Portland Trail Blazers' Most Potent Weapon: Versatility

[Foulzilla]

This is from a couple days ago, but I didn't see it until today so thought it worth discussing.

From The Bleacher Report

The possibilities for Portland are mind-boggling. Some may say the very responsibility of handling so much dynamite could be a problem. Right...the kind of problem one would welcome with a red carpet. Indeed, it is a rare luxury.

But don't expect McMillan to throw out a mix-and-match lineup every night. He will no doubt settle on a primary starting five with two or three key players off the bench most games. He can then revert to those special twists to create match-up problems when the situation warrants it. Still, it must be nice for a coach to have that kaleidoscope of options in his back pocket.

Here is a player-by-player breakdown of the current roster with each player's versatility factor:

Greg Oden - 2 strictly a center with great defensive range.
LaMarcus Aldridge - 2 power forward who can play center.
Martell Webster - 2 small forward who could play shooting guard.
Brandon Roy - 3 primarily a shooting guard who can play point guard or small forward.
Steve Blake - 1 strictly a point guard.
Joel Przybilla - 1 strictly a (legitimate starting) center.
Channing Frye - 3 power forward who could play center or small forward.
Travis Outlaw - 2 small forward who can play power forward.
Rudy Fernandez - 2 shooting guard who could play the point.
Jarryd Bayless - 2 being groomed as a point guard with the skills of a shooting guard.
Raef LaFrenz - 2 if healthy, could play center or power forward.
Ike Diogu - 1 strictly a power forward.
Nicolas Batum - 1 very raw small forward who could play shooting guard.
Sergio Rodriguez - 1 strictly a point guard.

I'm a little unclear on their number system. Looking at most of them it appears to be the number of positions they can play, however a few defy that. For example, Oden is a 2 despite being referenced as strictly a Center. Also, Batum is a 1 despite being referenced as a SF who could play SG. So I guess they mean more of versatility in skills. Personally I would rate Aldridge's versatility higher then Frye's, even though Frye is more likely to be stuck out of position due to Aldridge being more focal. I also think that Blake is being underrated as he's shown himself versatile enough to play off the ball with Brandon, or leading the team from the point as needed.

 

[Piltzer]

There were a few things they forgot to cover in my opinion as well, Aldridge is working on his handles and if he gets that to a certain level he could also potentially be used as a small forward against bigger lineups. Outlaw as well if he shows improvement in that area could also be used sparingly as a 2. And if Oden ever gets enough range he could potentially ply the 4 why he would do this I don't know but he could. We could have a line up of

Pg. Brandon Roy
Sg. Travis Outlaw
Sf. LaMarcus Aldridge
Pf. Greg Oden
C. Joel Pryzbilla

It is sort of a joke line up but it could work because these players are in fact versatile and athletic. Travis has shown that he can add whole new dimensions to his game in a year and I think all the others are possible, however we would only do this for entertainment purposes in my opinion or against the Eastern Conference. Sort of how in the Bird years there was that one game against the Blazers when he only shot left handed.