you mean Kidd talked to Thomsen, or Kidd talked to Nate about the 20 minutes a night thing?

 

[RickyRubio]

How does Rubio help us exactly? He is basically Sergio at this point. I will say that in some ways I hope KP goes after him because in my mind it will show that he is at least serious about pushing the tempo, and it may force Nate to change his slow paced ways.

If he was Sergio, then why did Sergio not make the Olympic team and Rubio started for them? And played pretty well!

 

[THE HCP]

I would love Kidd on this team. Bring him and McDyess and we might go to the Finals next season!

 

[Mediocre Man]

Rubio is not Sergio for the following obvious reasons:

1. He plays defense.

for point 1:



2. He is a much better scorer near the basket leading him to be effective in the half-court - since the defense has to respect him near the basket opening the passing targets when he gets to the rim at will (Sergio gets there as well - but the defense never needs to collapse on him).

for point 2:

nbadraft.net has this as weaknesses.

Weaknesses: Rubio will have trouble guarding point guards in the NBA. His lateral quickness is decent but not great. Against top competition, he does have some mental lapses at times. He often backs off his defender and uses his instincts to play position defense, but in the rare moments when he guesses wrong, he can get beat on simple plays like a back-door cut, or his defender will easily dribble right by him. Some of his height and vision advantage is lost when longer players guard him. He doesnt jump at all on his jump shot and could stand to change his shooting mechanics a little. This will be a problem when playing against elite athletes

That's part of where I got the Sergio reference, but I realize he will be, and might already be better than Sergio at certain aspects like defense and shooting. I just don't think that right now he is anywhere close to helping a team advance through the NBA playoffs, and that's where we are as a franchise.

 

[adrenalize74]

Even if Rubio is better than Sergio (although arguably not much), they are the same "style" PG and need to play in the same tempo offense to be effective.

Just makes no sense whatsoever to try and make some costly moves to get Rubio when, in essence, we already have him! Why would bringing in a different Sergio make Nate adjust his scheme when he didnt with the Sergio we already have? Especially when everyone (including Nate and KP) both still belive Sergio has a bunch of untapped potential.

All the Rubio talk is rediculous.

 

[Nikolokolus]

Do you mean Kidd talked to Thomsen, or Kidd talked to Nate about the 20 minutes a night thing?

Kidd talked to Thomsen

 

[blue32]

Even if Rubio is better than Sergio (although arguably not much), they are the same "style" PG and need to play in the same tempo offense to be effective.

Just makes no sense whatsoever to try and make some costly moves to get Rubio when, in essence, we already have him! Why would bringing in a different Sergio make Nate adjust his scheme when he didnt with the Sergio we already have? Especially when everyone (including Nate and KP) both still belive Sergio has a bunch of untapped potential.

All the Rubio talk is rediculous.

QFT.

 

[LittleAlex]

He is an upgrade at least in the backup role - since he plays defense...

He plays decent defense, though he gambles on steals. How long do you think Nate will go with him after he misses a few steals?

Sorry, but even if Rubio was to become a great player, he isn't doing it under Sarge. Consider Nate as the great destroyer of point guards. He wants them all to be just like he was when he played, instead of allowing them to play their game.

For Ricky's sake, I hope he ends up on a different team.

 

[THE HCP]

I talked to Kidd.

 

[SodaPopinski]

I love this time of year. This is when all the armchair general managers come out of the woodwork suggesting we trade up to get player X in the draft. This year is especially funny. We won 54 games, but were exposed for having a lack of toughness and veteran leadership in the playoffs, and people want Rubio. LMAO.

Even Rudy, who played with Rubio on the national team and on their club team back in Europe, said he's not ready for the NBA.

I wish Rubio all the luck in the world in one of the armpits of the NBA, where he can be on SportsCenter Top 10 every other week and be the starting point guard for a 20 win team. I have bigger aspirations for the Blazers.

-Pop

 

[andalusian]

nbadraft.net has this as weaknesses.



That's part of where I got the Sergio reference, but I realize he will be, and might already be better than Sergio at certain aspects like defense and shooting. I just don't think that right now he is anywhere close to helping a team advance through the NBA playoffs, and that's where we are as a franchise.

The NBA Draft issue with defense is two fold:

1. His lateral movement is not elite - can not really argue about it - since I have only seen him against NBA level competition in the Olympics - he looked alright there - but the sample size is too small.

2. Makes mental mistakes - Very young and will be a rookie - so no real issues there that really bother me.

My opinion is that if Rubio really pans out - he will become a factor in his 2nd year. If there is a way to get him without dismantling the team - it sure sounds like he is worth the risk.

Let's face it - the reasonable options we have are going to be either good for a short period of time (Miller/Kidd) and hope that they mentor JB to be a great PG in the long term - or someone like Sessions that has question marks about how he will perform on a good team and is not exactly a great defender either.

At this point - it seems to me that Rubio is an upgrade over Sergio immediately and from what I have seen of him and what the scouting on him is - has a very good chance of being an impact player in the long run. If he can be had - it would be foolish not to go get him. If it takes moving Sergio/Webster/Outlaw/Picks in multiple years/Money//taking a bad contract - you do it. If you have to move Bayless - it requires a lot of thought - and I am glad I am not the one having to make the decision..., same with moving Batum or Rudy or Joel.

 

[hasoos]

Go ahead and get your panties in a wad if you want. I ain't buying that KP is doing anything until I see it.

 

[andalusian]

Even Rudy, who played with Rubio on the national team and on their club team back in Europe, said he's not ready for the NBA.

Rudy said he "might" not be ready - and even if it takes him a year or two - this team is built for the long run - so if the opportunity is there - it would be foolish not to pursue it.

 

[SodaPopinski]

Rudy said he "might" not be ready - and even if it takes him a year or two - this team is built for the long run - so if the opportunity is there - it would be foolish not to pursue it.

No, what would be foolish is to waste our opportunity in the present for the hopes of developing an international teenager.

I'd much rather see the Blazers package their draft picks for a proven vet. Or stay where they are, get a role player, then make a splash in July with a free agent signing or a trade.

Moving up to the second pick in the lottery hurts our flexibility in so many ways.

-Pop

 

[VanillaGorilla]

At this point - it seems to me that Rubio is an upgrade over Sergio immediately and from what I have seen of him and what the scouting on him is - has a very good chance of being an impact player in the long run. If he can be had - it would be foolish not to go get him. If it takes moving Sergio/Webster/Outlaw/Picks in multiple years/Money//taking a bad contract - you do it. If you have to move Bayless - it requires a lot of thought - and I am glad I am not the one having to make the decision..., same with moving Batum or Rudy or Joel.

You would trade all of them, including Batum, Rudy or Joel, for a teenage point guard who won't contribute for a couple years and you don't even know if he will contribute well then? I know you and others have their speculation but personally I don't feel comfortable risking so much on an 18 year old point guard from Spain who isn't a shooter, doesn't play above average defense and will have to rely on his "imagination" to finish at the rim. Yeah we probably could wait a couple more years to be contenders, but why? On the hopes of this kid being great?