We're In First Place.

[KingSpeed]

Let's forget that they just played 3 OT's today, but if you call Boozer @ 80% healthy, sure they don't have any excuses to lose to one of the top teams in the NBA this year.

We won in Orlando without Oden. We didn't make excuses. The Jazz haven't even lost the game yet and you're making excuses, lol!

 

[J_Ray]

Oh no? Using your above research, the Jazz have lost 99 games to injury. But the Blazers have lost 104 games to injury:

Webster 65 games
Oden 19 games
Blake 13 games
Roy 4 games
Rudy 3 games

A total of 104 games. And those are all major rotation players.

Same ballpark + 5.

Learn the game, then post.

Throw in:
Millsap 6
Brewer 1
Miles 5

that's -7 right there and most of guys that have been out are MAJOR rotation players. Not having Boozer for Utah is the equivalent of you guys not having LaMarcus and Deron is the equivalent of Roy. Webster, Oden, Blake & Rudy are nice rotation guys but nothing like a Carlos Boozer, especially for a team runs its offense mainly through the PF position.

 

[DaRizzle]

Hate to break it to you but Oden isnt an important part of your team this year.

 

[KingSpeed]

This is just sad...Theres that tunnel vision rearing its ugly head. Im not even gonna waste pointing out how you are wrong because i think its painfully obvious.

Facts are facts. We've had to rely on a 19 year old rookie from France who wasn't expected to play at all and we're still in the division race. Amazing. Plus, our starting center has missed 19 games. Our starting PG has missed games. Our All Star has missed games. Rudy has missed games. You can't deny the facts.

 

[The Sebastian Express]

I honestly am not sure what you mean by this...

...I think you mean embarrased Blazer fans are making these arguments/claims? yes/no?

Yes this is correct.

 

[KingSpeed]

Hate to break it to you but Oden isnt an important part of your team this year.

Hate to break it to you but he is. In his last three games before he went down, he was averaging 13/11/3 while shooting 73% from the field. He was surging and then we lost him. As a result, Joel has to put more stress on his broken wrist and Channing Frye has had to play. Frye isn't as good as Oden. It's been a big loss and we have withstood it.

 

[DaRizzle]

The fact is is that you are trying to equate Odens and Websters injuries to players that are the rocks of franchises in Boozer and Deron...that is laughable

Oden is a rookie coming off major surgery and Webster is a decent but nothing amazing 2nd year player...why am I even bothering

 

[KingSpeed]

Does anybody else see whats wrong with this quote? geez...


Sorta like how Oden was gonna be 20/10 right now according to you right?

Never said that. Ever.

 

[DaRizzle]

Yes this is correct.

Thank you

I have made a list...you will be on that list... under "non-crazies"

 

[KingSpeed]

The fact is is that you are trying to equate Odens and Websters injuries to players that are the rocks of franchises in Boozer and Deron...that is laughable

Oden is a rookie coming off major surgery and Webster is a decent but nothing amazing 2nd year player...why am I even bothering

Blake isn't as good as Deron but he is still our starting PG and thus a VERY IMPORTANT player on our team. And yet, we lost him for 13 games. Webster doesn't put up All Star numbers but I expected 14 ppg from him this season at least. In place of him, we've had to break in a teenage rookie. Fuck, for about 13 games there, we started two rookies (Oden and Batum) and Sergio fucking Rodriguez because of all our injuries and we still found ways to win.

The Jazz have had major injuries this season, no doubt, but to say our injuries haven't been in the same ballpark is ignorant.

 

[DaRizzle]

Never said that. Ever.

You are so lucky Im banned from bbf so I cant look up your old posts

 

[KingSpeed]

The fact is is that you are trying to equate Odens and Websters injuries to players that are the rocks of franchises in Boozer and Deron...that is laughable

Oden is a rookie coming off major surgery and Webster is a decent but nothing amazing 2nd year player...why am I even bothering

Webster is a 4th year player. Learn the fucking game before posting.

This was gonna be his break out year. 14-16 ppg.

 

[J_Ray]

We won in Orlando without Oden. We didn't make excuses. The Jazz haven't even lost the game yet and you're making excuses, lol!

After all the great wisdom you've shared with me about Utah, I fully expect them to lose tomorrow b/c Orlando a great team and Utah doesn't show up on the road.

Hate to break it to you but he is. In his last three games before he went down, he was averaging 13/11/3 while shooting 73% from the field. He was surging and then we lost him. As a result, Joel has to put more stress on his broken wrist and Channing Frye has had to play. Frye isn't as good as Oden. It's been a big loss and we have withstood it.

Boozer was averaging 22/11 in his 13 games b4 he went down....all without his stud PG feeding him the ball. There for throwing a 19 year old rookie big into the rotation and forcing an undersized back-up PF play big minutes, yet they're only half a game out of first place.

Pack it up folks, we're done here

 

[KingSpeed]

Throw in:
Millsap 6
Brewer 1
Miles 5

that's -7 right there and most of guys that have been out are MAJOR rotation players. Not having Boozer for Utah is the equivalent of you guys not having LaMarcus and Deron is the equivalent of Roy. Webster, Oden, Blake & Rudy are nice rotation guys but nothing like a Carlos Boozer, especially for a team runs its offense mainly through the PF position.

Millsap played pretty great without Boozer there though, no?

 

[KingSpeed]

After all the great wisdom you've shared with me about Utah, I fully expect them to lose tomorrow b/c Orlando a great team and Utah doesn't show up on the road.[/I]

Portland won in Orlando. Without two of our starters.

 

[DaRizzle]

Blake isn't as good as Deron but he is still our starting PG and thus a VERY IMPORTANT player on our team. And yet, we lost him for 13 games. Webster doesn't put up All Star numbers but I expected 14 ppg from him this season at least. In place of him, we've had to break in a teenage rookie. Fuck, for about 13 games there, we started two rookies (Oden and Batum) and Sergio fucking Rodriguez because of all our injuries and we still found ways to win.

The Jazz have had major injuries this season, no doubt, but to say our injuries haven't been in the same ballpark is ignorant.

Nice, so NOW you talk down your players to argue the other way...flip flop flip flop

 

[DaRizzle]

Webster is a 4th year player. Learn the fucking game before posting.

This was gonna be his break out year. 14-16 ppg.

Its his 4th year? That makes him even worse if he is only at 10/4

 

[The Sebastian Express]

Hate to break it to you but Oden isnt an important part of your team this year.

Oh Oden is important - this is a point I will argue with you. For the year Portland is a +5 in rebounding difference. Without Oden they are around +2. That doesn't seem like a big number but when you watch the game and see the other team getting three or four offensive rebounds in a row because no one can box out (or tip out) you realize how important Greg is to this team. Greg may 'only' get 7 rebounds in his 22 minutes a game but he tips so many more that people don't recognize. He keeps the balls alive and tips them towards teammates even when he has two guys on him and holding down an arm. It's pretty impressive to watch actually.

Also as a team that is primarily jump-shooters that has little to no motion offense or cutters his post-presence, even at this raw stage, is invaluable to the team. The other team actually have to pay attention to him in the post, and often they will sag onto him or double team him simply because he is so big and strong. This leads to wide open jump shots for our again primarily jump-shooting team.

I know to a lot of people he doesn't seem valuable just on his stats alone, but I assure you he is important. If Portland can find any way at all to be competent about getting him the ball in the post in the playoffs more and more people will realize just how important he is at this point. Hopefully.

 

[KingSpeed]

Nice, so NOW you talk down your players to argue the other way...flip flop flip flop

How am I flip flopping?? I never said our players were better than the Utah players, but they were still VERY IMPORTANT to the team. You don't have to have the same stats as another player to be just as important to the team as him.

I haven't flip flopped at all. You said Utah had injury problems. I said so have we. And we have. And it's overlooked because Roy/Nate have managed to hold this team together and keep us on a winning path. Webster's injury forced us to play a teenage rookie who wasn't supposed to play. Oden injury leaves us with no backup center. These are costly injuries.

 

[DaRizzle]

Oh Oden is important - this is a point I will argue with you. For the year Portland is a +5 in rebounding difference. Without Oden they are around +2. That doesn't seem like a big number but when you watch the game and see the other team getting three or four offensive rebounds in a row because no one can box out (or tip out) you realize how important Greg is to this team. Greg may 'only' get 7 rebounds in his 22 minutes a game but he tips so many more that people don't recognize. He keeps the balls alive and tips them towards teammates even when he has two guys on him and holding down an arm. It's pretty impressive to watch actually.

Also as a team that is primarily jump-shooters that has little to no motion offense or cutters his post-presence, even at this raw stage, is invaluable to the team. The other team actually have to pay attention to him in the post, and often they will sag onto him or double team him simply because he is so big and strong. This leads to wide open jump shots for our again primarily jump-shooting team.

I know to a lot of people he doesn't seem valuable just on his stats alone, but I assure you he is important. If Portland can find any way at all to be competent about getting him the ball in the post in the playoffs more and more people will realize just how important he is at this point. Hopefully.

Thats fine and dandy but I have a question for you...

Who has been more important this year for POR, Joel or Greg?


...that was my point

 

[The Sebastian Express]

Its his 4th year? That makes him even worse if he is only at 10/4

Webster gets to play the lucky role of SF packed in corner that hardly ever moves. This is a signature McMillan role. It's pretty neat to be honest.

Although clearly he is not near as valuable as Deron, Boozer or AK47.

 

[KingSpeed]

Its his 4th year? That makes him even worse if he is only at 10/4

He was 10 ppg in his THIRD YEAR. THIS YEAR, he would've been around 14-16 ppg. Young players get better each year. Look at Roy.

 

[J_Ray]

Oh Oden is important - this is a point I will argue with you.

This Speed guy is comparing him to Boozer and he's missed half the games of Boozer....


Also I keep hearing how Batum was "forced" to play and is a 19 yr old rookie, here's some news for you, Kosta Koufos played just as much and guess what...he's a 19 year old rookie too! This is what happened when Millsap was moved to starter or when Memo was out, so don't be throwing this Batum BS around.

 

[Da_O]

He was 10 ppg in his THIRD YEAR. THIS YEAR, he would've been around 14-16 ppg. Young players get better each year. Look at Roy.

Hypotheticals shouldn't be used in an argument.

 

[KingSpeed]

DaRizzle- what you're not realizing is the COST of the injuries. When there is no Oden, it means we have to play Frye. That is a big drop off. When there is no Webster, it means we have to play a guy who wasn't supposed to play at all this year.

With Utah, they had Millsap to fill in for Boozer very admirably. There were even people who considered Millsap for an All Star berth this season.

 

[J_Ray]

He was 10 ppg in his THIRD YEAR. THIS YEAR, he would've been around 14-16 ppg. Young players get better each year. Look at Roy.

Yes, since Webster is just as great as Brandon Roy....too bad this is just a prediction, not quite a fact

 

[The Sebastian Express]

Thats fine and dandy but I have a question for you...

Who has been more important this year for POR, Joel or Greg?

I think they have been equally important. Joel is important because he has been able to play in all the games and has been the best backup center in the league in my opinion. But he also forces the team to generally play 4-5 when they're on offense. Greg, while suffering some unfortunate injuries, has been just as important because he improves our rebounding and keeps the defense honest when he is on the floor. I think the other teams respect/fear Greg's presence more than they do Joel's.

 

[MickZagger]

Kingspeed,

If we were to sit down and have a trivia battle about the game I would own you.

You think you know more about the game than you really do. . .

*cough* Devin Harris *cough*

 

[KingSpeed]

This Speed guy is comparing him to Boozer and he's missed half the games of Boozer....


Also I keep hearing how Batum was "forced" to play and is a 19 yr old rookie, here's some news for you, Kosta Koufos played just as much and guess what...he's a 19 year old rookie too! This is what happened when Millsap was moved to starter or when Memo was out, so don't be throwing this Batum BS around.

I never compared Oden to Boozer or anything like that. I merely said that we have had a ton of injuries as well. And we have. So don't whine and cry so much. Injuries are part of the game. At the end of the season, all that matters is your Win-Loss record and not your Excuses record. Lakers didn't have Bynum to battle the Celtics last season and that probably hurt them, but the title still went to Boston. Excuses don't get you rings.

 

[The Sebastian Express]

This Speed guy is comparing him to Boozer and he's missed half the games of Boozer....


Also I keep hearing how Batum was "forced" to play and is a 19 yr old rookie, here's some news for you, Kosta Koufos played just as much and guess what...he's a 19 year old rookie too! This is what happened when Millsap was moved to starter or when Memo was out, so don't be throwing this Batum BS around.

Oh I don't think Oden is as important as Boozer is to Utah based on consistency and experience. I have said since December that I think Utah will probably win the division once they get healthy; and that it has been a true testament to the will of the Jazz and the coaching of Jerry Sloan that they have stuck right in the middle of this playoff race even while being decimated by injuries.