How do we tank now?

[Trailblazers76]

I'm about 85% sure we need to start tanking right now to stay in contention for a top 5 pick. A playoff birth has been fun and fanciful but let's get back to business. Dallas, Phoenix, and San Antonio are sinking around us.

OKC tonight, should be an easy L. Ayton, Grant, Williams, look to be down for the count (hopefully). Don't want to disrupt the growth of Scoot, Shae, Toumani, Deni, and Clingon. Maybe just lose Ant to "injury," would that be enough? Either way the stars need to start misaligning right quick or we are destined for mediocrity.

 

[Phatguysrule]

I'm about 85% sure we need to start tanking right now to stay in contention for a top 5 pick. A playoff birth has been fun and fanciful but let's get back to business. Dallas, Phoenix, and San Antonio are sinking around us.

OKC tonight, should be an easy L. Ayton, Grant, Williams, look to be down for the count (hopefully). Don't want to disrupt the growth of Scoot, Shae, Toumani, Deni, and Clingon. Maybe just lose Ant to "injury," would that be enough? Either way the stars need to start misaligning right quick or we are destined for mediocrity.

Heh. I think we've missed that boat... Fingers crossed though...

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

We don't play OKC tonight.
Do we need another thread on tanking? mods should merge this

 

[blazerkor]

We don't have to start tanking right now, we're going to lose our next 4 games, that'll be 5 straight and 6 out the last 7. At that point it will be interesting to see if the team wants to move up a couple spots and sits out Tou and/or Deni against Toronto and Washington. Our schedule for the rest of the season is brutal and we have yet to show that we can beat any team that is any good. So I think we could see some tankingish stuff but it will be the difference between 11th slot in the lotto and 8th at the very best.

 

[Cugel]

The issue is DAL is on a hard tank. PHX i dunno.

Now better teams will rest starters to preserve health and /or secure most favorable playoff matchups. I fully expect OKC play SGA as little as possible. He could win an mvp so they can’t shut him down. He needs numbers.

What would DAL need to give POR Lively?

 

[andalusian]

Play Boston every night.

 

[BlazerWookee]

The issue is PLAY TO WIN. Let the ping-pong balls fall where they may.

 

[Strenuus]

This year set us back 5 years, so in a way we tanked.

 

[THE HCP]

The issue is PLAY TO WIN. Let the ping-pong balls fall where they may.

Nah FAMS! That little win streak last month is gonna have an affect/effect on this team many on here won’t like.

 

[STOMP]

OKC tonight, should be an easy L.

Not so fast my friend. The Thunder are sitting SGA & Jalen Williams tonight and Chet is listed as a game time decision.

refueling the Blazer tank this season would need something along the lines of Billups sidelining Deni for the rest of the year siting the quad contusion issue he's been dealing with and giving all those minutes to the HCP

STOMP

 

[BIG Q]

This year set us back 5 years, so in a way we tanked.

Hopefully the drafts in 3-5 years will be loaded and I am still kicking.

 

[BIG Q]

I now fully expect the Blazers to re-sign Ant, extend him or whatever. I doubt they try to move off of Grant. Would not be surprised if they re-sign Ayton too. Williams and Thybule will probably just walk after next season unless they get extended too. Portland is not a free agent destination. They are unwilling to make the hard decision to tank for the good of the franchise. I expect Scoot/Shae to ask the fuck out because this coach, GM and ownership have Fools Gold Fever.

 

[BlazerWookee]

Nah FAMS! That little win streak last month is gonna have an affect/effect on this team many on here won’t like.

Because they're rooting to lose. I refuse to do that. I believe instilling a culture of trying to win far outweighs a slight improvement in the chances of landing a higher pick.

 

[Strenuus]

Because they're rooting to lose. I refuse to do that. I believe instilling a culture of trying to win far outweighs a slight improvement in the chances of landing a higher pick.

Cant wait to be a playoff contender next decade when we won meaningless games in 2025!

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

Nah FAMS! That little win streak last month is gonna have an affect/effect on this team many on here won’t like.

Nah FAMS! That little win streak last month is gonna have an affect/effect on the growth of our young guys that many on here will like.

 

[Chris Craig]

We lose pathetically

 

[Phatguysrule]

Because they're rooting to lose. I refuse to do that. I believe instilling a culture of trying to win far outweighs a slight improvement in the chances of landing a higher pick.

You can improve while trying to win, and still lose. That's what the good teams do in our situation.

 

[Phatguysrule]

Nah FAMS! That little win streak last month is gonna have an affect/effect on the growth of our young guys that many on here will like.

I don't think our young guys have been helped at all this season. I think they're further behind than they would be otherwise because we haven't gotten the obvious veterans out of their way.

So, IMO, we've hampered the development of our young players, we've also given ourselves a worse opportunity at adding more talent.

And we have no shot at winning a playoff series.

 

[Natebishop3]

We are playing good teams and we are losing….. as expected.

 

[Strenuus]

If you want to see this team make the playoffs, you aren't looking at the big picture.

Like me, who has done it the right way the entire time.

 

[blazerkor]

We are playing good teams and we are losing….. as expected.

Ehhh tonight we played a really good but they sat 3 of their 4 best players and a couple of other rotation guys and we still lost. That wasn't a very good team we lost to tonight, guys that are used to winning, sure but not a good team.

 

[Mediocre Man]

Just fucking sit everyone. Get to 8th worst and hold your breath

 

[wizenheimer]

Just fucking sit everyone. Get to 8th worst and hold your breath

they are 10th now; probably the best they could do with an 18 game tank is 9th

but Cronin & Chauncey decided to tilt at the 10th seed windmill and went all-in including no action at the trade deadline. To pivot to a tank now would be admitting how foolish they all were setting the 10th seed as the highest priority. They won't admit to that mistake in such a blatant fashion

so, they'll continue to try and win games right to the bitter end. I think they have a much better chance at 12th seed than 9th seed.

 

[Mediocre Man]

they are 10th now; probably the best they could do with an 18 game tank is 9th

but Cronin & Chauncey decided to tilt at the 10th seed windmill and went all-in including no action at the trade deadline. To pivot to a tank now would be admitting how foolish they all were setting the 10th seed as the highest priority. They won't admit to that mistake in such a blatant fashion

so, they'll continue to try and win games right to the bitter end. I think they have a much better chance at 12th seed than 9th seed.

Fucktard franchise

 

[Phatguysrule]

they are 10th now; probably the best they could do with an 18 game tank is 9th

but Cronin & Chauncey decided to tilt at the 10th seed windmill and went all-in including no action at the trade deadline. To pivot to a tank now would be admitting how foolish they all were setting the 10th seed as the highest priority. They won't admit to that mistake in such a blatant fashion

so, they'll continue to try and win games right to the bitter end. I think they have a much better chance at 12th seed than 9th seed.

Fucktard franchise

Yep

 

[Cugel]

Yeah they won’t tank at this point. They will try to make the playin. Possible because now everyone is either tanking or resting players.

I feel bad for the young guys next year because it is more likely than not Joe runs it back.

Ant
Deni
Toumani
Grant
Ayton

 

[JDC]

The change in odds from the 6th spot to the 10th spot doesn't move me and have instead enjoyed a run that was largely led by our young guys that I mostly want to be a part of the next competitive Blazers team.

It's not like trading Rob Will, Grant, Ant and Ayton at the deadline would have suddenly pushed them into top 4 pick territory. Those guys haven't been the needle movers this year.

We were so far underperforming our talent level at the beginning of the year, then went on a run vs a soft schedule but ultimately we look to be ending up where I thought we'd be.

Our guys are making jumps that we wanted to see and building winning habits. Yeah Bailey would be a nice fit but isn't a no brainer future star. Harper would cool too but he's a questionable fit.

And after that....this draft is very flat.

So yeah, we lost out on maybe 5% odds at Flagg in the process of watching our future get better and play the most entertaining brand of basketball in 3+ years....

I'm more than ok with that.

 

[wizenheimer]

The change in odds from the 6th spot to the 10th spot doesn't move me and have instead enjoyed a run that was largely led by our young guys that I mostly want to be a part of next competitive Blazers team.

It's not like trading Rob Will, Grant, Ant and Ayton at the deadline would have suddenly pushed them into top 4 pick territory. Those guys haven't been the needle movers this year.

We were so far underperforming our talent level at the beginning of the year, then went on a run vs a soft schedule but ultimately we look to be ending up where I thought we'd be.

Our guys are making jumps that we wanted to see and building winning habits. Yeah Bailey would be a nice fit but isn't a no brainer future star. Harper would cool too but he's a questionable fit.

And after that....this draft is very flat.

So yeah, we lost out on maybe 5% odds at Flagg in the process of watching our future get better and play the most entertaining brand of basketball in 3+ years....

I'm more than ok with that.

it's not the #1 pick or bust....that's illogical. Flagg won't be the only good player in the draft

and Portland could easily slide down to 12th in the lottery. So the issue is really the odds for a top-4 pick at 5th vs 12th. The odds for the 5th seed landing a top-4 pick are 40%; the odds for the 12th pick are 7%. That's 40% vs 7%.

 

[Phatguysrule]

it's not the #1 pick or bust....that's illogical. Flagg won't be the only good player in the draft

and Portland could easily slide down to 12th in the lottery. So the issue is really the odds for a top-4 pick at 5th vs 12th. The odds for the 5th seed landing a top-4 pick are 40%; the odds for the 12th pick are 7%. That's 40% vs 7%.

Exactly. I can't believe people have so much trouble grasping this...

 

[JDC]

Exactly. I can't believe people have so much trouble grasping this...

Lol I know the odds. I just don't value Harper, Bailey or Edgecombe on a Blazers specific board as highly most here clearly do.

Flagg is so above and beyond the rest of this class in my eyes where I do view it close to a Flagg and everyone else type of draft.