Game Thread GAME# 5: CLIPPERS @ BLAZERS - OCTOBER 26, 2017 - THURSDAY, 7:00 (PDT), NBCSNW

[Sarni]

This just in: The Clippers are good and it was a one-point game and there's like 75 more to go.

Breathe.

I don't think Clippers are that good to be honest. Better than people expected ahead of season after Paul left, especially since they got A LOT of depth plus a very good small forward to compensate for that, but they are not a great team IMO. Definitely a tier below the current big 4 (Warriors, Rockets, Thunder and Spurs) in the West.

 

[GrandJury]

The positive from the last two games for me is that we played poorly in both of them and still won against Pelicans and were on the brink of taking the game from Clippers last night too. 3-2 is a good record, we should beat Phoenix on Saturday to make it 4-2 and the next two game will be competitive but I hope we can take at least one of them.

I'm satisfied with our season so far, regardless of last night's result.

Yea but you can tell this is going to be a 40-43 win season. We need to fix a lot of things to take the next step. Until then it’s the same thing

 

[BonesJones]

The positive from the last two games for me is that we played poorly in both of them and still won against Pelicans and were on the brink of taking the game from Clippers last night too. 3-2 is a good record, we should beat Phoenix on Saturday to make it 4-2 and the next two game will be competitive but I hope we can take at least one of them.

I'm satisfied with our season so far, regardless of last night's result.

Exactly. I was one of the most negative people on game threads last year, but this year is encouraging. I call it like I see it, and will be fine. Losses like this hurt, but we'll be fine.

Stotts needs to figure his shit out though.

 

[joeBlazers]

We lost to the Clippers? Seriously? Our team is not serious. And someone needs to tell them that this is not acceptable.

 

[theprunetang]

Anyone else notice that the arena played the Stranger Things theme during timeouts in the 4th quarter? Super dope.

 

[H.C.]

What was on the screen during this? I don't remember this. I'll be honest. I am SO busy during the game I never actually watch what we call PROGRAM or what is being sent out to you guys. I am busy looking at 12 different camera angles of the action.

I believe it was talking about 3 different players right after DJ missed his first free throw. Ya'll cut away from the action so the announcers could talk about the 3 players and what they're doing.
Only to return to the action after he made the free throw and the ball was already across half court.
I may be wrong as far as what was talked about, as when this happens I tune it out.
However this happens in every blazer broadcast during live game action.
Most of the time it's when someone is bringing the ball up the court and we miss the play being ran.
All of the time it has nothing to do with the Blazer game. Talking about what x player did, or x former player has died, or x something has happened in the world.
Ya'll aren't espn or sportscenter. Blazer stuff pls.

I do mean it when I say your camera work has been excellent. I was down on it for last season, but so far through 5 games it's been great.
The replay of Lillard taking that charge tonight was awesome. I don't think all crews would've got that, nor do I think they would've also got River's dislocated finger.

 

[Jade Falcon]

Yea but you can tell this is going to be a 40-43 win season. We need to fix a lot of things to take the next step. Until then it’s the same thing

THIS. Same ol' shit year after year after year. When it comes to high-intensity games, Stotts routinely gets out-coached. Doc Rivers is a total headcase....Stotts should have bested him easily. Yet, he never has. Never.

The playoffs? That shit would have been an absolute blowout if it hadn't been for staggering injuries to the Clippers starters.

Last night exposed the same old shit that's been plaguing our team for years: improper rotations at the right times, bad switches (Dame on Blake, for fuck's sake!) that they don't adjust for, lack of proper timeouts, and terrible screens. And when you combine all of those together, our Defense (improved though it is), suffers dramatically.

Stotts needs to figure his shit out though.

And yet, he won't. Same ol' shit next high-caliber game: him standing there with that blank, stupid expression on his face because he has no idea what the fuck is going on.

And it's reflected in the way that the team wanders around on the court during the game, with no guidance from the sidelines.

I hear Paul Allen was pretty pissed off last night. GOOD. At least HE had high expectations for this team! If Stotts doesn't deliver this year, then it's time to fire him. Especially if we don't make it to the playoffs. Fire the whole goddamn coaching staff. I've seen the same suited clowns huddled together on that bench for 5 years with no change in the game performance. Get rid of all of them, and start with Stotts.

I swear to fuck, we should start giving Stotts the same nicknames and avatars as we did Meyers. They're both equally useless in crunch time.

 

[Mr. Robot]

another close game loss, great
I just wish we can lose the proper way and not by givinig your opponents a win

as far as Im concerned, this one is on you CJ, AGAIN!

 

[Jade Falcon]

Did anyone also see the sneak in from Beverly for the 2nd chance opportunity when 2 of our Forwards and a Center were standing there under the rim, with no Clippers in sight, waiting for the rebound?

Fucking shit just kills me!

 

[craigehlo]

The lack of execution and composure in crunch time this year has been atrocious so far. The Bucks game had awful in-game management at the end and this was not much better.

Give Stotts until the end of the year, not the season, to get this squad together or let him go.

 

[ripcityboy]

The lack of execution and composure in crunch time this year has been atrocious so far. The Bucks game had awful in-game management at the end and this was not much better.

Give Stotts until the end of the year, not the season, to get this squad together or let him go.

Yeah. I think this is the year he has to prove he can have improve against coaches like Carlisle.

 

[Blazers Roy]

Just watched the game.
So.... 6 seconds to go, a defensive possession. The lineup on the floor?
Lillard, CJ, Nurkic (can't defend 3s),Harkless,Aminu.

I think this tells you everything you need to know about Stotts.
Davis,Aminu,Harkless,Turner and Pat should have been on the floor (Pat is arguable, but anything creative is welcome in that situation). he could also try Davis,Swanigan,Aminu,Harkless,Turner.

I would actually try Meyers after the 6th time Blake managed to back Aminu into the paint. MyLe might suck, but the guy is our only muscle guy outside of Nurkic.

 

[SIeepwalker]

probably not going on the board for the next 2 days or so to avoid the after-loss shitstorm ! see ya !

 

[mook]

My big takeaway was surprisingly the same one I had from the Milwaukee game: transcendent 3/4 types are just going to feast. I mean we had absolutely no answer for anything Gianis or Griffin wanted to do in either of those games. And it doesn't get easier if you play Swanigan more minutes--it only magnifies the problem because he's never going to be as good at defense as even Chief, let along what it takes to corral those guys.

And between those two studs, Durant, Porzingis, Ben Simmons, and of course LeBron---there are just a shit-ton of long, athletic guys with great handles that we have no hope of guarding. This is the future of the league, and we aren't prepared for it.

Really looking forward to seeing how Vonleh looks when he comes back. It would've been fantastic to be able to throw him out there and see if he could make a dent against those two. I'm not a fan of Noah, but I'm desperate. Eventually Collins may be that stopper at 4, but I'm not sold Terry is going to give him much of a chance this season.

 

[kjironman1]

You can only read a game thread for so long after a loss before you see that this team needs to be blown up. Total Rebuild is the only way to fix this mess
:MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61::MARIS61:

 

[dviss1]

We missed a chance to get Jimmy Butler too.

I might just offer up Dame for Anthony Davis. NO has two bigs and we have 2 guards.

And thank God you're not running the team because we have an injured star all the damn time. Anthony Davis's injured now. I'm done wanting Anthony Davis.

 

[Chris Craig]

The capability to win is there. Its not a matter of talent or adeptness. Its a matter of mentality. The Blazers are young and fragile when it comes to confidence, especially in close games. They miss shots, defense becomes lakadasical, teams build leads (humps get created they can't get over), refs and opponents get in their heads, its a shitslide. And, its all a mind game. The Blazers are certainly talented enough to win. They've already shown that. The next step is to shake the loser mentality. They have to believe they can take on any team, believe they are good enough, believe in themselves and each other. They have to retain and hone a winners mentality.

 

[Denny Crane]

The Clippers won 3 of the 4 quarters and it took a buzzer beater to win it.

Nurk showed up against one of the toughest Cs he could face. Not a dominant game (Jordan still got his), but better than his previous games.

Our starting lineup all scored double digits. Our bench scored just 11 points.

I didn't see the game, it was blacked out (Clippers) here.

 

[TBpup]

To me Stotts is a great guy who has always been on Offensive Coordinator type that was made a head coach because everyone liked him. (Mark Helfrich anyone?) He is a player's coach so the players all back him up but HOW MANY TIMES can the same mistakes be made over and over again with him at the helm?

 

[Trackjack]

To me if this team doesn't make the playoffs then Paul and Neil has to make changes with the coaches staff. There to many mental mistake by Stotts on that sideline. When Nurk got his 4th foul early in the 3rd should have been taken out until the 4th.

 

[Nikolokolus]

I don't think Clippers are that good to be honest. Better than people expected ahead of season after Paul left, especially since they got A LOT of depth plus a very good small forward to compensate for that, but they are not a great team IMO. Definitely a tier below the current big 4 (Warriors, Rockets, Thunder and Spurs) in the West.

Reading comprehension is FUN-damental. I didn't say the Clippers are great, I said they are good.

 

[crandc]

For years we heard "should have drafted Chris Paul"; seems Clips better without him.

I just want to say:

fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck!!!

 

[tester551]

To me Stotts is a great guy who has always been on Offensive Coordinator type that was made a head coach because everyone liked him. (Mark Helfrich anyone?) He is a player's coach so the players all back him up but HOW MANY TIMES can the same mistakes be made over and over again with him at the helm?

And not hold his players (Dame) accountable for taking terrible shot after terrible shot.

Fortunately for Dame, he made about 2-3 of those terrible shots. They were bad decisions to take those shots, regardless of the fact that they went down. They stall our offense and lead to 'hero' ball.

 

[Blazers Roy]

To me Stotts is a great guy who has always been on Offensive Coordinator type that was made a head coach because everyone liked him. (Mark Helfrich anyone?) He is a player's coach so the players all back him up but HOW MANY TIMES can the same mistakes be made over and over again with him at the helm?

For me, replacing a coach doesnt have to be about dismissing your current coach and his abilities.
The team learned whatever it could from Stotts, now they can evolve in other areas with a different coach.

We've seen it many times in the past:
-Warriors forming an identity, especially defensively with Mark Jackson and then moving on to Kerr.
-Pistons evolving with Rick Carlisle and then perfecting their game with Larry Brown.
-The Heat rising with Stan Van Gundy and then moving on to Pat Riley who worked on the mental side of the team on their way to a championship.

 

[THE HCP]

Yea but you can tell this is going to be a 40-43 win season.

Interesting you say this......The HCP predicted 40-42 and got heat for it.

 

[Blazers Roy]

Interesting you say this......The HCP predicted 40-42 and got heat for it.

The people like to hate on the HCP.

 

[THE HCP]

We lost to the Clippers? Seriously? Our team is not serious. And someone needs to tell them that this is not acceptable.

Why? You think we are better than the Clips this year?

 

[THE HCP]

I believe it was talking about 3 different players right after DJ missed his first free throw. Ya'll cut away from the action so the announcers could talk about the 3 players and what they're doing.
Only to return to the action after he made the free throw and the ball was already across half court.
I may be wrong as far as what was talked about, as when this happens I tune it out.
However this happens in every blazer broadcast during live game action.
Most of the time it's when someone is bringing the ball up the court and we miss the play being ran.
All of the time it has nothing to do with the Blazer game. Talking about what x player did, or x former player has died, or x something has happened in the world.
Ya'll aren't espn or sportscenter. Blazer stuff pls.

I do mean it when I say your camera work has been excellent. I was down on it for last season, but so far through 5 games it's been great.
The replay of Lillard taking that charge tonight was awesome. I don't think all crews would've got that, nor do I think they would've also got River's dislocated finger.

Thanks for the input, I'll pass it along. I think you might be talking about a sponsored around the league update. It should definitely be run without missing any game action, I agree. Unfortunately our business is about cash and cash only. It's all about the sponsors and getting their message across to you guys. I think people including myself forget about that sometimes. I'll let my boss know about your concern, thanks for the input.

 

[THE HCP]

And as far as the charge on Dame, ya we lucked out and had at least 3 angles, and we were the only ones to get the Anthony Davis injury as well. We have some quality camera guys in this market

 

[SynTax]

I'm not sure what game everyone was watching, but I saw guys sneaking towards Griffin a number of times. Unfortunately, that led to a lot of open shots for the Clippers. I know I'm in the minority, but I think doubling Griffin regularly would have been a terrible move. He's an excellent and willing passer.

One thing that concerns me is that both CJ and Patty have looked horrendous on defense. Lou Williams and Austin Rivers combined for 10-20 for 29 points while Cj and Patty went 9-24 for 26. Yuck! That combined with the bench going 4-20 made this a tough game to win, but Griffin had to hit a last second three. Dame was incredible this game. 7-19 for 25 is decent in itself, but adding 6 assists to 1 turnover plus top tier defense? I'm really not sure how he's being blamed for any of this... His improvement on the defensive end so far this year has been nothing short of miraculous.

Tough loss, but lots to be optimistic about!