So NOW do you understand what I'm talking about??? We are a better team this year.

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I also don't want anyone to interpret what i am saying as i don't think they can or will make the playoffs. I most certainly want this team to do well and play as hard as they can all the time.
 
You guys wanna know what changed? We were home for 17 straight days. Every off day we got a practice in, which is rare in the middle of the season. We were able to review tape from the first part of the season and work on improving our flaws. That home stretch was a hell of alot more than just having an easy stretch of opponents. It allowed us to actually WORK ON IMPROVING OUR GAME. and it has been showing.

People say our schedule is tougher now than it has been the last 15 games. Well we are also a much better team than when we played these same teams that are coming up, in the first part of the season.

Do you think we allow Zach to get a tip in now? Do you think we lose those fourth quarter leads now? Not me. I think we play at least .500 for the rest of the season, even though the SOS is tough.

I'm gonna dig up old quotes where King and I got Blasted for saying we would be a better team, we would improve. We would... yeah. Man I think I was called a Homer more than Homer was. ;)
 
This may have been said in the previous 42 pages on this thread, but while I see our starting 5 as not as strong as last year's, I see our entire team 1-12 as being abundantly stronger and more talented. We now have a bench - something we haven't had in many years. Overall, we're working with a greater load of talent then the LA/Wes/Batum years IMO.
 
TBpup said:
I agree it goes beyond just being at home....they are playing better. However, they had a very easy schedule early and didn't do well in that. Now that they are better, how will they handle a tougher schedule with a TON of road games against quality opponents in March? If they do make the Playoffs, they will have done it the hard way and certainly earned it.

A long way from the 1/2 a game from the #4 Lottery spot earlier in the season. It's been quite a ride and very enjoyable for fans.
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Help me out here--where was the easy schedule they didn't do well with?
  • The @PHX/PHX back to back?
  • The DET/@DEN back to back?
  • The 4-game road trip immediately following Aldridge's return to Portland?
  • The 4-game road trip culminating in a road-home B2B?
  • The 5-game-in-8 night southeast road trip?
I mean, I'm really having trouble finding the "easy" part in their first 31 games.
 
Orion Bailey said:
You guys wanna know what changed? We were home for 17 straight days. Every off day we got a practice in, which is rare in the middle of the season. We were able to review tape from the first part of the season and work on improving our flaws. That home stretch was a hell of alot more than just having an easy stretch of opponents. It allowed us to actually WORK ON IMPROVING OUR GAME. and it has been showing.

People say our schedule is tougher now than it has been the last 15 games. Well we are also a much better team than when we played these same teams that are coming up, in the first part of the season.

Do you think we allow Zach to get a tip in now? Do you think we lose those fourth quarter leads now? Not me. I think we play at least .500 for the rest of the season, even though the SOS is tough.

I'm gonna dig up old quotes where King and I got Blasted for saying we would be a better team, we would improve. We would... yeah. Man I think I was called a Homer more than Homer was. ;)
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Even a blind squirrel...

Even a clock.....

;)
 
PtldPlatypus said:
Help me out here--where was the easy schedule they didn't do well with?
  • The @PHX/PHX back to back?
  • The DET/@DEN back to back?
  • The 4-game road trip immediately following Aldridge's return to Portland?
  • The 4-game road trip culminating in a road-home B2B?
  • The 5-game-in-8 night southeast road trip?
I mean, I'm really having trouble finding the "easy" part in their first 31 games.
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PHX/PHX back to back is not difficult and if it is, speaks to where the team playing them is. Back to backs are part of the NBA....everyone has them so citing them or games against DEN or road trips which every team plays doesn't seem out of the norm. Besides, I was referring to the SOS which for the Blazers was 27-29th easiest up until a couple weeks ago. That part isn't really up for debate.

It's not an attack on the team. Why can't some things just be an observation of what was versus an immediate perceived demonization of the team or their effort?
 
Orion Bailey said:
Im an idiot. You have sooo completely lost me!!!

On the side, I just printed tickets to a game a month from today my man!!!
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I was poking fun at your blind faith. hehe. (I am even making fun of the blind faith itself)

And nice! That Dallas game is gonna be awesome!
 
TBpup said:
PHX/PHX back to back is not difficult and if it is, speaks to where the team playing them is. Back to backs are part of the NBA....everyone has them so citing them or games against DEN or road trips which every team plays doesn't seem out of the norm. Besides, I was referring to the SOS which for the Blazers was 27-29th easiest up until a couple weeks ago. That part isn't really up for debate.

It's not an attack on the team. Why can't some things just be an observation of what was versus an immediate perceived demonization of the team or their effort?
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When these observations are applied consistently, that's great. Unfortunately, that isn't what's happening. Everyone wants to claim that these past two months have been an "easy schedule" because there were so many home games, yet when I demonstrated based on actual results that the Blazers' SOS since Christmas has been more difficult than everyone in the West save Dallas (although they may have surpassed them now having played Golden State), that "observation" is swept disregarded because it doesn't fit the narrative.

If cumulative opponent win percentages are the better indicator of schedule strength, then the team's improved record over the "more difficult" part of their schedule should be incredibly informative and encouraging. If game location and frequency are the better indicator of schedule strength, then by no means should the first 31 games be considered "easy". But when I see people saying the early poor record was in spite of an easy schedule, and the more recent improved record was also due to an easy schedule, it's inconsistent and it's frustrating.
 
PtldPlatypus said:
But when I see people saying the early poor record was in spite of an easy schedule, and the more recent improved record was also due to an easy schedule, it's inconsistent and it's frustrating.
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That frustration is well understood. The recent schedule has certainly been tougher for sure. Now yes, there have been a string of Home games but the quality of opponent has risen significantly and that can't be ignored. Now it gets even more difficult in March as the quality of opponent is high and most of those games are on the road. Again, the pace will slow down from what it has been but if Portland still makes the Playoffs, they will have completely earned it and done it the hard way by playing better against tougher teams as opposed to the last 2 seasons where they feasted on a poor Eastern conference and then struggled down the stretch against the tougher West in the last couple of months.
 
I think, perhaps, too much is being made of our upcoming schedule. Yes, we have a lot of road games in March, but the level of opponent isn't as high as people are making it out to be:

CHI
IND
NYK
BOS
TOR
DET

TOR has a great record, but we're on par with everyone else on that list. Remember when everyone thought the East was finally better than the West? LOL! It's evened out quite a bit.

And sure, after that trip we come home for one game, only to head down to Oakland. And then quickly have a 4-game trip of OKC, SAS, NOP, ending with an Away/Home with DAL. Two or three tough games.

I'm not concerned about the quality of opponents in March. It'll be tougher on the road, but it's not like we're playing heavyweights from here on out.
 
KingAlbertoJrSpeed said:
We blasted the Warriors and Clippers (even though we lost that game) and you guys said it was just preseason which it WAS but if you are PAYING ATTENTION, we are better in every aspect of the game this year. MUCH MUCH better offensively. MUCH better defensively. And all this crap about how we only have one quality NBA starter?? Well, guess what? CJ McCollum says FUCK YOU!! Yes, I know the Pelicans made their run which happens all the time in this league but we learned from the Clippers game and pushed back and got our first win of the year. We are FOR REAL. Only 20-30 wins this season? What the FUCK am I missing? I'm not just being a homer. If I thought our team sucked, I would say so. But the team I saw tonight is world's better than last year's crew. And we don't even have Henderson or Alexander. We're deep as hell.
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Bottom line is great call King and I'll gladly eat some crow, lovin seein how this team has grown and improved. While I don't necessarily agree we are better "in every aspect" of the game this year we are deep which is a huge improvement - great bench play. But that's beside the point, you made a good call on the season and kudos for that. I really. really enjoy watching these guys compete.
 
Blazinaway said:
Bottom line is great call King and I'll gladly eat some crow, lovin seein how this team has grown and improved. While I don't necessarily agree we are better "in every aspect" of the game this year we are deep which is a huge improvement - great bench play. But that's beside the point, you made a good call on the season and kudos for that. I really. really enjoy watching these guys compete.
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I'm ready to eat it too. Hope they get to the playoffs and win a series or two even.....
 
At the beginning of the season, I expected the Blazers to lose the close games, and I said so. And they did.

Now, with the improvement they've shown during this home stand...I expect the Blazers to win the close games. And every game for that matter. Like the Utah game the other day -- never had a doubt the Blazers would pull it out.

I think thoughts of lottery balls (or random number generators for you literals) are gone. If we're going to be in the playoffs, lets root to get the best seeding we can, and for this young team to make the most of the experience.

:cheers:
 
kjironman1 said:
The results while nice are speaking for themselves. The two teams are very different. Would anyone have been happy last year if they were 29-27? Not on your fucking life! They would have been screaming for changes. Wes goes down and Aldridge essentially made his decision it was over. Wes doesn't go down and they bring in a quality backup in Afflalo (who by the way gets a very bad rap) for 10-12 mins a game and that team gives any team out there a big run. They would have been the favorites to get into the Conference finals no question. Talking about that team dying down the stretch is short sighted at best.
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Dude. Two seasons ago, we played the first half of the season like we were going to get 65 wins and the 1 seed and then we completely collapsed WITH a healthy Wes and needed a 9-1 stretch at the end of the season just to get the 5 seed. Last year, we started 30-8 and then took a huge dive before Wes got hurt. We finished with the 6th best record in the West. This year's team is surging when it matters. I'm much more happier with this team than last year's.

kjironman1 said:
Point still remains...If last years team were sitting at 29-27 you all would be screaming for a new coach or giant changes. Olshey would be looking a the quickest way out of town.
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You're not looking at context. Last year's team finished the year 22-27. It's not where you start, it's where you finish. We had the 6th best record last year. We are currently a half gamer out of 6th this year. I could tell from preseason that we were better than last year. I wasn't just being a homer.

TBpup said:
PHX/PHX back to back is not difficult and if it is, speaks to where the team playing them is. Back to backs are part of the NBA....everyone has them so citing them or games against DEN or road trips which every team plays doesn't seem out of the norm. Besides, I was referring to the SOS which for the Blazers was 27-29th easiest up until a couple weeks ago. That part isn't really up for debate.

It's not an attack on the team. Why can't some things just be an observation of what was versus an immediate perceived demonization of the team or their effort?
Click to expand...

PHX was a tougher team before Bledsoe got hurt. He was having an All Star caliber year.
 
KingAlbertoJrSpeed said:
Dude. Two seasons ago, we played the first half of the season like we were going to get 65 wins and the 1 seed and then we completely collapsed WITH a healthy Wes and needed a 9-1 stretch at the end of the season just to get the 5 seed. Last year, we started 30-8 and then took a huge dive before Wes got hurt. We finished with the 6th best record in the West. This year's team is surging when it matters. I'm much more happier with this team than last year's.



You're not looking at context. Last year's team finished the year 22-27. It's not where you start, it's where you finish. We had the 6th best record last year. We are currently a half gamer out of 6th this year. I could tell from preseason that we were better than last year. I wasn't just being a homer.



PHX was a tougher team before Bledsoe got hurt. He was having an All Star caliber year.
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Now you are just plain making things up. There was never a 9-1 stretch at the end of last season more like 10-12.
See Here...
http://www.landofbasketball.com/results_by_team/2014_2015_trail_blazers.htm
Now i was at the Dallas game on March 5th when Wes went down. The entire season changed that very minute. You could see it in Aldridge's eyes and you could see it in the way Rolo acted. The whole arena knew the season was pretty much over.
I am completely looking at "Context" it seems to be you that has missed the whole idea of what was going on last year.


And by the way....Don't call me DUDE!
 
These are facts. They lost 5 of the last 6 games and limped into the playoffs. Everyone was talking about Wes being the Heart and Soul of the team. Comparable to this date last year they were 36-19. when Wes went down they were 41-19 then after that they struggled to get 10 more wins. It's all there right on the link. Hard to dispute facts when they look you in the face.

I will say it again...I love this team and hope they continue to grow. Hell i even hope they completely dominate the rest of the season and make everyone eat a bunch of crow. Hell my prediction was a joke at the beginning of the year when i said 50 wins (Look it up). How i would love to see them do it. And yes i will be pulling for them to do it every time they play. But realism tells me they will struggle to get into the playoffs and if they do they will come up against a really good team and get beat soundly. I have no problem with that either as they will most certainly grow from the experience.
 
The whole thread has been about being better this year than last year. :smack:
 
kjironman1 said:
Ah yes reading it again he did say two seasons ago. My bad. But then we are not talking about two years ago now are we?
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I think his point is this: the LA-led teams, which had remarkable continuity going back many seasons, traditionally started hot and slumped into the playoffs. This year's model seems to be doing the opposite, though we'll have to just see if it's true.
 
kjironman1 said:
The whole thread has been about being better this year than last year. :smack:
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Two years ago provides even more interesting context, with hints of a pattern in the LA/Dame teams.

The 2013-14 team was 31-9 on January 18, then proceeded to go 23-19 the rest of the way.
The 2014-15 team was 30-11 on January 18th, and went 21-20 to end the season.
The 2015-16 team was 19-25 on January 18, and has so far gone 10-2 since.
 
BlazerCaravan said:
Two years ago provides even more interesting context, with hints of a pattern in the LA/Dame teams.

The 2013-14 team was 31-9 on January 18, then proceeded to go 23-19 the rest of the way.
The 2014-15 team was 30-11 on January 18th, and went 21-20 to end the season.
The 2015-16 team was 19-25 on January 18, and has so far gone 10-2 since.
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Iv'e already made enough conversation on this without trying to figure out where his next move will go. Don't have the time to worry about KS and the whole thought process. My opinion is known and he is welcome to his.
Go Blazers!
 
kjironman1 said:
Now you are just plain making things up. There was never a 9-1 stretch at the end of last season more like 10-12.
See Here...
http://www.landofbasketball.com/results_by_team/2014_2015_trail_blazers.htm
Now i was at the Dallas game on March 5th when Wes went down. The entire season changed that very minute. You could see it in Aldridge's eyes and you could see it in the way Rolo acted. The whole arena knew the season was pretty much over.
I am completely looking at "Context" it seems to be you that has missed the whole idea of what was going on last year.


And by the way....Don't call me DUDE!
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Dude, you are wrong. Read my post. TWO SEASONS AGO, we finished the season 9-1.
 
BlazerCaravan said:
Two years ago provides even more interesting context, with hints of a pattern in the LA/Dame teams.

The 2013-14 team was 31-9 on January 18, then proceeded to go 23-19 the rest of the way.
The 2014-15 team was 30-11 on January 18th, and went 21-20 to end the season.
The 2015-16 team was 19-25 on January 18, and has so far gone 10-2 since.
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Yep. And if you take out that 9-1 finish in 2014, we actually played 14-18 ball for what is more than a third of the season. We almost missed the playoffs. It was sad. As for last year, we were 30-8 at one point. Including playoffs, we went 22-27 the rest of the way. That means for much more than half of the year, we were a sub 500 team. As for Wes going down, we were already playing badly before he went down and we should've been fine with two All Stars and a respectable substitute in Afflalo but we completely collapsed. Our current team doesn't have Mr Heart and Soul and we've won 15 of our last 18 games. The bottom line is Dame/CJ is better than Aldridge/Dame and we are deeper this year. Last year's team finished 6th in West. This year's team is 6th in West and playing better down the stretch.
 
We just have to win two out of three and a playoff spot is ours. We look GREAT th hand fire basketball.jpg
 
KingAlbertoJrSpeed said:
Yep. And if you take out that 9-1 finish in 2014, we actually played 14-18 ball for what is more than a third of the season. We almost missed the playoffs. It was sad. As for last year, we were 30-8 at one point. Including playoffs, we went 22-27 the rest of the way. That means for much more than half of the year, we were a sub 500 team. As for Wes going down, we were already playing badly before he went down and we should've been fine with two All Stars and a respectable substitute in Afflalo but we completely collapsed. Our current team doesn't have Mr Heart and Soul and we've won 15 of our last 18 games. The bottom line is Dame/CJ is better than Aldridge/Dame and we are deeper this year. Last year's team finished 6th in West. This year's team is 6th in West and playing better down the stretch.
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I guess it's all in the way you look at it. Go three years back. They over achieved with no center. Then they picked up Rolo two years ago and improved 20 wins with an awesome 9-1 run to end a season and a win in the first round against a highly favored Houston team. Then last year they were on a pace to go to the western conference finals until Wes went down.

See that is your opinion. Now you are trying to say they always wilt down the stretch. And now look at the schedule i put up there. They were not playing badly when Wes went down. They had a tough run when Rolo went out for 2 weeks and they lost a couple when Aldridge dislocated his thumb but other than that like i said they were 41-19.
Now as far as Dame/CJ being better than Dame/LMA??? I totally agree. This is going to be fun. I also agree that This team is showing lots and lots of heart. They are position by position deeper and the bench is producing better. Not only is Dame and CJ going to be fun but i think we have a huge pick up in Plumlee and Harkless.
Now i am going to continue to keep my expectation at bay. They have what might be a season destroyer of a month coming up. Also going .500 ball the rest of the way gets them at 43 wins? (That is off the top of my head) Is that good enough to make the playoffs this year? I think it will take 45-46 wins. Lets hope they can do it.
 
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