Trading CJ should be #1 on Blazers agenda...

[BigGameDamian]

There's always CJ for Wiggins or CJ for Barnes.

 

[Boob-No-More]

There's always CJ for Wiggins or CJ for Barnes.

Two of the least efficient volume scorers in the entire league, who also average just 2.0 assists per game. How, exactly, does that solve out lack of ball movement issue?

I remember when Andrew Wiggins was the #2 option in MIN. They came in 13th in the Western Conference.

He would be an upgrade over Connaughton coming off the bench. He would be a huge downgrade compared to C.J. in our starting line up.

BNM

 

[BonesJones]

There's always CJ for Wiggins or CJ for Barnes.

Yes, there are always awful trades out there.

 

[Pinwheel1]

Actually, getting better should be #1 on the Blazers agenda - always, by any means available. You don't just trade your second best player on a whim because your team had a crappy playoff series, especially when that player stepped up his performance compared to his regular season averages/percentages.

Does that mean C.J. is untouchable? No, no one ever should be. It just means you don't force a bad trade just to make a trade. Sure, I would have traded C.J. for Jimmy Butler or Paul George, but players of that caliber are rarely available. What I wouldn't do is trade C.J. for some average 3 and D guy just so you can say we are no longer undersized in the backcourt.

The Dame and C.J. can't coexist contingent used to base their entire argument on poor team defense caused by our undersized backcourt. Well, that got blown out of the water this year when POR had a top 10 defense. So now, the new mantra is Dame and C.J. can't coexist because they play too much ISO ball. That's not a Dame and C.J. problem. That's a system problem. I want to see them in a new system with lots of ball and player movement before I make trading either of them #1 on my agenda.

BNM

Post of the month. I agree on every single part.

One comment on your previous one about Klay and his non dribbling. It only works if you have 4-5 guys on the court who can keep the defense honest. They all can shoot and pass. Yes we need a new system but we also need better players to make it work. Kerr and D'Antoni both spread teams out with a 4 corners offense with lots of shooters. If we had that luxury and Dame and CJ only had to catch and shoot....... They would love it

Put CJ in Eric Gordon's role in Houston and see what happens.

 

[Hoopguru]

Like who?

Klay, Brown, Kawhi, olidipo, etc

 

[WillG]

Last in fast break points
Last in assists
Most dribbles per touch

That is our issue. Fixing those and getting more ball movement and cuts to the rim will result in more layups and more open 3s. That's what I mean by playing like GS. Running, mov9ng the ball, and cutting to the rim with sets that facilitate spacing, ball movement, productive screens, and face cuts.

This!
Also - The Blazers say they just missed open shots - what I saw this season was the degree of difficulty in those shots looks to have increased.
Lillard has always had a tendency to take very hard, moving shots. I think it explains his streakiness and low percentages sometimes.

CJ looked a lot different this season also. This season he was often fading to a side, on the move as he shot. Last season he appeared to stop on a dime, strong dribble, straight up. Not sure if the difference is because teams have scouted him and he needs to create extra space - but both guys take shots that are unnecessarily difficult IMO.

 

[BBert]

Post of the month. I agree on every single part.

One comment on your previous one about Klay and his non dribbling. It only works if you have 4-5 guys on the court who can keep the defense honest. They all can shoot and pass. Yes we need a new system but we also need better players to make it work. Kerr and D'Antoni both spread teams out with a 4 corners offense with lots of shooters. If we had that luxury and Dame and CJ only had to catch and shoot....... They would love it

Put CJ in Eric Gordon's role in Houston and see what happens.

No kidding. Their lives would be so much easier. Hell with less wear and tear they not only would be less worn out for the playoffs, it might extend their careers. God we need another shooter instead of ET.

 

[BonesJones]

Klay, Brown, Kawhi, olidipo, etc

Shopping CJ would have no chance at landing Klay, Brown, or Oladipo.

 

[RipCityDSCPL]

Bogdanovich and Cory Joseph plus( 1st round or 2nd round pick?) for CJ.

Would KP deal with us? Would you as a fan want too after the PG middle finger?

 

[Blazers Roy]

CJ in this series averages 25.3___42%3pt__52%2pt__ 2.3 TO
Dame:_____________ 18.5___30%3pt __39%2pt__ 4.0 TO

Yet CJ immediately gets threads and posts demanding him outta Portland.

Not saying we must trade Dame instead or anything like that. It's just that this forum sucks sometimes.

I want CJ out of Portland and balling for a contender just so he can shut the mouths of this fanbase.


I'll get no likes, IDGAF.

 

[dviss1]

Can we merge this with all the other trade CJ threads?

 

[BrunoSOC]

CJ in this series averages 25.3___42%3pt__52%2pt__ 2.3 TO
Dame:_____________ 18.5___30%3pt __39%2pt__ 4.0 TO

Yet CJ immediately gets threads and posts demanding him outta Portland.

Not saying we must trade Dame instead or anything like that. It's just that this forum sucks sometimes.

I want CJ out of Portland and balling for a contender just so he can shut the mouths of this fanbase.


I'll get no likes, IDGAF.

 

[rotary111]

I'm not entirely sure. I believe he's not held accountable enough, and while C.J. is an iso-player and a scorer now, I believe that right coach might be able to mold him into a more team-oriented player.

Thats why I'd trade him for the perfect deal now, but if not, I at least want a new coach to try to mold him into something better.

I agree! If the right deal comes around pull the trigger. Otherwise we need a completely new game plan.

 

[Lanny]

Seriously, how much more does Neil need to see... 2 undersized ballhog combo gaurds playing ISO ball, DEAD LAST IN NBA IN ASSISTS.. too small to get shots off in playoffs... this is what you want as the centerpiece of your team... making 50% of salary cap... taking 50% of shots... come on Neil! Dame and CJ will be 28 and 27 years old... they are what they are. Meanwhile other teams with star players in their early 20’s will only get better. This team will go nowhere with Dame/CJ combo... no matter who you put around them, the will not touch ball enough on offense consistently to matter

LOL, oh, Gronk.

 

[Reep]

CJ in this series averages 25.3___42%3pt__52%2pt__ 2.3 TO
Dame:_____________ 18.5___30%3pt __39%2pt__ 4.0 TO

Yet CJ immediately gets threads and posts demanding him outta Portland.

Not saying we must trade Dame instead or anything like that. It's just that this forum sucks sometimes.

I want CJ out of Portland and balling for a contender just so he can shut the mouths of this fanbase.


I'll get no likes, IDGAF.

You forgot to mention that one was the focus of three defenders and one was not.

I also think that others are looking at this differently than you are. It's not about their stats from the NO series, if anything it is a condemnation of their ability to exist in the same backcourt and be elite. If you believe they cannot exist in the same backcourt and be elite (I would agree with this based on defense), then you have to decide which one goes. Dame is the face of the franchise and is more impactful on the team in general (including rebounds and assists). Dame also appears to be more motivated to improve himself every year. CJ doesn't impact the game in as many ways and doesn't appear quite as motivated to improve the weaknesses in his game.

 

[Phatguysrule]

Seriously, how much more does Neil need to see... 2 undersized ballhog combo gaurds playing ISO ball, DEAD LAST IN NBA IN ASSISTS.. too small to get shots off in playoffs... this is what you want as the centerpiece of your team... making 50% of salary cap... taking 50% of shots... come on Neil! Dame and CJ will be 28 and 27 years old... they are what they are. Meanwhile other teams with star players in their early 20’s will only get better. This team will go nowhere with Dame/CJ combo... no matter who you put around them, the will not touch ball enough on offense consistently to matter

It's tough to get assists when the people you pass to miss the shots. When the supporting cast hits shots we win. This is where Neil Olshey needs to improve the team. We need some better shooters.

 

[Gronk Brady]

LOL, oh, Gronk.

What is so funny about this post? I think it’s funny that you can’t find anything better to spend $30,000+ a year on then tickets to go watch this mediocre product that Neil is selling you...

 

[Lanny]

What is so funny about this post? I think it’s funny that you can’t find anything better to spend $30,000+ a year on then tickets to go watch this mediocre product that Neil is selling you...

I like the Blazers enough to spend a lot more than that.

What I found so funny was the errors in your post.

 

[Phatguysrule]

Of course move the ball. People here (not you) keep saying we got open shots and couldn't make them.....this team isn't going to just make more threes than people consistently. I'd rather get layups and defend. Settle for threes. Not actively seek them

34% from 3 is more efficient than 50% from 2. As a team we shoot 36.6%. So as long as we don't need guys who shoot under 34% to take those shots and we can hold the other team under %50 on 2pt shots we should be able to outscore them (all other things being equal).

We just need to make sure our wings are excellent defenders and shoot high 30% from 3pt land to spread the floor. Then we can compete with teams like the Pelicans.

 

[Phatguysrule]

Post of the month. I agree on every single part.

One comment on your previous one about Klay and his non dribbling. It only works if you have 4-5 guys on the court who can keep the defense honest. They all can shoot and pass. Yes we need a new system but we also need better players to make it work. Kerr and D'Antoni both spread teams out with a 4 corners offense with lots of shooters. If we had that luxury and Dame and CJ only had to catch and shoot....... They would love it

Put CJ in Eric Gordon's role in Houston and see what happens.

They just need guys to hit shots around them to spread the floor. It's going to be so much harder to replace Dame, CJ, Stotts, or Olshey than bring in some 3&D wings.

 

[Sheldon Shape]

Seems like both Damian and CJ played a lot less ISO ball last season than this season. I put that on the coach. When your coach is telling you everything is a good shot and not having any discipline in the offense, your players tend to do whatever since they don't seem to have much direction. It's why Aminu and Evan Turner regularly got more field goal attempts than Nurk. So sad.

Get CJ a different coach and he'll be fine. Obviously if there is an upgrade to be had then yes, you trade him. But you don't trade him just to trade him.

 

[TBpup]

As long as Dame and CJ have a shooting percentage of over 50% I don't care if they pass the ball.

Dame is a career .432 shooter and CJ is a career .454 shooter and that is with most of the focus on Dame. Don't see them hitting 50% anytime soon.

 

[tlongII]

Trading CJ would be monumentally stupid. We need a quality wing player and we need Collins to develop. We will be fine.

Well we need another coach too...

 

[Reep]

Trading CJ would be monumentally stupid. We need a quality wing player and we need Collins to develop. We will be fine.

Well we need another coach too...

The problem I have with this is who is going to guard Holiday next time? Or another other elite guard? We had nobody that could guard him this round. Maybe he was just having a magical series, but it sure looked like he was the best guard on the court to me.

Adding a more aggressive 2-way wing (hoping Harkless still becomes that) would help on the weak side, and Collins getting bigger and stronger helps too. But, do you think that is enough to overcome the defensive deficiencies of our guards? Yes, this year was better during the regular season than last. But, none of that showed up when it mattered most.

 

[Lanny]

The problem I have with this is who is going to guard Holiday next time? Or another other elite guard? We had nobody that could guard him this round. Maybe he was just having a magical series, but it sure looked like he was the best guard on the court to me.

Adding a more aggressive 2-way wing (hoping Harkless still becomes that) would help on the weak side, and Collins getting bigger and stronger helps too. But, do you think that is enough to overcome the defensive deficiencies of our guards? Yes, this year was better during the regular season than last. But, none of that showed up when it mattered most.

You make it sound like we stunk in the playoffs which I don't believe is true.

For starters, Jrue came on because he finally was healthy and his personal problems got resolved in a positive manner.

 

[dviss1]

You forgot to mention that one was the focus of three defenders and one was not.

I also think that others are looking at this differently than you are. It's not about their stats from the NO series, if anything it is a condemnation of their ability to exist in the same backcourt and be elite. If you believe they cannot exist in the same backcourt and be elite (I would agree with this based on defense), then you have to decide which one goes. Dame is the face of the franchise and is more impactful on the team in general (including rebounds and assists). Dame also appears to be more motivated to improve himself every year. CJ doesn't impact the game in as many ways and doesn't appear quite as motivated to improve the weaknesses in his game.

Not true at all. CJ went against doubles with a help defender. He just handled them better.

 

[Gronk Brady]

You make it sound like we stunk in the playoffs which I don't believe is true.

For starters, Jrue came on because he finally was healthy and his personal problems got resolved in a positive manner.

We did stink I’m the playoffs... we got swept with home court advantage, and we were down at least 15 points in 3 of 4 games. Were you even watching?!

 

[Lanny]

We did stink I’m the playoffs... we got swept with home court advantage, and we were down at least 15 points in 3 of 4 games. Were you even watching?!

If you define stink as did we win or not then yes we stank but if you judge by how well we played then the worst you can say is that we didn't play our best.

You know, when we were winning nobody ragged on our team. You get a little down and the boo birds come out of the woodwork.

 

[Reep]

You make it sound like we stunk in the playoffs which I don't believe is true.

For starters, Jrue came on because he finally was healthy and his personal problems got resolved in a positive manner.

So our plan for next year is to hope he gets injured again so we don't have to not guard him again?

 

[Lanny]

So our plan for next year is to hope he gets injured again so we don't have to not guard him again?

No, our plans for next year are to improve the bulk of our second youngest team in the NBA.