Notice lets talk about nurk

[Mr. Robot]

hello blazers fans, long time no see...

during this playoff series, ive seen a lot of nurk bashing and i simply cant remain silent, as i consider it to be completely inappropriate, considering everything that has happened to him (leg break and death of a close relative)

i understand were all emotional and we often say certain things in the heat of the moment that we dont really mean, but when that opinion stucks as a general opinion, then i must intervene

as you already know, nurk didnt played bball in 16 months and you should understand how that affects players, their conditioning, game shape, mental state etc

in the scrimamge games and first part of the seeding games or four games if you will, nurk looked fantastic, to me he even looked better than he was prior to the injury, but when you consider the second part of the seeding games and this playoff series, its obvious that he excelled due to freshness, but with more games and playing 30+ minutes regulary (which he never played in his career), his conditioning and game shape came to the surface

every blazers fan should know that its not easy to come back from devastating injury and straight up dominate, that it will require time for nurk to get conditiong and game shape where it needs to be, but also to clear his head as you can see hes afraid in some moments, but in general, hes mentally in a really good place (when it comes to his leg)

then his close relative passed away and it certainly affected him, after all, nurk himself said he didnt want to play against memphis grizzlies in the play-in game, but felt that his grandma would want him to play, so he did and he had a great game in honour of his grandma

its pretty much clear why is nurk having a bad playoff series so far:

- conditiong/game shape
- death of a close relative
- matchup issue

anthony davis is a nightmare matchup for nurk, but theres nothing wrong with that (so is jrue holiday for dame lillard) and like we know, matchups (both individaul and team ones) matter

nurk cant defend davis, but then again, how many players can, i guarantee theres no more than five players (and thats to be generous) in the entire league that can defend him, as hes considered to be top 5 player, top 10 at worst

but its not just anthony davis, lakers have arguably best big man rotation in the league with davis, mcgee and howard and all of them are really athletic and theyre showing it with all those offensive rebounds and we know nurk is a really good rebounder himself

maybe we could get defensive rebounds if nurk was playing like himself or if whiteside would box-out or if we had collins... but we dont have any of those things, so the lakers are absolutely killing us

also, id like to point that the blazers went to the playoffs four times since nurk is here and he missed two of them due to non-displaced leg fracture and compound fracture and played in two of them and unfortunately both times he faced anthony fucking davis

in the 8 seeding games, nurk averaged 17.6 pts, 10.3 reb & 4.0 ast which is best in his career

so the next season, when he gets his conditiong and game shape back, when he gets over his grandma passing away, well see the "double-beast" he said he would be coming back from an injury

nurk is in a rough place right know, but lets get behind him and show him our love, as we know he can do much better than this... also, happy 26th b-day nurk, have a good one!

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Great post!

I agree, Nurk has a lot of rust to shake off both skill and conditioning wise.

 

[wizenheimer]

sure, he was out a long time and that could cause 'rust'. And his grandmother died

but since he's returned, he's had games of:

18 - 9 - 5
30 - 9 - 5
18 - 19 -3
22 - 7 - 4
10 -13 - 9
15- 6 - 3
6 - 9 - 0
22 - 10 - 3
22 - 21 - 4
16 - 15 - 3

those were the 8 seeding games, the play-in against Memphis, and game 1 of the Laker series. That's averaging 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists. That does not look like a rusty player to me

now, these last two games, I guess you could offer the excuse of conditioning. He sure looked whipped last night. And he was close to his grandmother, so that seems a reasonable excuse for distracted play

but I think he's also having issues with AD, McGee, and Howard. That's not necessarily a slam. I think any big would have issues with those 3 C's. They are all big, they are talented, and each has a different style

and setting aside rust, conditioning, and grief, I think it's obvious Nurkic has flaws to his game he needs to work on

 

[Mr. Robot]

im bosnian, but i have to be objective

those stats look great considering he didnt play bball in 16 months, but his defense in the bubble has not been good (not just against davis, but in general) and to me it shows he has conditioning/game shape issue, which is understandable and he is also missing way to many easy shots, which he always did, but not this much, no way and that also shows certain issue, whatever that may be, but probably conditioning/game shape

after all, nurk was always known for his defense, not for his offense and he clearly improved a lot on the offensive end of the floor, but he will never be as good as jokic, kat, davis or even vucevic, that much is clear... but theres nothing wrong with that, like i said, he was always considered defensive center and he developed into two-way center which is a great accomplishment for him

a lot of blazers fans consider him to be our second best player and thats for a reason

 

[julius]

Let's talk about Nurk, baby...let's talk about FT discrepancy....

 

[Wade Garrett]

I am one of Nurk's biggest fans. He is my favorite player.
But, even I can see.
He is gassed.
He is over-matched.
There were about 10 times last night where having good position, Nurkic didn't even jump for the defensive board.
I mean, his feet never left the ground.
That is zero effort. That is NOT Jusuf Nurkic.

 

[THE HCP]

I am one of Nurk's biggest fans. He is my favorite player.
But, even I can see.
He is gassed.
He is over-matched.
There were about 10 times last night where having good position, Nurkic didn't even jump for the defensive board.
I mean, his feet never left the ground.
That is zero effort. That is NOT Jusuf Nurkic.

This doesn't add up...... you said he is "gassed" How do you think he got that way? Because he's out there giving it his all. You can't say he's gassed and then complain that he is giving zero effort. Thats not how it works.

 

[THE HCP]

those stats look great considering he didnt play bball in 16 months,

I'll just stop ya right there.

 

[Wade Garrett]

This doesn't add up...... you said he is "gassed" How do you think he got that way? Because he's out there giving it his all. You can't say he's gassed and then complain that he is giving zero effort. Thats not how it works.

First off...I am NOT complaining.
I gave an example of zero effort caused by extreme fatigue.
He has worked his ass off in Orlando, (and the months prior).
There is no shame in stating the obvious.

 

[Buffalo Custard]

Don't hate, but - the best Blazer team of recent memory excelled with Kanter at center and Nurk out. I still can't believe they opted to keep Hood, dump Kanter, and then brought in Mr bad attitude to replace him. You can argue over stats, but anybody watching the game can see Kanter had better on-court chemistry!

 

[Labinot41]

Question: I agree that AD is a nightmare matchup, but why can't he dominate McGee or Howard? Even against Kuzma he struggled. If you are that good, you have to dominate these fools, he has not so far

 

[kjironman1]

Gotta be tough where he is right now.
They need him and he is giving it his all.
There does however need to be some looking into the way they are using him. He has to go strong to the hoop. This has been a problem since before the injury. When he does he does well. When he doesn't it doesn't end well.

 

[RoseCityRebel]

sure, he was out a long time and that could cause 'rust'. And his grandmother died

but since he's returned, he's had games of:

18 - 9 - 5
30 - 9 - 5
18 - 19 -3
22 - 7 - 4
10 -13 - 9
15- 6 - 3
6 - 9 - 0
22 - 10 - 3
22 - 21 - 4
16 - 15 - 3

those were the 8 seeding games, the play-in against Memphis, and game 1 of the Laker series. That's averaging 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists. That does not look like a rusty player to me

now, these last two games, I guess you could offer the excuse of conditioning. He sure looked whipped last night. And he was close to his grandmother, so that seems a reasonable excuse for distracted play

but I think he's also having issues with AD, McGee, and Howard. That's not necessarily a slam. I think any big would have issues with those 3 C's. They are all big, they are talented, and each has a different style

and setting aside rust, conditioning, and grief, I think it's obvious Nurkic has flaws to his game he needs to work on

Yes, a guy who is only 25 and missed over a year of basketball still has things to work on in his game. That seems obvious to everyone. Also, playing every other day is going to wear down bigger players. It’s why I don’t see the Lakers winning the title or even making the Finals. LeBron is older and AD has always worn down.

That seems obvious, too.

 

[wizenheimer]

a lot of blazers fans consider him to be our second best player and thats for a reason

I definitely consider Nurkic to be the 2nd best player for Portland right now. He's quite a bit better than CJ and has a much bigger impact

if it was Dame/Kawhi/Nurkic or Dame/PG13/Nurkic or Dame/Butler/Nurkic, Portland would be a real contender. That shows where I think the weak link is, if my posting history somehow doesn't. Obviously, adding that other elite player is a very difficult task, but it's impossible when the GM holds players the level of CJ and Zach untouchable in trade talks

 

[riverman]

Nurk will be fine...our starters have worked their asses off to make the playoffs only to face a 7ft defensive player of the year and the best player in basketball first round...and we took game one...I'm proud of Nurk and confident he'll bounce back and have better games in the series...I like Nurk as the franchise center moving ahead ..he's a keeper and he's still really young...

 

[Mr. Robot]

nurk himself said it

 

[kjironman1]

nurk himself said it

I read that as they got to win one game.
What are you reading into that?

 

[Mr. Robot]

I read that as they got to win one game.
What are you reading into that?

"theres a lot of things on my mind" means he has a personal issues and he cant be focused on bball as much as he should be

 

[Phatguysrule]

sure, he was out a long time and that could cause 'rust'. And his grandmother died

but since he's returned, he's had games of:

18 - 9 - 5
30 - 9 - 5
18 - 19 -3
22 - 7 - 4
10 -13 - 9
15- 6 - 3
6 - 9 - 0
22 - 10 - 3
22 - 21 - 4
16 - 15 - 3

those were the 8 seeding games, the play-in against Memphis, and game 1 of the Laker series. That's averaging 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists. That does not look like a rusty player to me

now, these last two games, I guess you could offer the excuse of conditioning. He sure looked whipped last night. And he was close to his grandmother, so that seems a reasonable excuse for distracted play

but I think he's also having issues with AD, McGee, and Howard. That's not necessarily a slam. I think any big would have issues with those 3 C's. They are all big, they are talented, and each has a different style

and setting aside rust, conditioning, and grief, I think it's obvious Nurkic has flaws to his game he needs to work on

Those stats are awesome. Every player has flaws in their game.

 

[kjironman1]

"theres a lot of things on my mind" means he has a personal issues and he cant be focused on bball as much as he should be

I guess that is to be expected.

 

[James lamphear]

Yes some in here has brought up his defense not being good and your right some of the time. But what I see his lateral quickness isn't there like it use to before he got the injury. Something he has to work on during the off season. Plus his vertical is not as high and that could be his leg might be strong enough yet. But I think he has play pretty good on the offense side for missing that much time plus a death in his family. You know Nurk might be but it's not a long talk. Davis and McGee are really long and Nurk always had some with that type player.

 

[riverman]

For not playing over a 16 month stretch and not walking for part of that Nurk may be in "shape" now but he's not in "game shape" yet....you can tell at the end of games he's sucking fumes....that was to be expected in my view

 

[lawai'a]

For not playing over a 16 month stretch and not walking for part of that Nurk may be in "shape" now but he's not in "game shape" yet....you can tell at the end of games he's sucking fumes....that was to be expected in my view

he is averaging between 4 and 5 minutes per game more during the 8 game play in and first 4 playoff games than he did over the course of the 2 previous seasons. he has always avg. less than 30 for his career and is currently closer to 32.

 

[blazerkor]

Nurk is obviously the second most important player on this team. CJ is likely the second best but due to his fit next to Dame defensively and his refusal to take on the most effective role he could take on offense CJ is almost a detriment to this team. I actually don't know where I rank CJ in terms of his value but it's definitely after Nurk. Nurk's ability to facilitate is probably the best on the team even over Dame. With the ball in Nurk's hands at the top of the key, with our best lineup in, we are at our most potent offensively. He is a great passer, screener and a threat to score (either by diving to the hoop or making a wide open jumper). I know he could finish around the hole stronger and I really believe he will more consistently going forward. On defense as a 5 he is a real disrupter, lane protector and rebounder. Obviously we need to make sure that we give him his best shot at success and keep him inside on defense because a guy that big shouldn't be expected to cover the perimeter but that doesn't mean he can't be incredibly effective for us as a defender because he is. He is also getting rid of a lot of rust and will be a lot better than he is now whenever the next season is. I think Nurk's future is so bright, he's a real keeper.

 

[kjironman1]

Yes some in here has brought up his defense not being good and your right some of the time. But what I see his lateral quickness isn't there like it use to before he got the injury. Something he has to work on during the off season. Plus his vertical is not as high and that could be his leg might be strong enough yet. But I think he has play pretty good on the offense side for missing that much time plus a death in his family. You know Nurk might be but it's not a long talk. Davis and McGee are really long and Nurk always had some with that type player.

One full year of playing before he gets back to where he was. He ain't even close yet.

 

[James lamphear]

One full year of playing before he gets back to where he was. He ain't even close yet.

That for sure he has work to do for lateral quickness so can like he use too.

 

[LayneStaley]

I like Nurk but no way he’s untradeable, it’s really time for a change, i think Dame needs to see that and let NO know it.

 

[kjironman1]

That for sure he has work to do for lateral quickness so can like he use too.

Lots of things go into returning from a major injury. I'm certain lateral quickness would be one of them. Most players say it's also the mental part. Moving and jumping at the rim seems to be one of those for him. Maybe not so much jumping but landing.

 

[BlayZa]

He's just lost the 'Beast' part of the Bosnian Beast tag.

he's had a lot going on, being out for so long, rust, confidence, covid, family loss, and as mentioned some pretty rough positional match ups.
that's a lot to deal with and I accept it's not ideal and has resulted in a some rather avg performances but this whole year is fucked up, i aint mad at this.