Don't like...

[Ghost Pepper]

the Sergio/Bayless combo Nate is using. Our defense is at a disadvantage, and they don't play well together on offense. It looks strained to say the least. Bayless and Rudy would work better or keeping Sergio and Rudy as it was before.

As for last nights game it was damn ugly for both teams. I don't think you can take much from it except it was painful to watch. I don't know who made who look worse? Neither team looked like a playoff team and I believe both are. Just a bad night of hoops.

That said, our boys better get in a zone or LA will beat them all over the court!

 

[LameR]

Yeah, not that our team was looking great anyway, but there wasn't a whole lot of cohesiveness with Sergio and Bayless.

 

[Public Defender]

Sergio and Bayless.

one too many small guards... but without Webster and Roy, what choice is there?

 

[MIXUM]

remember we all said whatever team in the west has injuries will miss the playoffs?

that team is us.

when u have to play batum, bayless, diogou heavy minutes....

ur in trouble

 

[MrJayremmie]

Yep, 2 guards 6'3 or shorter on the floor vs a really tall team like the Hornets who usually have a 6'6-6'9 SG out there is not good. They exploited it too.

 

[Public Defender]

remember we all said whatever team in the west has injuries will miss the playoffs?

that team is us.

I know many posters around here are ignoring you, but I think this is worth discussing.

The Blazers are currently suffering from injuries to two major players - Brandon Roy and Martell Webster. The Rockets currently have Ron Artest nursing an injury, if I'm not mistaken, and Utah has a couple of key players out, or at less than 100%. San Antonio had big problems earlier this year with injuries, and their record suffered as a result (though they're bouncing back).

The older teams - I'm thinking San Antonio and Phoenix, and maybe Dallas (Kidd and Nowitzki are getting up there) - will either exhibit their veteran savvy down the stretch, or they'll succumb to their age and injuries will bring them down.

I think if the Blazers have seen the worst of their injuries already (fingers crossed), they're in the playoffs. But continued or new injury problems to any of these players: Roy, Przybilla, Aldridge, Webster, Fernandez, or Blake - could be enough to doom their postseason chances.

I think the team could sustain injuries to Outlaw (too inconsistent this year), Oden (ditto, plus his constant foul trouble), Rodriguez or Bayless (neither is that big a part of the team to be indispensable), Batum (with Webster and Outlaw healthy, the Frenchie becomes less important), or Frye or Diogu (neither has made a difference off the bench in most cases).

 

[Nikolokolus]

I find it kind of hard to pin anything on Bayless and Sergio being in the game together; they've hardly played together in any kind of live game situations and lack of rhythm or cohesiveness is to be expected. The real disappointment for me was Blake's lackluster play last night; he's a 28 year old veteran and when the team needed him to step up and take a leadership role last night he came up short.

I think it's pretty clear right now that despite the team playing out its collective mind against the Celtics, without Brandon if LaMarcus and/or Greg is struggling offensively this team is dead in the water -- you just can't rely on so many rookies to produce when on the court simultaneously without some kind of stabilizing influence.

 

[Ghost Pepper]

By that same logic, if the Celtics were without PP,KG and had to rely on only Ray Allen they'd be the Sonics?
If Kobe and Gasol are out where are they the Clipps?

If ODEN, LA and ROY are all tanking on the same night we should lose, as should any other team down to their 4th or 5th option playing against a division leader.

As for Oden, the refs are simply not allowing him to play!!!

 

[Public Defender]

The real disappointment for me was Blake's lackluster play last night; he's a 28 year old veteran and when the team needed him to step up and take a leadership role last night he came up short.

Blake played excellent defense against Chris Paul for three quarters, asking him to do much more than that I think is a bit much. I pin this loss on the lack of any outside shooting. Blake was among those culprits, but so were Outlaw, Bayless, Rodriguez, Batum, and Aldridge. Make some outside shots, the inside opens up, and it's a whole different story at the offensive end. Blaming Blake alone I don't think is exactly fair.

 

[Ghost Pepper]

Blame Outlaw for not attacking the rim and settling for jump shots, the same for Rudy and the refs not allowing Oden to play at all!

 

[Nikolokolus]

Blame Outlaw for not attacking the rim and settling for jump shots, the same for Rudy and the refs not allowing Oden to play at all!

Actually I blame New Orleans for having Chris Paul and David West.