Just how bad is our bench?

[mook]

This bad.

Also interesting: Aldridge hasn't spent any time at all at any position other than PF this year. Quite a development when you take into account that he played a ton of center in the past few years, especially at the end of games.

Similarly, Batum has been used exclusively at SF.

I guess if the coach were on this thread he'd say, "If you only have 5 decent players, you might as well use them at their natural positions."

 

[Eastoff]

that's bad. I'm surprised by Lillard and Hickson's though

 

[Draco]

Yup. Leonard might be our 6th best player by default which makes center our deepest position.

Although you could say Aldridge is sometimes playing the role of a center when on the court with Hickson.

 

[mook]

It does raise the argument, though, that maybe it makes sense to play Matthews more with the bench and use LA at small forward a little. I don't think you suddenly change the starting lineup, but you try it for a few minutes here and there and see where it goes. If you're giving up so many points every time you play Babbitt or Freeland anyway, it's not like you have that much to lose.

 

[crowTrobot]

that's bad. I'm surprised by Lillard and Hickson's though

i'm not, given their low ratings are coming mainly from high opponent production/PER. lillard hasn't shown much defense yet, and hickson is defending out of position.

 

[Reep]

From CNNSI (bottom four bench):

http://nba.si.com/2012/11/16/nba-bench-lakers-cavaliers-blazers-pacers/?sct=nba_t12_a0

The Blazers live in a harrowing reality in which Sasha Pavlovic — he of 2.6 points and 1.6 rebounds per game — is legitimately one of their best bench players. . . .

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Worse.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Matthews on the bench doesn't work. He'll try to create for himself, and that just should never happen. If we had a decent backup PG, then maybe.

How about this to solve some problems? (Psst: it also clears up more caproom at the end of the year.)

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

Has the bench ever been this bad?

Ever?

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

If you're willing to take the risk I think Royce White would be a great addition to the bench. Someone who'll rebound and actually create offense for himself and others.

Buy low, sell high!

 

[Reep]

If you're willing to take the risk I think Royce White would be a great addition to the bench. Someone who'll rebound and actually create offense for himself and others.

Buy low, sell high!

I wonder if you could work out some kind of deal where he only plays home games until the playoffs (which would be easy to bus)? He would be a good fit.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

With our team docs, I'm pretty sure we can pump him full of Ativan and he'll be good to go!

 

[BrianFromWA]

Pre-emptively microfracture his skull. That's gotta work, right?

 

[HailBlazers]

Pre-emptively microfracture his skull. That's gotta work, right?

lol, wouldn't put it passed them.

As far as our bench goes. Stats really can't tell the whole story. There are a couple players on it that would make really good role players on a deep playoff team.

 

[Nikolokolus]

lol, wouldn't put it passed them.

As far as our bench goes. Stats really can't tell the whole story. There are a couple players on it that would make really good role players on a deep playoff team.

Name one ...

 

[Natebishop3]

Name one ...

Jeffries maybe? Certainly not Price or Pavlovic.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

If last night's game was a good indication, then our bench should be Jeffries, Leonard and Price. Not one of them is a scorer, though. We should bundle all the others (yes, I'm including Claver and Freeland) for one more decent player. Suggestions:

Barea (but he's always injured)
Varejao (broken record, and Cleveland aren't going to give him up)
Calderon (Raptors have to wait for Lowry to get healthy)

But what will actually happen (and probably should) is we'll just be patient, and Claver, Freeland and Barton will be eased into the rotation (or forced in by injuries). I do wish we could get like a Jason Kidd/Andre Miller type, though. It would be nice to have a steady hand in there when Lillard's out, or even to let him play off the ball a little.

 

[Boob-No-More]

I do wish we could get like a Jason Kidd/Andre Miller type, though. It would be nice to have a steady hand in there when Lillard's out, or even to let him play off the ball a little.

Too bad Chad "Epic Fail" Buchanan traded Miller and Faried for Ray Felton and Nolan Smith. Imagine how much better our bench would be with Dre backing up Lillard and Faried ripping it up with the second unit.

Oh well, I'm not too concerned about our bench right now. Yeah, they suck, big time, but it's not like we're contending anytime soon. Let the young guys play some big minutes and develop. Sacrifice a few wins this season for some valuable experience and a higher lottery pick. Then, add that lottery pick and a couple solid vets with our cap space, and the bench will round out quite nicely. That's the one good thing about our bench, they are all (except Leonard) expendable, easily replaced and mostly on cheap and/or expiring contracts. We could easily retool our bench from awful to respectable in a single off season. And, I expect that's what will happen and I'm fine with that.

BNM

 

[santeesioux]

I was against it before, but they need some crazy like Delonte or Kenyon. If they could get both of those guys, they would be a really decent team.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Oh well, I'm not too concerned about our bench right now. Yeah, they suck, big time, but it's not like we're contending anytime soon. Let the young guys play some big minutes and develop.

But that's not what's happening (apart from with Lillard). Aldridge is going to get burnout pretty damn soon at this rate.

 

[Charcoal Filtered]

One positive is that with guys off the bench not needing shots, it is allowing the four that need them have plenty.

No more Nic sitting in the corner.

 

[Denny Crane]

How about the Knicks with the ex-Blazers?

Felton 16/6 has had something of a turnaround.

They've got Sheed, Kurt Thomas, and Camby on the bench. Would you be happier with those three?

 

[Natebishop3]

How about the Knicks with the ex-Blazers?

Felton 16/6 has had something of a turnaround.

They've got Sheed, Kurt Thomas, and Camby on the bench. Would you be happier with those three?

No, center isn't the Problem.... it's guard. We need a backup point guard in the worst way.

 

[Denny Crane]

If you need a backup PG, here's the guy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_James

Vet minimum. He's good, too. Just old. You don't need him for that many minutes, though.

 

[Boob-No-More]

But that's not what's happening (apart from with Lillard). Aldridge is going to get burnout pretty damn soon at this rate.

Really? Why? He's playing fewer MPG this season that he did two years ago over the course of 81 games. He didn't break down then. What makes you so sure he'll break down now.

Plus back then, we didn't have a legitimate second or third scoring option. Nobody else on the team averaged over 16ppg. Wesley Mathews at 15.9ppg was our second leading scorer. And, other than 23 games of Gerald Wallace, Andre Miller was our number 3 option at 12.7ppg.

This year, we have Batum (20.8ppg) and Lillard (19.3ppg) as legitimate 2nd and 3rd options. In the game last night, Nic took over the 3rd quarter and Lillard owned the 4th quarter and OT. That allowed Aldridge to "coast" to an "easy" 29 points. These days, Aldridge doesn't have to put the entire team on his back and carry them. He has teammates capable of sharing that responsibility - and a coach that knows how to design an offense that involves more than one scoring option at a time.

BNM

 

[THE HCP]

I swore there were already 4 threads about this.

 

[BrianFromWA]

LMA didn't even attempt a shot in the last 8 minutes of the 4th.

 

[magnifier661]

LMA didn't even attempt a shot in the last 8 minutes of the 4th.

That's because our coach does the right thing by going with the hot hands until you can stop them. Lillard and Batum were on fire and you saw it in their eye. Aldridge is the hard hat blue collar scorer. When times are tough, then you bring it inside. If Lillard and Batum are on a hot shooting game; then let it be!

 

[BrianFromWA]

I'm not denying that, I'm just saying that I don't think he was "worn out" in OT. 40 LMA minutes right now =/= 40 LeBron minutes or Allen Iverson minutes. More like K*be.

 

[BrianFromWA]

btw, to answer the OP's question Hollinger-style:

John Hollinger ‏@johnhollinger
Today's Blazer bench PERs: 12.8, 8.8, 4.3, 1.1, 1.0, -0.6, -0.7. Sasha Pavlovic is one of the "good" ones at 8.8