The Vanishing Meyers Leonard

[Rastapopoulos]

So... there was that short burst there where we were getting all excited that Leonard could actually contribute. But now Freeland's back, and Meyers is glued to the bench. And, coincidentally, we're winning again. Defense beats threes?

 

[SlyPokerDog]

So... there was that short burst there where we were getting all excited that Leonard could actually contribute. But now Freeland's back, and Meyers is glued to the bench. And, coincidentally, we're winning again. Defense beats threes?

It's not a secret weapon if everyone knows about it.

Wait until the playoffs.

 

[Blazer4ever]

I don't mean to be rude or antagonisyic, but my honest opinion is that Meyers Leonard is the worsr player on our roster. He's not worthless defensively, he's absolutely terrible. I wouldn't let him play if he had an Aldridge/Lillard offensive talent. He's soft, he's not smart, T-Rob and Barton who supposedly had "low basketball IQ" are geniuses compared to him and they're so much better as basketball players it made me simply question who I was talking to on these forums.
So he can make 3s. He's 7-feet and can make 3s. What he can't do is play inside. He's virtualy a big SF who can't play SF, can't guard SFs, can't guard anyone else and is nothing more than a stupid Gimmick. He's soft inside and out, he looks lost almost every time he's on the court AND he can make an occasional 3. I'm sorry to be blunt about it but some of the most self-proclaimed "experts" on this board were or even still are on the Leonard bandwagon while 2 players who are legit NBA players and one who's now in Moscow but is still 10 times better, smarter and stronger, were traded partly because of this bullshit. I'm not saying I don't like Afflalo because I do. it may have even been worth it cause T-Rob and Barton and Claver weren't getting of Stotts' bench anyway, but give me a break here, at least calm down on this stupid joke.
This guy could supposedly still be a player someday, he could mature or grow balls or a brain, I don't know, people change and his biggest bright spot is being young. But right now I wouldn't give him 1 minute in a playoff game unless it's a complete blow-out. He needs to get back to waiving towels and cheerleading. I don't hate the guy and I wish him well but the objective here is to win basketball games and right now he is not a basketball player.

 

[Pinwheel1]

I think Wright is taking as many minutes away from Leonard than Joel is. Wright is playing back up SF and PF. He has played OK and it seems like Terry is giving him every opportunity. Not a bad idea since his veteran experience could be more beneficial in the playoffs.

But on the other hand I liked having Meyers out there as he is a big target to pass to when things break down. He's always quick to catch and pass back to the guard to reset the play. He always seems to be open, he is just as good of a spot up outside shooter and he is a decent rebounder.

To Wright's credit..... he is more active on D and more versatile if Terry is looking to shorten his bench during the stretch drive.

 

[Wheels]

Afflalo?

 

[Wizard Mentor]

It's hard for me to defend Leonard (maybe I'm not good at defending the 3!), but ML has shown to be a good rebounder. Let's see if he can build on rebounding, 3s, and dunking. I'm now on the bandwagon, I think he can.

When the coach will trust him is another matter altogether - I have no idea.

 

[MAS RipCity]

Maybe if Coach Stotts would stop pulling him in and out of the rotation, he'd be more consistent? If I'm a bench player, playing for Stotts has got to be maddening. Pick a fucking rotation and stick with it!

 

[H.C.]

So... there was that short burst there where we were getting all excited that Leonard could actually contribute. But now Freeland's back, and Meyers is glued to the bench. And, coincidentally, we're winning again. Defense beats threes?

Freeland doesn't get a lot of hype because he doesn't do the things that people like to watch.(hit 3's, block shots into the crowd, get highlight dunks, etc)
But what he does do better than anyone coming off the bench is do the little things.
Freeland is a serviceable big who should always be in the rotation over players like Nards.
However as was mentioned previously..
Freeland isn't stealing Nard's PT. I mean... they don't even play the same position...
D-Wright is. D-Wright deserves the PT atm.
Nards I'm sure will get out there if the Blazers need more size in the middle, because he's turned into a player this year.
Has a ton room for improvement, but he can play.

 

[MarAzul]

I think the way Stotts has brought Leonard along is about a poor as a coach can do.
Very disappointed with the coach. I suppose Leonard could be an uncoachable mental midget but you would think the word would be out.

 

[Blazer4ever]

I think the way Stotts has brought Leonard along is about a poor as a coach can do.
Very disappointed with the coach. I suppose Leonard could be an uncoachable mental midget but you would think the word would be out.

This may actualy be true! You have a 7 foot athletic kid who has potential. You don't make him a 3 point shooter. You make him tougher. YOu teach him to defend inside, to understand help defense better. Right now it seems Leonard has been going in the wrong direction since he got here.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

This may actualy be true! You have a 7 foot athletic kid who has potential. You don't make him a 3 point shooter. You make him tougher. YOu teach him to defend inside, to understand help defense better. Right now it seems Leonard has been going in the wrong direction since he got here.

Blazers have a very good big man coach.

Also look at it this way, when it comes time to give Meyers a new contract the Blazers will be able to afford him and keep him. If he had developed like so many of you think he should have the Blazers would not have enough cap room to keep him on the roster. I anticipate that Blazers will be signed at a reasonable contract that will go on to be viewed as a bargain in years to come.

 

[Blazer4ever]

This maybe true and things can still change. but these CBA, economical considerations are not what's important, not when we have Paul Allen as owner, not when we lost T-Rob because of this kind of bullshit. Make the best of what you have, then you can get worried about paying your own players that's a good place to be in.

 

[H.C.]

I think the way Stotts has brought Leonard along is about a poor as a coach can do.
Very disappointed with the coach. I suppose Leonard could be an uncoachable mental midget but you would think the word would be out.

This may actualy be true! You have a 7 foot athletic kid who has potential. You don't make him a 3 point shooter. You make him tougher. YOu teach him to defend inside, to understand help defense better. Right now it seems Leonard has been going in the wrong direction since he got here.

Mike Dantoni has proven he WON'T adjust his system to fit his players.
Stotts has shown that he will put players in a situation that allows them to do what they do best.
By definition it means Stotts hasn't done a poor job with Nards.. Or any of the coaching staff.
What would equal a bad coach is forcing a kid to do something he's not comfortable doing.
Doc Rivers says to DJ.
"I want you to shoot ten three's a game and play no defense whatsoever."
That would be a bad coach, because he's not putting DJ in a position to succeed...

You two and others might wants Nards to be that big tough big, who blocks shots, plays defense at an elite level and develops a low post game.
But that's not who he is right now... And it might not ever come to his game.
There have been plenty of successful bigs who are permiter oriented and play in the NBA for a long time.
See Spencer Hawes to name one.
How many people wanted him before the season? Quite a few. What kind of contract did he get from the Clippers? Not a small vet minimum that's for sure.

Basically.. There are plenty of things to criticize Stotts for. How he uses Nards... Is not one of them..
(well outside of consistent minutes)
But instead of tldr I'll refer you to my previous post on that.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

This maybe true and things can still change. but these CBA, economical considerations are not what's important, not when we have Paul Allen as owner, not when we lost T-Rob because of this kind of bullshit. Make the best of what you have, then you can get worried about paying your own players that's a good place to be in.

So you would rather have T-Rob instead of AA?

 

[Blazer4ever]

I would rather we extended T-Rob's contract instead of making thisstupid "financial" decision and made it impossible for him to stay with the Blazers and turned him into a 1 year player for us thus making even giving him decent playing time much less worthwhile. It's this kind of financial decisions that may seem to fit some logic but are pure BS.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

I would rather we extended T-Rob's contract instead of making thisstupid "financial" decision and made it impossible for him to stay with the Blazers and turned him into a 1 year player for us thus making even giving him decent playing time much less worthwhile. It's this kind of financial decisions that may seem to fit some logic but are pure BS.

And by extending him Denver might not have wanted him, making the AA trade not happen. I'm not an expert on the salary cap but would Denver have been able to buy him out for as cheaply as they did if Portland would have extended his contract?

I'm not sure what you're complaining about since we traded the guy.

 

[PtldPlatypus]

So you would rather have T-Rob instead of AA?

Well sure. In Blazer4ever's world, that trade never happened, Barton got the starting nod after Matthews went down, T-Rob filled in ably during Aldridge's brief absence, and we're undefeated in March.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Well sure. In Blazer4ever's world, that trade never happened, Barton got the starting nod after Matthews went down, T-Rob filled in ably during Aldridge's brief absence, and we're undefeated in March.

Well fuck! Why did we trade for AA?!? Olshey fucked us! :MARIS61:

 

[Pinwheel1]

This may actualy be true! You have a 7 foot athletic kid who has potential. You don't make him a 3 point shooter. You make him tougher. YOu teach him to defend inside, to understand help defense better. Right now it seems Leonard has been going in the wrong direction since he got here.

I disagree. The only reason we are talking about him in somewhat positive terms is because they finally used him correctly and let him play to his strengths. Right now he is a 7'1" stretch 4. You can still make him tougher and defend inside, but on offense his strength is he has a very good outside shot. You can play him with Joel, Robin or Chris. To say he is going the wrong direction is inaccurate IMO. He has skills that most 7 footers do not possess. Don't waste those skills by trying to make him into something he is not. That rarely works out.

 

[KingSpeed]

Meyers has won games for us this season. Ask Houston fans. I have no complaints.

 

[Blazer4ever]

Olshey is a very good GM and talent evaluator. The trade for Afflalo was a good trade and I said right after the trade that I like Afflalo and that I can live with this trade. But the decision not to extand T-Rob after he was great for us in the playoffs, on the 2nd season of a rookie contract, when we couldn't even use bird-rights to extand him after this season was his biggest mistake as a GM.
About Leonard, I don't need a 7 foot stretch 4, especialy when Dorrel Wright does a better job defensively even against opposing 4s. He can make 3s? Ok, that's nice, now in order to be effective this has to become a bonus, not his main ability.

 

[H.C.]

Olshey is a very good GM and talent evaluator. The trade for Afflalo was a good trade and I said right after the trade that I like Afflalo and that I can live with this trade. But the decision not to extand T-Rob after he was great for us in the playoffs, on the 2nd season of a rookie contract, when we couldn't even use bird-rights to extand him after this season was his biggest mistake as a GM.
About Leonard, I don't need a 7 foot stretch 4, especialy when Dorrel Wright does a better job defensively even against opposing 4s. He can make 3s? Ok, that's nice, now in order to be effective this has to become a bonus, not his main ability.

You might not, but the Blazers do.
T-Rob was a highlight/hustle player. That's why people wanted him around.
But even I can admit he and Barton were supremely disappointing for the Blazers this year.
With the playing time he was getting he shouldn't have been making the same mistakes he made during his first year in Portland.

I don't need a 6"7 power forward who goes all out for an offensive rebound, then doesn't box out on the defensive glass...
Forget everything else... Rebounding is T-Rob's best skill and he only did it half the time.
Not many NBA teams do when they're trying to win games.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

But the decision not to extand T-Rob after he was great for us in the playoffs, on the 2nd season of a rookie contract, when we couldn't even use bird-rights to extand him after this season was his biggest mistake as a GM.

Extending T-Rob would have given us a cap hold that would have made our offseason holds more difficult. But again, why are you complaining about this? Considering what we did with him it seems to be the correct move. It was not a mistake.

 

[BlazerDuckSeahawkFan94]

Maybe if Coach Stotts would stop pulling him in and out of the rotation, he'd be more consistent? If I'm a bench player, playing for Stotts has got to be maddening. Pick a fucking rotation and stick with it!

This is my thought as well. I get what Stotts is doing (shortening the rotation for the playoffs) but I hate seeing our young guys string some good performances together only to be DNP'd when they don't play the greatest. They need PT.

 

[Blazer4ever]

You might not, but the Blazers do.
T-Rob was a highlight/hustle player. That's why people wanted him around.
But even I can admit he and Barton were supremely disappointing for the Blazers this year.
With the playing time he was getting he shouldn't have been making the same mistakes he made during his first year in Portland.

I don't need a 6"7 power forward who goes all out for an offensive rebound, then doesn't box out on the defensive glass...
Forget everything else... Rebounding is T-Rob's best skill and he only did it half the time.
Not many NBA teams do when they're trying to win games.

You're honestly telling me you would rather have Leonard than T-Rob as our backup 4? Really?
T-Rob is a POWER Forward, he plays inside, he hustles, he is 10 times better defsnsively, a better rebounder, a smarter player (yes, don't know about their IQ tests but T-Rob is a much smarter basketball player). He could give us the one thing we're lacking which is points in the paint, whereas having Leonard on the floor gives us usualy our 4th 3-point shooter which is just stupid and means we play 4 on 5 on the defensive end.

 

[Strenuus]

You're honestly telling me you would rather have Leonard than T-Rob as our backup 4? Really?
T-Rob is a POWER Forward, he plays inside, he hustles, he is 10 times better defsnsively, a better rebounder, a smarter player (yes, don't know about their IQ tests but T-Rob is a much smarter basketball player). He could give us the one thing we're lacking which is points in the paint, whereas having Leonard on the floor gives us usualy our 4th 3-point shooter which is just stupid and means we play 4 on 5 on the defensive end.

Uh... I don't even know where to begin with this. I think I'll let that be my answer.

 

[oldmangrouch]

I've always been of the opinion that bench players, since they only play for short spurts, should always play with maximum intensity. That put me firmly in the TRob-over-Leonard camp.

That said, I can't fault the AAA deal. Even at his best, TRob was a useful player - not an irreplaceable one. Even though I have been mildly disappointed in AAA's play, I still think Olshey made the right call.

I also have to admit that TRob's problem were at least partly self inflicted. He played hard - but there was no indication he worked hard on developing his game. When an NBA player fails to fully develop his natural-born talents, that's on him, not his NBA coach.

Of course, that applies just as strongly to Leonard.

 

[riverman]

Stotts addressed wanting to get Meyers and Joel in the last couple of games together but matchups didn't favor it. Meyers will play and Kaman has been staying on the court. Joel needs to get some minutes before the playoffs. Find his shot and get his legs. Joel will play more in the playoffs when the game slows down but having Leonard ready is a good problem to have. Problem is we've been losing too many 3rd qtrs to see bench players on the court for long. Freeland is a lot better defender and screen setter than Meyers.

 

[ripcityboy]

I don't know about Meyers Leonard, but for every decent shift he puts in then he will miss something and we are down three points. One of the problems is the speed of the NBA. The game is FAST and he is still adjusting (if he ever does.) I wouldn't have traded TRob over him and T-Rob wasn't exactly Mr Hustle. Leonard left college WAY to early. I doubt he ever realizes his talent. Whatever there is.

 

[3RA1N1AC]

The mood swings on nards are intense. He's the same guy he was a month ago, a good young big who keeps getting better.

That we have better players than him is a good thing as far as the team is concerned, I wish we had 10 players better than lillard. It is what it is.