The Division lead

[julius]

At one point in the season, the division lead was safe and it seemed almost impossible for OKC to catch up to the Blazers.

Now? Not so much.

Portland has 19 losses, OKC has 25.

So, now with 26 games, OKC only has to finish with 7 more wins than Portland. And at the rate they've been going, that isn't actually difficult.

Portland has played 55 games, OKC has played 56. But Portland has 12 of their 27 games at home, whereas OKC has 15 of their remaining 26 at home.

With how Portland has played for the better part of a month now (and especially the last 2 "games"), it's not out of the realm of possibility for that to happen.

The best record OKC could go vs the worse Portland would have to go to win the division:

OKC vs POR
26-0 vs 20-7
25-1 vs 19-8
24-2 vs 18-9
23-3 vs 17-10
22-4 vs 16-11
21-5 vs 15-14
20-6 vs 14-13
19-7 vs 13-14
18-8 vs 12-15

In other words, the Blazers better get their shit together soon, or they're going to give OKC a lot of reason to believe they can win the division.

 

[EGame]

OKC already has enough reason to believe. Getting blown out by a less than average Utah team and choking yet another game and losing to another playoff team in the west just doesn't bold well for us. Our schedule will only get harder and as long as OKC can stay healthy, they are already a proven team that can win many games.

 

[Strenuus]

I think they will. They just have to do it, and soon!

And why the hell was LA not playing on the most important game of the year so far? I know it was a sprain, but damn dude.

 

[kjironman1]

At one point in the season, the division lead was safe and it seemed almost impossible for OKC to catch up to the Blazers.

Now? Not so much.

Portland has 19 losses, OKC has 25.

So, now with 26 games, OKC only has to finish with 7 more wins than Portland. And at the rate they've been going, that isn't actually difficult.

Portland has played 55 games, OKC has played 56. But Portland has 12 of their 27 games at home, whereas OKC has 15 of their remaining 26 at home.

With how Portland has played for the better part of a month now (and especially the last 2 "games"), it's not out of the realm of possibility for that to happen.

The best record OKC could go vs the worse Portland would have to go to win the division:

OKC vs POR
26-0 vs 20-7
25-1 vs 19-8
24-2 vs 18-9
23-3 vs 17-10
22-4 vs 16-11
21-5 vs 15-14
20-6 vs 14-13
19-7 vs 13-14
18-8 vs 12-15

In other words, the Blazers better get their shit together soon, or they're going to give OKC a lot of reason to believe they can win the division.

C'Mon Julius...I get what you are saying and all but really? Do you think the Blazers are going to slump for the rest of the year? I think not. And they will have a couple nice winning streaks also.

 

[KingSpeed]

We've had as many injuries as them and we have a 6 game lead. Not worried.

 

[BlazerBeav]

C'Mon Julius...I get what you are saying and all but really? Do you think the Blazers are going to slump for the rest of the year? I think not. And they will have a couple nice winning streaks also.

At this point it's hard to assume they won't continue playing like this. One or two weeks can be a fluke. We've played shitty, lassez faire basketball for over a month now and are falling like a rock. Stotts appears unable to adjust to defenses pressuring Lillard out top, and where the fuck has Wes gone? He was the worst player on the court for us tonight by far. He had no business being in the game in the fourth.

 

[julius]

C'Mon Julius...I get what you are saying and all but really? Do you think the Blazers are going to slump for the rest of the year? I think not. And they will have a couple nice winning streaks also.

They haven't shown much in the last 2 months really, if you think about it. Their killer instinct is gone, their clutch shooting is null, and their ability to hold leads seems to have taken a hike up diarrhea creek without a paddle.

 

[Strenuus]

They haven't shown much in the last 2 months really, if you think about it. Their killer instinct is gone, their clutch shooting is null, and their ability to hold leads seems to have taken a hike up diarrhea creek without a paddle.

Oh god the imagery.

 

[SheedSoNasty]

Typical Blazer luck / melt down. They'll catch us.

 

[EGame]

When wast he last time we were down 20+ in the first half? That has to be the key why we are losing.

 

[Draco]

Blazers had a very familiar system with few new players and easy schedule to start both of the last two seasons. I think other teams take awhile to adjust to new faces and new schemes whereas we come out of the gate at full throttle. Last year we had all the close wins by a few points early on but that was balanced out by a bunch of close losses. This year we had a bunch of great 4th quarters but the last month we've lost most of those close games.

I'm less concerned with winning the division than having the team playing well.

The biggest positive this year has been the defense; its been elite at times. So if we are healthy in the playoffs we have a chance. But I'd say odds are strongly against us making the WCF this year and losing in the first round is certainly a very real possibility.

 

[KingSpeed]

At one point in the season, the division lead was safe and it seemed almost impossible for OKC to catch up to the Blazers.

Now? Not so much.

Portland has 19 losses, OKC has 25.

So, now with 26 games, OKC only has to finish with 7 more wins than Portland. And at the rate they've been going, that isn't actually difficult.

Portland has played 55 games, OKC has played 56. But Portland has 12 of their 27 games at home, whereas OKC has 15 of their remaining 26 at home.

With how Portland has played for the better part of a month now (and especially the last 2 "games"), it's not out of the realm of possibility for that to happen.

The best record OKC could go vs the worse Portland would have to go to win the division:

OKC vs POR
26-0 vs 20-7
25-1 vs 19-8
24-2 vs 18-9
23-3 vs 17-10
22-4 vs 16-11
21-5 vs 15-14
20-6 vs 14-13
19-7 vs 13-14
18-8 vs 12-15

In other words, the Blazers better get their shit together soon, or they're going to give OKC a lot of reason to believe they can win the division.

Friday is, of course, huge. We can win the season series.

 

[HomerLovesKoolAid]

I gotta tell ya, I'm a little worried.

 

[blue9]

They haven't shown much in the last 2 months really, if you think about it. Their killer instinct is gone, their clutch shooting is null, and their ability to hold leads seems to have taken a hike up diarrhea creek without a paddle.

Eerily similar to last season...
And even when we were winning we weren't playing great basketball - we were relying on Lillard-Time to bail us out on a consistent basis. I would say something about coaching, but I've been told that's not the issue.

 

[illmatic99]

I'm not as worried about OKC catching us. Even if they pass us, I'm okay with dropping in the standings as long as we keep playing well-- like we did last night. I saw some of the best defense ever out of this team last night. Similar to the loss in Dallas. We've lost some of these games, yes, but we have also showed signs of absolute dominance against some good teams. These close swing games tend to even out as the season goes along so I'm not too concerned.

I just want build some chemistry and momentum going into the playoffs. This happened last year when LA was out and our 3pt shot left us. When he returned, we cruised through the last 10 games and got guys healthy heading into the postseason.

We need that again this year. And for gods sake please avoid MEM and their bracket as much as possible.

 

[Rhal]

With LA out the Blazers offense becomes easy to figure out. Problem is even with LA in our execution at the end of games has been bad.
We dont have much of a sample size with Lopez and the starting unit back but ill wait a few more games before assuming anything.

 

[blue9]

With LA out the Blazers offense becomes easy to figure out. Problem is even with LA in our execution at the end of games has been bad.
We dont have much of a sample size with Lopez and the starting unit back but ill wait a few more games before assuming anything.

Our offense got figured out about midway through last season. Last season we thrived off of dumping the ball into the post, then having LMA kick out when the double came, and we'd swing the ball all the way to the weak-side corner for a 3. That was, in a nutshell, our offense. With or without LMA it's just not that good of an offense - certainly not good enough for a team hoping to contend for a championship.

Also, I've noticed more 3-man-weave than I've seen since Mo Cheeks was coaching! LOL! Way to take it back to basics, Terry!

 

[Blazinaway]

I gotta tell ya, I'm a little worried.

we should be worried/concerned as we are not playing well, and while I hope it's not serious LMA now has injured his other thumb. We need to start getting it together or we will are in trouble

 

[kjironman1]

Eerily similar to last season...
And even when we were winning we weren't playing great basketball - we were relying on Lillard-Time to bail us out on a consistent basis. I would say something about coaching, but I've been told that's not the issue.

And last year they ended the season 9-1. You just never know really.

 

[BlazerCaravan]

And last year they ended the season 9-1. You just never know really.

When did Joel Freeland return last year?

 

[Kaydow]

I'm not as worried about OKC catching us. Even if they pass us, I'm okay with dropping in the standings as long as we keep playing well-- like we did last night. I saw some of the best defense ever out of this team last night. Similar to the loss in Dallas. We've lost some of these games, yes, but we have also showed signs of absolute dominance against some good teams. These close swing games tend to even out as the season goes along so I'm not too concerned.

I just want build some chemistry and momentum going into the playoffs. This happened last year when LA was out and our 3pt shot left us. When he returned, we cruised through the last 10 games and got guys healthy heading into the postseason.

We need that again this year. And for gods sake please avoid MEM and their bracket as much as possible.

I wish I shared your optimism. What I see is when we play good teams we have a really hard time getting good looks down the stretch of close games. When our guys knock down circus 3's with a hand in their face, we win. When they don't there doesn't seem to be a "Plan B". About 18 games ago #O lost his superman cape. He's not hitting those bombs from 5' behind the line to bail us out when the game's on the line. You can't blame him for that - it's not really a sustainable model. We have arguably the best PF in the league, but have a hard time getting him the ball in spots he can be effective late in games. A lot of turnovers, shot clock violations, or highly contested shots and most of the time it's not pretty. Sure, LA was out last night & the Grizz are outstanding defensively. But last night wasn't a 1 game outlier. It wasn't the first time we've been put in a sleeper hold on our home floor (GS, ATL, LAC were others) Who knows if we'll be able to hold off OKC at this rate? Probably depends on how long KD is out & how long RW keeps balling out of his head. If we play over .500 (even 14-13) it would take a pretty good run on their part to win the division. Feels like it's going to be close.

 

[ChadWick]

Anyone know when the hell Freeland comes back? I swear he's the slowest healer.

 

[blue9]

When our guys knock down circus 3's with a hand in their face, we win. When they don't there doesn't seem to be a "Plan B".

Bingo! This sums up the team perfectly.

 

[Schilly]

I think we will be fine. Ther3e is a significant difference from last season. Up till about theis point we had zero injuries last season. This year the team has been battling them all along and still have the same record (at the break). ROLO just came back and gave a boost. Freeland will be back soon and I figure will help anchor the post defensively for the 2nd unit. Another big difference is we will also get a boost from Afflalo, but that will take a few games for him to settle in.

Also for OKC, Durant is outr for a week and will be re-evaluated at that time. SO he could be out for some extended time, at this point though every week counts.

 

[illmatic99]

I wish I shared your optimism. What I see is when we play good teams we have a really hard time getting good looks down the stretch of close games. When our guys knock down circus 3's with a hand in their face, we win. When they don't there doesn't seem to be a "Plan B". About 18 games ago #O lost his superman cape. He's not hitting those bombs from 5' behind the line to bail us out when the game's on the line. You can't blame him for that - it's not really a sustainable model. We have arguably the best PF in the league, but have a hard time getting him the ball in spots he can be effective late in games. A lot of turnovers, shot clock violations, or highly contested shots and most of the time it's not pretty. Sure, LA was out last night & the Grizz are outstanding defensively. But last night wasn't a 1 game outlier. It wasn't the first time we've been put in a sleeper hold on our home floor (GS, ATL, LAC were others) Who knows if we'll be able to hold off OKC at this rate? Probably depends on how long KD is out & how long RW keeps balling out of his head. If we play over .500 (even 14-13) it would take a pretty good run on their part to win the division. Feels like it's going to be close.

Definitely some validity to this, as we have let slip more games this year than in recent history. Just off the top of my head:

vs GS -- we had that game won until stupidity kicked in
vs. BOS-- w/o LA, game was won the ball pops right outta Wes' hand in a jumpball to a wide open Evan Turner
@ LAC--- refs totally fucked us over
@ PHO--- we made the massive comeback, and took a 5pt lead with less than 2mins left but then lost.
@ DAL-- We had full control and decided to start switching Dirk-PG pick and rolls for some reason in the fourth quarter.
@ CLE--- no Bron but Kyrie has the best game of his career and hits a heavily contested J to win.

Teams don't just lose the ability to close games, especially teams with our chemistry and consistency. With Dame on the roster, we've been very good in close contests. We've made some head scratching errors (due to coaching and otherwise), but as I said, that should even out. We've lost more games that we should have won, than the other way around.

 

[S550]

Thr simple problem why we suck lately is Damian Lillard. It's not a coincidence the correlation of his falling game and our struggles coming together. At this point Lillard hasn't played like a superstar for a long time. A very long time. It's past slumping it's more to the point it just might be who he is..

Ever since that Laker game in LA he's been atrocious. Dirty little secret around blazer land is Lillard might have been figured out or has reached a point he doesn't care anymore.

 

[PDXFonz]

Thr simple problem why we suck lately is Damian Lillard. It's not a coincidence the correlation of his falling game and our struggles coming together. At this point Lillard hasn't played like a superstar for a long time. A very long time. It's past slumping it's more to the point it just might be who he is..

Ever since that Laker game in LA he's been atrocious. Dirty little secret around blazer land is Lillard might have been figured out or has reached a point he doesn't care anymore.

Please share who told you this "secret" because I want to call them a dumbass, and forum rules prohibit me from doing so to you.

It looks like you signed up here just to talk shit about Lillard...

 

[HomerLovesKoolAid]

Please share who told you this "secret" because I want to call them a dumbass, and forum rules prohibit me from doing so to you.

It looks like you signed up here just to talk shit about Lillard...

However, forum rules do not prevent you from saying he posts LIKE a dumbass.

 

[Strenuus]

Thr simple problem why we suck lately is Damian Lillard. It's not a coincidence the correlation of his falling game and our struggles coming together. At this point Lillard hasn't played like a superstar for a long time. A very long time. It's past slumping it's more to the point it just might be who he is..

Ever since that Laker game in LA he's been atrocious. Dirty little secret around blazer land is Lillard might have been figured out or has reached a point he doesn't care anymore.

Please verify this with a source.

Or are you the "A" of the group? (I hope someone gets that reference)

 

[kjironman1]

These are the same comments being made before the break just after the loss to Dallas. It's really kind of funny to read them. After the Dallas game when they had the game but Dirk made some incredible "hand in his face" shots and the lead dwindled just about every Debbie Downer in the world came out with these exact same statements just maybe a bit more directed at Batum. The Blazers come back with a huge win in Houston the next night and then take care of the Lakers in workman like fashion and all is well.
The Blazers play the Spurs Wednesday. There is never a guarantee on a win against the San Antonio Spurs but i am willing to bet they play a good game and give them a run. Not only that i'm gonna go out on a limb and say it. The WILL beat the Spurs assuming Aldridge plays. If Aldridge misses his second game in a row then they will need the same kind of effort we watched last night for 3 1/2 quarters the entire game. They will have to earn that victory no matter who is available however. Then you have the Thunder coming to town. If the Blazers put together a second victory against a quality opponent where will all of you be then? On top of that not only will it be a second win in a row but it would also put the Thunder one more full game back. Friday is a huge game on the Blazers home court. Know and understand they will be ready for them. Bet on it!

 

[blue9]

These are the same comments being made before the break just after the loss to Dallas. It's really kind of funny to read them. After the Dallas game when they had the game but Dirk made some incredible "hand in his face" shots and the lead dwindled just about every Debbie Downer in the world came out with these exact same statements just maybe a bit more directed at Batum. The Blazers come back with a huge win in Houston the next night and then take care of the Lakers in workman like fashion and all is well.
The Blazers play the Spurs Wednesday. There is never a guarantee on a win against the San Antonio Spurs but i am willing to bet they play a good game and give them a run. Not only that i'm gonna go out on a limb and say it. The WILL beat the Spurs assuming Aldridge plays. If Aldridge misses his second game in a row then they will need the same kind of effort we watched last night for 3 1/2 quarters the entire game. They will have to earn that victory no matter who is available however. Then you have the Thunder coming to town. If the Blazers put together a second victory against a quality opponent where will all of you be then? On top of that not only will it be a second win in a row but it would also put the Thunder one more full game back. Friday is a huge game on the Blazers home court. Know and understand they will be ready for them. Bet on it!

There seem to be two approaches going on here. 1) Win vs Lose. 2) How is the team playing?
You certainly seem to be coming from the W/L camp. I can't speak for Kaydow, but it seems like they are coming from Camp 2. And I've always been firmly entrenched in Camp 2. I couldn't care less about our W/L record, or individual wins and losses. That doesn't concern me so much. But I'm quite concerned about HOW we've been playing. The offense is dog shit, regardless of who is on the court. We rely on making extremely difficult shots, and because we have quite a talented roster we make a lot of difficult shots. But that's not good basketball.