Eggers on (Nate on) Bayless

[tlongII]

Jerryd can D up opposing point guards. That is why he'll get more minutes than Sergio.

 

[oldmangrouch]

Bayless is not a pure PG.

Tis true. He knows the company of women, and even touches himself at night. Only the pure of heart and faith are welcome here!

 

[Reep]

I did listen to Quick's chat today, and he said that most of the players rank Sergio #2 as well. Evidently Bayless is having a difficult time with the quick defenses and is overdribbling and not getting the ball to his teammates. Sounds like he needs a little break in period before he is ready. Will it be a one-year break in or a one-week break in?

 

[The_Lillard_King]

I did listen to Quick's chat today, and he said that most of the players rank Sergio #2 as well. Evidently Bayless is having a difficult time with the quick defenses and is overdribbling and not getting the ball to his teammates. Sounds like he needs a little break in period before he is ready. Will it be a one-year break in or a one-week break in?

Hey reep, I hope you don't think I am anti-Bayless, I'm not (he the the Blazers first round pick who looks like a steal and teammates are raving over him, what's not to like).

I am one of the more skepitcal ones about his ability to play the point. I don't think it is a matter of when yet, I still think it is a matter of if.

But from what I read, he is going to be good, has a good head on his shoulders and will earn PT. The NBA PG position is a hard position to play, let's see how special this kid is.

 

[BlazersBlood]

It seems like a lot of people have their expectations set a little high for Bayless. Yes he was a lottery pick, but he's still a rookie and only the 3rd day of practice. He's got a lot to learn and I don't think it will be a problem for him especially since he's hyper-competative. But it's going to take time.

 

[Tortimer]

It seems like a lot of people have their expectations set a little high for Bayless. Yes he was a lottery pick, but he's still a rookie and only the 3rd day of practice. He's got a lot to learn and I don't think it will be a problem for him especially since he's hyper-competative. But it's going to take time.

I do have my expectations for Bayless maybe a little high but that's not the point. We are talking Sergio getting time before Bayless. Unless Sergio really improved and I mean really improved since last year I don't want Sergio to get time ahead of hardly anybody on the team.

 

[gatorpops]

I did listen to Quick's chat today, and he said that most of the players rank Sergio #2 as well. Evidently Bayless is having a difficult time with the quick defenses and is overdribbling and not getting the ball to his teammates. Sounds like he needs a little break in period before he is ready. Will it be a one-year break in or a one-week break in?

To answer Bayless on Bayless:

"The experience factor, you don’t realize how big it is. I realize it now. It’s going to take me until the end of training camp, but then I’ll be ready to go.”

No lack of confidence I'd say! clap:


g

 

[Nikolokolus]

I do have my expectations for Bayless maybe a little high but that's not the point. We are talking Sergio getting time before Bayless. Unless Sergio really improved and I mean really improved since last year I don't want Sergio to get time ahead of hardly anybody on the team.

I'll say it again. I was a huge critic of Sergio last year, but if he gets more burn, then I trust that the coaches have seen a marked improvement in his game from the middle of April to now ... I'm certainly skeptical if Sergio will end up in the long term plans for this organization, but if he succeeds and defies that expectation I'll be thrilled because it means he tapped into that seemingly limitless pool of talent and put it together -- and that makes KP look like even more of a genius. Sergio with a modicum of defense, and a semi-respectable jump shot should also thrill us, because it would mean he's not a one trick pony after all, and has a chance to be our long term solution at the 1 as he's as pure of a 1 (mentally at least) as you're going to get.

Saying you don't want player X to get time ahead of player y is odd to me, IMO, we should want whomever makes the team better to get minutes, regardless of the name on the back of the Jersey.

 

[PapaG]

I want Sergio to succeed and hope he proves himself worthy of the back-up PG spot. That said, I think this is all a mental game by Nate. Bayless will get minutes this year unless he falls flat on his face in camp.

 

[Nikolokolus]

Hey PapaG, that troll you have for an avatar is scary as hell. Did you get that from fangoria or something?

 

[PapaG]

Hey PapaG, that troll you have for an avatar is scary as hell. Did you get that from fangoria or something?

I had to post it as a Raider fan. Al must let go of the Precious...

 

[J_Ray]

Today Nate indicated that the 2nd PG spot is Sergio's, but is still up in the air depending on what happens. My guess is he is trying to motivate Bayless and Sergio to do what he wants. May the best man win.

I agree that McMillan is just trying to motivate Bayless. Bayless is a competitor and has never settle for anything but first. This is the first time he's probably having trouble or playing players on his athleticism/skill level. Being a Zona fan, Bayless has PG skills but O'Neill last year had no one to score consistently when Budinger started to slump, so he set 2 high screens for him every time down the floor. It's probably Kevin O'Neill's fault that Bayless' PG IQ isn't any better than it is at this point, but Bayless will be able to compliment Roy @ PG for years to come IMO. Just like Gibson fits well with LeBron, I see Bayless being the perfect backcourt partner for Roy.

What is the SG rotation? Any chance he might be able to get any minutes there?

 

[Nikolokolus]

I agree that McMillan is just trying to motivate Bayless. Bayless is a competitor and has never settle for anything but first. This is the first time he's probably having trouble or playing players on his athleticism/skill level. Being a Zona fan, Bayless has PG skills but O'Neill last year had no one to score consistently when Budinger started to slump, so he set 2 high screens for him every time down the floor. It's probably Kevin O'Neill's fault that Bayless' PG IQ isn't any better than it is at this point, but Bayless will be able to compliment Roy @ PG for years to come IMO. Just like Gibson fits well with LeBron, I see Bayless being the perfect backcourt partner for Roy.

What is the SG rotation? Any chance he might be able to get any minutes there?

Rudy Fernandez is probably pretty well ensconced as the backup 2 and with Brandon playing the 2 for the bulk of a game (usually only sliding to point in the fourth quarter) I see very, very few opportunities for Bayless to get time at the "2" ... now having said that I can see, him playing 2 on offense, and picking up the opponent's pg on defense, but that kind of switching can be less than ideal.

Jerryd is going to have to demonstrate the ability to bring the ball up, setup the offense, and be somewhat of a distributor if he want's to wrestle the starting role away from Blake ... we'll see what happens.

 

[Tortimer]

I'll say it again. I was a huge critic of Sergio last year, but if he gets more burn, then I trust that the coaches have seen a marked improvement in his game from the middle of April to now ... I'm certainly skeptical if Sergio will end up in the long term plans for this organization, but if he succeeds and defies that expectation I'll be thrilled because it means he tapped into that seemingly limitless pool of talent and put it together -- and that makes KP look like even more of a genius. Sergio with a modicum of defense, and a semi-respectable jump shot should also thrill us, because it would mean he's not a one trick pony after all, and has a chance to be our long term solution at the 1 as he's as pure of a 1 (mentally at least) as you're going to get.

Saying you don't want player X to get time ahead of player y is odd to me, IMO, we should want whomever makes the team better to get minutes, regardless of the name on the back of the Jersey.

I guess your right and I should give Sergio another chance and if Nate thinks he is better then Bayless at this time I should at least let him try. I was a big supporter of Sergio going into last year but after as while I had to admit Sergio just isn't good enough to get the playing time. I just think Bayless is going to be something really special.

 

[1 Eye Jack]

Guys not sure why everyone is so upset that Bayless is 3rd string. This is great news that Sergio has progressed this much over the offseason. He is the best passing PG on the team, if he has improved his shot and his command of the team it makes the 2nd team deadly. Bayless will find his minutes and IMO by next year will be our starting PG. The fact that he is 3rd string will drive him to become a better player, which only makes us stronger as a team.

 

[Natebishop3]

I think the only reason why people have such high expectations for Bayless is because of his performance in the SL. We've been spoiled with BRoy and Aldridge, so I think it's easy to expect the kid to come in and dominate. Roy was special. It's very rare for a guard to come in and play at the level that Roy achieved in his rookie year. Bayless is very similar in some ways, but different in others. Roy is confident, but Bayless can come off as cocky. I would love to get in the locker room and talk to the kid. I would like to know where his head is at. I'm usually very good at reading people.

It might take Bayless 3/4 of the season or all season before he can adapt to the team. The kid has talent, there's no doubt about that, but he needs to learn how to adapt his game to the Portland Trail Blazers. In the SL he didn't adapt at all. It was the Jerryd Bayless show. In a way, this is very similar to what happened with Damon Stoudamire. We have a point guard who is used to being the #1 option on offense. Damon never truly adjusted to being a distributor instead of a scorer. Obviously they're very different players in style, but in mindset they are very similar.

Bayless has never played with this much talent before. Roy, Aldridge, Oden, Rudy, etc. Will he be able to adjust his game? I certainly hope so. He has so much talent and we all know he's a competitor.

 

[mook]

Guys not sure why everyone is so upset that Bayless is 3rd string. This is great news that Sergio has progressed this much over the offseason. He is the best passing PG on the team, if he has improved his shot and his command of the team it makes the 2nd team deadly. Bayless will find his minutes and IMO by next year will be our starting PG. The fact that he is 3rd string will drive him to become a better player, which only makes us stronger as a team.

I gotta say that the news that Sergio is consistently hitting jumpers is perhaps the best news outside of the Big Three. Sergio has always had one fantastic asset (passing ability) that was outweighed by two massive liabilities (defense and perimeter shooting).

If he's become even just an average perimeter shooter, he has the potential to be a starting-quality PG in this league. It's absolutely great news that he's being viewed as the second best PG on this team.

Hopefully the stories about his improved shooting aren't the usual pre-season hype.

 

[Natebishop3]

I gotta say that the news that Sergio is consistently hitting jumpers is perhaps the best news outside of the Big Three. Sergio has always had one fantastic asset (passing ability) that was outweighed by two massive liabilities (defense and perimeter shooting).

If he's become even just an average perimeter shooter, he has the potential to be a starting-quality PG in this league. It's absolutely great news that he's being viewed as the second best PG on this team.

Hopefully the stories about his improved shooting aren't the usual pre-season hype.

Quick is hyping it, so there has to be at least a shred of truth.

 

[rocketeer]

I think the only reason why people have such high expectations for Bayless is because of his performance in the SL.

that may or may not be true, but i'd say that biggest reason to really have high expectations for bayless is because of what he did at arizona and how talented of a player he is.

 

[Reep]

I gotta say that the news that Sergio is consistently hitting jumpers is perhaps the best news outside of the Big Three. Sergio has always had one fantastic asset (passing ability) that was outweighed by two massive liabilities (defense and perimeter shooting).

If he's become even just an average perimeter shooter, he has the potential to be a starting-quality PG in this league. It's absolutely great news that he's being viewed as the second best PG on this team.

Hopefully the stories about his improved shooting aren't the usual pre-season hype.

I hope that Sergio's improved shot is enough. Last year defenders were saggin off him. However, Sergio seemed to lack the speed to go around defenders even when they were playing him close. I haven't heard anything that suggests Sergio is quicker than last year, so I'm afraid he may run into the same issues. Try to drive here -- blocked -- try to penetrate over there -- blocked -- use up ten seconds and then pass to someone else to do something.

 

[Natebishop3]

that may or may not be true, but i'd say that biggest reason to really have high expectations for bayless is because of what he did at arizona and how talented of a player he is.

I think you would be right if we were talking about his career as a whole, and that would be totally justified if you look at his time at Arizona and his overall talent. I was speaking more about this season, his rookie season. I believe the expectations for his rookie season are so high because of his efforts in the SL.

 

[PapaG]

I think you would be right if we were talking about his career as a whole, and that would be totally justified if you look at his time at Arizona and his overall talent. I was speaking more about this season, his rookie season. I believe the expectations for his rookie season are so high because of his efforts in the SL.

That's a great point, and I also believe that Sergio has to be almost perfect as the back-up to keep his minutes. Bayless was basically unstoppable in Las Vegas, he has an attitude that this team needs, and he reportedly has a work ethic that is second to none on the roster.

Nate won't be able to keep him on the bench unless Sergio, and then even possibly Blake, aren't winning games early in the year. The early schedule isn't going to help Sergio at all, either. I don't see Sergio lasting 10 games as the primary back-up, but admittedly I haven't seen him play yet this season.

 

[gatorpops]

I hope that Sergio's improved shot is enough. Last year defenders were saggin off him. However, Sergio seemed to lack the speed to go around defenders even when they were playing him close. I haven't heard anything that suggests Sergio is quicker than last year, so I'm afraid he may run into the same issues. Try to drive here -- blocked -- try to penetrate over there -- blocked -- use up ten seconds and then pass to someone else to do something.

IMO you are too hard on Sergio. If you go back to his rookie season, seems you would have to admit that he was an exceptional talent.

When the league found out he was not hitting his outside shots they took away his ability to do pick and roles and left him to miss his shot. His defense was more of a liability than the production of his offense so hence he sat.

g

 

[mook]

However, Sergio seemed to lack the speed to go around defenders even when they were playing him close.

Huh, that's not how I remember it (although his minutes were so sparse that it's tough to remember him much at all, so I could be wrong.) I remember that when he did get around defenders he was never much of a threat to shoot, so the defender would just play him for his passing even off of dribble penetration. So it didn't make much difference when he got by somebody, because he couldn't do anything with it.

Anyway, speed at the PG position isn't that critical if you have a good pick-and-roll game with guys like Aldridge and Oden. It's really more about timing and delivering the ball in the right spot, and being a threat on the jump shot. John Stockton wasn't delivering 8 assists a game at the age of 40 by using his speed.

The problem with Sergio has always been shooting and defense. He'll improve on defense just by being in the NBA under McMillan (although he may never improve enough to be better than average.)

But if he doesn't develop a reliable perimeter shot, he'll never have a chance to develop that defense, because he'll be out of the NBA. Hopefully, when he wasn't invited to play for the Spanish Olympic team he realized just how tenuous his basketball career was, and he really put the time into that shot.

 

[KingSpeed]

He's just saying that Bayless has to earn his keep. I have no problem with that.

 

[drexlersdad]

i think we are all forgetting what a luxury we have.

sergio is a great pass first pg, bayless is a great shoot first pg. whichever one we need at any given time, we have.

if sergio can beat out bayless for minutes, we have a very nice "problem".