Zach Lowe: The Blazers' Oregon Trail to contention

[e_blazer]

I'd go with TRob. He wasn't the Blazers' draft pick, but as a No. 5 draft pick, I could definitely see him having some attitude when he arrived here.

 

[THE HCP]

I know who they speak of, but am legally bound by a signed contract to not share.........

 

[Natebishop3]

Based on their personalities, it's gotta be either Pat or Meyers. HCP probably wont say so here, but I'm pretty sure he'd agree.

Meyers seems like such a goofball.... but at the same time, it seems like he's not putting in the same work as Dame and CJ.

I guess I could see Pat being the guy. He feels like he gave up baseball to play hoops, so he has something to lose that the others wouldn't. I still think he'll be playing baseball in the not too distant future.

 

[riverman]

I know who they speak of, but am legally bound by a signed contract to not share.........

hint...it starts with a T and ends with a Rob?

 

[Chris Craig]

It's Meyers or Pat probably, though a Meyers quote appears just before it. Hmm

 

[barfo]

I know who they speak of, but am legally bound by a signed contract to not share.........

You'll won't survive Rio anyway, you might as well tell us now.

barfo

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Is Zach Lowe the Celtics fan who was butt hurt for years when Portland and Seattle won the first 2 picks in the Oden/Durant draft?

 

[HolyBackboard]

I know everyone loves Zach Lowe, but I feel like he's never, ever sold on anything that Portland does.

@BlazerCaravan brought up a good point as well: Was it necessary to continue harping on the Crabbe and Turner deals over and over and over again? And there was really no mention of how teams generally never let RFA walk.

Whole article felt like a backhanded compliment. I could be reading the piece wrong, but that's how I felt while reading it.

 

[Dougnsalem]

How about Layman? (I hope not). He could have shown up to the summer league, with an attitude. Dame was sitting right there too.... 2nd choice- Meyers......

 

[ripcityboy]

Pretty decent read actually. It's obvious he isn't sold on anything we've done but who in the league is? I had an argument with a friend the other week and he said, "Face it. You guys are going to be this era's version of the 90's Pacers!"

Well buddy that's absolutely fine. Getting to the Western Conference Finals in this era (for THIS market) is actually a fucking accomplishment! I hate the naysayers who keep preaching, "You screwed your salary structure. You should have waited till next year's free agency period."

And what kind of magical window of opportunity is going to open that makes Portland attractive to free agents? What lopsided trade would have presented itself in a league where teams are hugging every asset they have for dear life?

The choice was simple, take the current roster and a few role players and make a play for NOW. But no one outside of this fan base would ever understand that. And if rival fans have a problem with that they can suck my -----.

 

[theprunetang]

Pretty decent read actually. It's obvious he isn't sold on anything we've done but who in the league is? I had an argument with a friend the other week and he said, "Face it. You guys are going to be this era's version of the 90's Pacers!"

Well buddy that's absolutely fine. Getting to the Western Conference Finals in this era (for THIS market) is actually a fucking accomplishment! I hate the naysayers who keep preaching, "You screwed your salary structure. You should have waited till next year's free agency period."

And what kind of magical window of opportunity is going to open that makes Portland attractive to free agents? What lopsided trade would have presented itself in a league where teams are hugging every asset they have for dear life?

The choice was simple, take the current roster and a few role players and make a play for NOW. But no one outside of this fan base would ever understand that. And if rival fans have a problem with that they can suck my -----.

Damned straight.

 

[Pinwheel1]

I did think this portion was interesting, since he agrees with a lot of things I have been saying. (or at least thinking)

Portland should at least consider starting Crabbe at small forward. Even with Aminu sliding down a position, the Blazers still don't have a ton of shooting without either Crabbe or Leonard on the floor. The Crabbe-y version of the starters blitzed opponents by seven points per 100 possessions last season, and Crabbe is smart about skulking into open spaces when his man turns to watch the Lillard-and-McCollum show."

Crabbe is also tall enough to launch 3s over little guys, a boon for Portland when opponents slot a wing onto Lillard -- and stash their point guards on Crabbe.

He should develop into a solid defender. Crabbe slithers around screens, reads the game well, and works hard. Coaches for the Warriors and Clippers were impressed by Crabbe's postseason work guarding Klay Thompson and Jamal Crawford.

But he's a poor rebounder, without elite length or athleticism to compensate for a size disadvantage against bulkier small forwards. Turner is a stronger rebounder, but faces the same size issues. Don't be shocked if the Blazers kick around starting Harkless to stabilize the defense, even if bringing two $17 million guys off the bench is NBA sacrilege.

 

[riverman]

I did think this portion was interesting, since he agrees with a lot of things I have been saying. (or at least thinking)

Portland should at least consider starting Crabbe at small forward. Even with Aminu sliding down a position, the Blazers still don't have a ton of shooting without either Crabbe or Leonard on the floor. The Crabbe-y version of the starters blitzed opponents by seven points per 100 possessions last season, and Crabbe is smart about skulking into open spaces when his man turns to watch the Lillard-and-McCollum show."

Crabbe is also tall enough to launch 3s over little guys, a boon for Portland when opponents slot a wing onto Lillard -- and stash their point guards on Crabbe.

He should develop into a solid defender. Crabbe slithers around screens, reads the game well, and works hard. Coaches for the Warriors and Clippers were impressed by Crabbe's postseason work guarding Klay Thompson and Jamal Crawford.

But he's a poor rebounder, without elite length or athleticism to compensate for a size disadvantage against bulkier small forwards. Turner is a stronger rebounder, but faces the same size issues. Don't be shocked if the Blazers kick around starting Harkless to stabilize the defense, even if bringing two $17 million guys off the bench is NBA sacrilege.

I'm all for starting Crabbe this season...he plays better with the starting unit usually

 

[Pinwheel1]

I'm all for starting Crabbe this season...he plays better with the starting unit usually

My thoughts are we should usually start Crabbe, and have a 3 man rotation in the back court of Dame /CJ / ET.

Then whoever is needed most at the end of games, between Crabbe, ET, and Harkless (depending on the score or the match up) let that person finish at SF.

Technically you even finish with Dame, ET, and Crabbe (or Harkless) in certain situations. Terry has some flexibility for sure.

 

[Haakzilla]

@jlprk will be happy to know Stotts is refuting the GM's earlier proclamations!

Stotts refuted reports that the team has already decided Turner will start. "I won't even say for sure what our starting lineup will be in training camp," he said. "That's what training camp is for."

 

[riverman]

@jlprk will be happy to know Stotts is refuting the GM's earlier proclamations!

jlprk won't be happy until he becomes Trader Terry

 

[e_blazer]

jlprk won't be happy.

Just need to shorten that a bit.

 

[Eastoff]

It has to be patty C. He came in saying he wanted to be a leader in the team. Or was in an Oregonian article I believe before his rookie year.

 

[Natebishop3]

hint...it starts with a T and ends with a Rob?

We didn't draft TRob. He said it was one of our draft picks.

 

[Natebishop3]

Honestly, it's nice to get attention sometimes because we're a small market and the national media ignores us for the most part, but I don't really value their opinions one way or the other.

For me, it's not like my opinion of the team changes whether they like us or dislike us, so really it's just nice when we get a little positive attention. That's how I look at it.

 

[KingSpeed]

The 93-95 Pacers are my favorite non-Blazers team of all time. I had a Reggie Miller poster on my wall back then.

 

[Sinobas]

The 93-95 Pacers are my favorite non-Blazers team of all time. I had a Reggie Miller poster on my wall back then.

Did you kiss it goodnight?

 

[riverman]

The 93-95 Pacers are my favorite non-Blazers team of all time. I had a Reggie Miller poster on my wall back then.

For me other than the Blazers I loved watching the twin tower Spurs, the Mugsy Bogues Hornets and the Larry Brown Pistons championship team.

 

[riverman]

Did you kiss it goodnight?

He still does...KS strikes me as a nostalgic guy

 

[SheedSoNasty]

Is Zach Lowe the Celtics fan who was butt hurt for years when Portland and Seattle won the first 2 picks in the Oden/Durant draft?

That's Bill Simmons

 

[ripcityboy]

That's Bill Simmons

Bill Simmons is butt hurt when Tom Brady doesn't complete a pass.

 

[jlprk]

We didn't draft TRob. He said it was one of our draft picks.

When one recent draft pick entered the league carrying a whiff of entitlement, sources say, the coaching staff pointed at Lillard: He's way better than you, and he's working harder.

No, he said the egotistical player was our rookie, not necessarily our draftee. And no one has mentioned The Thrill.

It has to be patty C. He came in saying he wanted to be a leader in the team. Or was in an Oregonian article I believe before his rookie year.

Where is that thread in which I told him off, then had regrets that I'd been too hard on the young Beaver.

 

[jlprk]

@jlprk will be happy to know Stotts is refuting the GM's earlier proclamations!

I remember that thread. I noted that Turner had lied, either when he said he'd been promised a starting spot, or when he said he hadn't. I haven't read that thread since then. These guys probably had fun denying that logical conundrum. Or maybe they turned their noses up at it.

 

[Natebishop3]

The 93-95 Pacers are my favorite non-Blazers team of all time. I had a Reggie Miller poster on my wall back then.

I still have this poster somewhere

 

[BBert]

I don't think he was necessarily talking about a Blazer. I think he was just pointing how hard Lillard works at his game. I could see Byron Scott saying it to D'Angelo Russel last summer down in LA where I believe Dame worked out too.

That's what I wondered, whether it was in reference to a Blazers draft pick. My first thought is that he was talking about Mo Harkless. Wasn't that the story on Mo when we got him?