Game Thread PLAYOFFS: ROUND 1, GAME 1: BLAZERS @ CLIPPERS - 4/17/16, SUNDAY, 7:30 PM (PDT), TNT & KGW

[B-Roy]

He airballed a wide-open '3' as well so I guess it's Pick your Poison. Aminu can hit shots at time but he is not the type of knock-down shooter that is going to ease the pressure off of Dame and CJ...he's just not that type of player. Portland just really doesn't have that type of player right now.

He's a proven 36% three point shooter through an entire season. That averages out to be a little above 1 PPP, which is good enough to keep a defense honest and enough to turn games if he shoots above his %, as we saw in his Godminu game against Boston. He has to shoot over 50% from midrange to even match that efficiency, which is highly unrealistic and especially so since he has displayed no midrange touch in his entire career.

This is not to mention that the Clippers are leaving him WIDE open. He is getting 2 or 3 seconds to set his shot before taking it. He shot 2/8 yesterday but if he hit one more that would put him at 37.5% and around his season average and Stotts would probably be okay with the offensive efficiency. I also thought he was clearly the Blazers best defender last night (which isn't saying much, considering everyone else). What he NEEDS to do is cut the shitty drives and 1v5 fast breaks. He blew 3 or 4 possessions on offense trying to be a creator and he's not.

Look, in the end, the Blazers are just a worse team than the Clippers. 1-10 they are less talented so they need guys to play above their abilities for us to win the series. There's no shame in admitting that, but there are not a lot of good answers except I think Stotts could manage his defensive adjustments better.

I still think they will win a few games and could win the series if someone steps up.

 

[B-Roy]

Aminu's impact was much worse than even 2-8 indicates. He didn't hit until late, and was extremely errant early. By that point, LAC had already established control of the game by ignoring him, and a couple makes did nothing to turn the tide.

I just can't agree with this. As badly as Aminu was doing on offense, the fact is any semblance of defense Portland played last night started and ended with Aminu. I usually don't read Blazersedge write-ups but I thought this one was pretty spot on:

http://www.blazersedge.com/2016/4/1...recap-chris-paul-damian-lillard-blake-griffin

Al-Farouq Aminu had 12 rebounds, 2 offensive, and worked his heart out on defense. His 2-8 three-point shooting and 10 total points on a night when the opponent left him wide open ended up killing his team's chances. Those chances weren't strong to begin with, but still.

There's hope for the Blazers yet, but it rests on two things:
1. Aminu and company probably won't continue to miss threes quite so badly. The Blazers have managed to break defensive presses before, mostly because Aminu goes on a hot streak and makes the opponent come out to guard him. Once that happens McCollum gets free. When he hits Lillard faces single coverage as well. In this way a few more three-pointers falling for the Blazers would make a difference beyond the direct points they'd put on the scoreboard. (By the way, if you haven't missed Meyers Leonard yet, you should start missing him now.)
2. Portland tends to adjust well between games. They've seen the Clippers' opening move firsthand now. They need to come to the ball when they get trapped. Failing that they might reverse the floor and design quick-hitting, 4-on-3 plays to take advantage of L.A. committing to the dribbler. Doc Rivers will make another adjustment if the Blazers break this scheme, but whatever he designs has to be better for Portland. We just saw the worst possible defense for the Blazers to fight.

 

[UKRAINEFAN]

I'm sure this has been mentioned but for some reason Portand not prepared for the traps on our guards; seemed to have only one option, get it to the guy in the center so of course the guys trapping only needed to shut off that option. But whatever Portland does they need to have guys who can shoot 50-60% on wide open threes, and they don't.

 

[Sinobas]

What's this with all the junk punching? Y'all some weird repressed Blazer fans.

IF you can't beat them, punch them in the testicles.

 

[B-Roy]

IF you can't beat them, punch them in the testicles.

Nicolas Batum agrees.

 

[Sinobas]

I wonder if Kaman should get more playing time this series. He's someone you can't leave alone from mid-range, and would draw Jordan out.

 

[riverman]

We shot like crap all night. They shot lights out all night. Plumlee couldn't hit a layup...don't know why he didn't just dunk most of those shots at the rim. Crabbe, CJ, Mo added nothing on offense. Basically Dame was smothered and still got 20 pts...Gerald Henderson and Kaman seemed to be the best players of the game for us..now is when Stotts needs to coach the adjustment. Hopefully a better effort in game 2

 

[e_blazer]

I wonder if Kaman should get more playing time this series. He's someone you can't leave alone from mid-range, and would draw Jordan out.

Unless Aminu and Harkless are hitting their shots, there's no doubt about it. I think we'll see Stotts start his usual line on Wednesday, but will go to Kaman earlier if things aren't going well. I wouldn't mind seeing the Blazers experiment with a big lineup with Kaman, Plumlee and Aminu at the 5, 4 &3 spots. Plumlee is long and athletic enough to give Blake trouble.

 

[blue9]

We are less talented than the Clippers. It is just the truth. So in that sense you need some guys to play above their abilities. Aminu can cut down on some of the ridiculous drives, but he has to keep shooting the wide open 3s

Totally disagree. If Stotts' strategy to win hinges on Aminu hitting 3s this will be over in 4 (maaaaybe 5). And so far that seems to be Stotts' strategy. He's getting Aminu wide open 3s, but that's because that's EXACTLY what LAC wants to give us. Sure, Aminu has to take a few of those shots, but on the lion's share he needs to take the lane and then PASS THE MUTHERFUCKIN BALL! Stotts needs to throw one more piece of motion into his offense after Aminu catches the ball and not rely on that butt-ugly 3-point shot that only goes in on a prayer.

And I swear, if Aminu leads one more 1-on-3 fast break he should be taken out behind the stadium and shot.

 

[TBpup]

Connaughton and Montero were on fire! The Clippers wouldn't know what hit them.

 

[illmatic99]

It was just an extremely poorly managed game by Terry. When Moe gets into foul trouble in the first quarter, you can't give Noah 7 minutes of PT. Crabbe or Gerald need to play more, not Noah. Hell, even Kaman woulda been a better option. This is the playoffs and the possessions matter so much more. That's 7 minutes of us playing 4 on 5. Granted LA did not do much in that period to take advantage, but still massive blunder by Terry that could have led to a far worse result in the first half.

And the continuous Hack A thing did absolutely nothing in the fourth quarter. Down 18 with 4 minutes left and 0 momentum on either side, what's the point? To add insult to injury, I counted at least 4 times when they got the offensive rebound afterwards.

 

[blue9]

* Dame (and coaches) needs to figure out the fucking trap/double team; I am not sure how our coaches can't get this resolved as its been employed against us so many times and is overly effective. Dame and CJ just lose their shit when they get doubled.

The fact that Stotts still hasn't come up with a reliable counter-move is Reason #1 why I want a new coach. Dame has been getting doubled for at least two seasons now and Stotts is no closer to figuring out how to handle it.

I know CP3 is a great individual defender, but one way to mitigate the disaster of the double-team is to NOT bring a screen to Dame! But 99% of the time we bring the double directly to Dame...even when Rivers was guarding him! The definition of insanity is blah blah blah? At the very least try setting a screen with CJ or Crabbe so Dame isn't smothered by DJ and can maybe get a pass over the top to the open man (who will be a more capable offensive player than Plumlee/Davis).

Also, they can only double-team one player at any given time - they can't double both Dame AND CJ. So how is it that we're unable to get the ball to CJ when Dame is doubled, or vice versa?

 

[B-Roy]

Totally disagree. If Stotts' strategy to win hinges on Aminu hitting 3s this will be over in 4 (maaaaybe 5). And so far that seems to be Stotts' strategy. He's getting Aminu wide open 3s, but that's because that's EXACTLY what LAC wants to give us. Sure, Aminu has to take a few of those shots, but on the lion's share he needs to take the lane and then PASS THE MUTHERFUCKIN BALL!

PASS TO WHO? The majority of the time he's getting the ball is because CJ and Dame are COMPLETELY smothered. Would you rather a wide open 3 from Aminu or a constested prayer from Dame or CJ (and I swear to god, if you choose the latter you are flat out wrong). The Clippers do this to EVERY team. They do it to Curry but the difference is Curry's outlet is Draymond Green who can score and create plays. Portland's outlet is Aminu who HAS to hit his shots or Plumlee who can sometimes be a passing threat.

The answer for the trap is for other guys to step up, that's just how it is. When Dame and CJ get trapped the Blazers have a 4 on 3 and it's up to the other guys to make plays. Who else on this team can make plays besides Dame and CJ? Answer: no one, unless someone steps the hell up.

 

[B-Roy]

I know CP3 is a great individual defender, but one way to mitigate the disaster of the double-team is to NOT bring a screen to Dame! But 99% of the time we bring the double directly to Dame...even when Rivers was guarding him! The definition of insanity is blah blah blah? At the very least try setting a screen with CJ or Crabbe so Dame isn't smothered by DJ and can maybe get a pass over the top to the open man (who will be a more capable offensive player than Plumlee/Davis).

Also, they can only double-team one player at any given time - they can't double both Dame AND CJ. So how is it that we're unable to get the ball to CJ when Dame is doubled, or vice versa?

Did you even watch the game, because from reading your post it doesn't seem like you did.

1. The few times Lillard went 1 v 1 vs Paul he failed miserably. I counted about 3 or 4 possessions where he tried to go 1v1 and threw up garbage floaters. When he got to the rim DJ ate up his shots.

2. The few times CJ went 1 v 1 he failed miserably as well. Pissing the ball away, getting blocked at the rim, he couldn't even create space against Redick.

3. When they trap Lillard on the PnR, CJ's man just sticks onto CJ and they let the Blazers have a 3 on 2. But half the time Lillard or CJ either turn it over by throwing over DJ and Paul's hands or they dribble too long and by the time the pass is made to the center we are either fighting the shot clock or giving the Clippers time to recover.

4. They tried setting screens with Crabbe and Hendo on the ballhandler. A few times I saw Mbah a Moute switched onto Lillard or CJ and they would go 1 v 1. They didn't get many good shots out of it and they collapse the paint when Lillard breaks his man down. Although I think this has a chance of working, as long as Lillard and CJ improve their decision making.

 

[Chris Craig]

Good is being generous. Its weird, like they weren't horrible, but at the same time they made some of the worst calls I could imagine (like letting an opposing player make up your mind for you on an out of bounds, when you clearly weren't looking).

They were horrible...the wouldn't call shooting fouls for us except for Davis who they know is not a very good ft shooter...they stuffed the whistle on our end and had a concert on the other side....at least half of Griffin's points came from free throws....after he traveled and bowled people down again and again...so no the refs were not good...they were a biased travesty

 

[Spud147]

I was really hoping ours would be the one competitive series in the western conference play offs. I don't think the Blazers will get swept but we just don't have any answers for their bigs.

 

[B-Roy]

They were horrible...the wouldn't call shooting fouls for us except for Davis who they know is not a very good ft shooter...they stuffed the whistle on our end and had a concert on the other side....at least half of Griffin's points came from free throws....after he traveled and bowled people down again and again...so no the refs were not good...they were a biased travesty

ALSO, (and I can't believe this isn't getting more attention)

They let Griffin call an out of bounds on Aminu when he was clearly in bounds. THE REF LISTENED TO GRIFFIN ON A CALL. How is this fair???

 

[riverman]

I think the first half they had 19 freethrows without the hack a Jordan and we had 6....that's some serious home cookin'...Blake got away with charges and sold a fake out of bounds call...it was going to be an uneven battle all night from the start...they really swallowed the whistle when the Clips were manhandling Dame and CJ....we needed Chief to get 30 pts to win and he seemed tired from defending Blake and Jordan in the first half.

 

[blue9]

PASS TO WHO? The majority of the time he's getting the ball is because CJ and Dame are COMPLETELY smothered.

At the very least try setting a screen with CJ or Crabbe so Dame isn't smothered by DJ and can maybe get a pass over the top to the open man (who will be a more capable offensive player than Plumlee/Davis).

Also, they can only double-team one player at any given time - they can't double both Dame AND CJ. So how is it that we're unable to get the ball to CJ when Dame is doubled, or vice versa?

And as I mentioned in another thread, when Aminu is getting the ball the lane is WIDE OPEN. Take two dribbles and either dunk or PASS THE BALL if the defense slides. Aminu jacking 3s is exactly what LAC wants. It's pathetic that our offense is designed to get the exact shot that the defense is giving up.

 

[B-Roy]

And as I mentioned in another thread, when Aminu is getting the ball the lane is WIDE OPEN. Take two dribbles and either dunk or PASS THE BALL if the defense slides. Aminu jacking 3s is exactly what LAC wants. It's pathetic that our offense is designed to get the exact shot that the defense is giving up.

Have you SEEN Aminu's drives? (Don't answer because I know you have)

He's a 36% three point shooter this year. On average that is over 1 PPS. I will take THAT over Aminu dribbling and passing thank you VERY much.

 

[riverman]

Aminu defended really well considering how much smaller he was than Griffin and Jordan..that showed on his shooting..he shot 65% from deep in the playoffs last season for Dallas. He didn't last night but he can shoot better than a lot of folks are saying in my view. Not long ago he got almost 30pts shooting from deep when nobody else could shoot...just didn't happen last night

 

[riverman]

Have you SEEN Aminu's drives? (Don't answer because I know you have)

He's a 36% three point shooter this year. On average that is over 1 PPS. I will take THAT over Aminu dribbling and passing thank you VERY much.

Harkless and Henderson are the best players on the team at driving the lanes. To me...Plumlee was the worst offensive player on the court all night

 

[B-Roy]

Aminu defended really well considering how much smaller he was than Griffin and Jordan..that showed on his shooting..he shot 65% from deep in the playoffs last season for Dallas. He didn't last night but he can shoot better than a lot of folks are saying in my view. Not long ago he got almost 30pts shooting from deep when nobody else could shoot...just didn't happen last night

Exactly, you beat a team that sells out their entire defense to stopping Lillard and CJ by having other guys step up. Aminu looked rattled shooting last game. We may not win the series but I forsee better shooting nights and wins in the Rose Garden.

 

[Tunchi]

We'll be fine. The playoffs is about adjustments, we saw their best shot now its time to adjust to what we seen game 1. Its not over. They need to first and foremost stop bringing the screen to Dame's defender. Dame has to just do it on his own one on one, he cant rely on the screen bc thats when that annoying dbl teams comes and eats him up.

Aminu needs to shoot 1000 3s a day till game 2 bc hes going to continue to get that open look all the time. Eventually hes going to have to make them pay.

We'll be fine tho

 

[B-Roy]

Harkless and Henderson are the best players on the team at driving the lanes. To me...Plumlee was the worst offensive player on the court all night

Plumlee was awful and I am appalled that Ed Davis only played 20 minutes. 6 points 8 rebounds and better defense. Neither are great on Jordan and Griffin but Ed needs to be the primary big in this series.

I agree they could also experiment more with using Harkless and Henderson to set screens. I thought they did a good job getting Harkless the ball when they cross matched Mbah a Moute on CJ and Redick on Harkless at the start of the halfs.

Honestly the biggest problem isn't even the offensive execution. It's that our defense is tragic. Aminu played his ass off on defense but outside of him and maybe Hendo and Harkless we were a mess. I'd like to see Terry match Doc actually and put Harkless on Paul. This way, you have Paul playing against a longer defender and you can hide Lillard on Mbah a Moute who is not a post up threat at all.

 

[blue9]

Have you SEEN Aminu's drives? (Don't answer because I know you have)

He's a 36% three point shooter this year. On average that is over 1 PPS. I will take THAT over Aminu dribbling and passing thank you VERY much.

Two dribbles. Two - no more. I HATE the fact that Aminu even touches the ball on offense, but unfortunately we've got to live with it. But all it would take is two dribbles to make a defender commit to him. When he's up top he takes two dribbles into the lane while CJ/Harkless/Henderson/Crabbe rotate up from the corner and Aminu can pass backwards for an open 3. When he's in the corner fake the 3, take two baseline dribbles and elevate or dump to Ed/Harkless/Plumlee - in some cases it'll be a weak-side dive, in other cases (thinking specifically Plumlee) it can be a strong-side trailer.

I hate the idea of Aminu dribbling/passing, but I hate the idea of trying to win off his shooting even more.

 

[B-Roy]

Two dribbles. Two - no more. I HATE the fact that Aminu even touches the ball on offense, but unfortunately we've got to live with it. But all it would take is two dribbles to make a defender commit to him. When he's up top he takes two dribbles into the lane while CJ/Harkless/Henderson/Crabbe rotate up from the corner and Aminu can pass backwards for an open 3. When he's in the corner fake the 3, take two baseline dribbles and elevate or dump to Ed/Harkless/Plumlee - in some cases it'll be a weak-side dive, in other cases (thinking specifically Plumlee) it can be a strong-side trailer.

I hate the idea of Aminu dribbling/passing, but I hate the idea of trying to win off his shooting even more.

Aminu is not smart enough to be a decision maker. Once he dribbles into traffic (because the Clippers collapse on defense), he's throwing up bad layups and missing open shooters. He's a better player if you dumb the game down for him. If you're open, shoot, if you're on a fast break fill the lane. Asking him to make decisions on the fly is just asking to blow possessions. Trust his ability to hit shots, once the Clippers are forced to defend him the floor will open up for CJ and Dame. Last night Aminu couldn't punish the double team by hitting shots and Plumlee couldn't punish the double team by doing anything.

 

[blue9]

Aminu is not smart enough to be a decision maker. Once he dribbles into traffic (because the Clippers collapse on defense), he's throwing up bad layups and missing open shooters. He's a better player if you dumb the game down for him. If you're open, shoot, if you're on a fast break fill the lane. Asking him to make decisions on the fly is just asking to blow possessions. Trust his ability to hit shots, once the Clippers are forced to defend him the floor will open up for CJ and Dame. Last night Aminu couldn't punish the double team by hitting shots and Plumlee couldn't punish the double team by doing anything.

Oh, I totally agree - Aminu is dumb. But counting on him to shoot us to wins is a recipe for disaster - he's broken the 20-point barrier THREE times. Better to try getting the ball into the hands of better players - I'd rather he fail at team ball than hero ball. But really, Stotts' lack of structure is to blame - if he had set plays Aminu wouldn't have to think/freelance, he could just execute a pass after two dribbles.

 

[B-Roy]

Oh, I totally agree - Aminu is dumb. But counting on him to shoot us to wins is a recipe for disaster - he's broken the 20-point barrier THREE times. Better to try getting the ball into the hands of better players - I'd rather he fail at team ball than hero ball. But really, Stotts' lack of structure is to blame - if he had set plays Aminu wouldn't have to think/freelance, he could just execute a pass after two dribbles.

They are setting plays. They need Aminu to make shots. I don't care what anyone says until you can punish the Clippers for doubling you aren't winning. The Clippers are more talented yes? We can all agree on that. So for us to win we need someone that plays above their abilities.

Our outlet for the trap used to be LMA, we were able to win games before. Our outlet now is Aminu and Plumlee. Yeah, that's a HUGE downgrade. Aminu is a 36% shooter that is getting 2-3 seconds to fire. He HAS to make his shots for us to have any chance. He just has to. Especially because he also has to stay on the court because of defensive reasons.

 

[blue9]

Eight 3-point attempts is WAY too many. I agree he has to take SOME of them, but unless he's hot he shouldn't have the green light to fire every time he's open - that's doing exactly what the defense wants us to do.