RealGM

Norm2953 wrote:I'd like to spin Jrue off to Boston for Williams, Brogdon and a single FRP.

Nearly nailed it. (Your message contains the following unsupported characters: thumbs up)

Even though they are very young, this is far and away the most balanced team we have had since LA left. I think Cronin did a great job and took a lot of heat for it. He got great value for Dame and did right by him sending him to a contender. The rotten legacy of Olshey is over and looking forward to the future. I for one will be cheering for Dame (just glad we only have to play the Bucks twice a year)

valleyman33 wrote:Even though they are very young, this is far and away the most balanced team we have had since LA left. I think Cronin did a great job and took a lot of heat for it. He got great value for Dame and did right by him sending him to a contender. The rotten legacy of Olshey is over and looking forward to the future. I for one will be cheering for Dame (just glad we only have to play the Bucks twice a year)

I'm not sure I buy the part about balance

if you assume a 10-man rotation with the 'best' most established players, it's

Scoot-Ant-Sharpe-Brogdon-Thybulle

Ayton-Williams-Grant-Walker-? (I mean, none of the other players at this point have proven a thing)

I see 5 players that are 6'5 and under; two C's that live in the paint and can't stretch the floor; a poor rebounding PF who may switch to SF in a pinch, and maybe a PF who may expand his end of bench game...or maybe not

that's not balanced especially when the strength of the NBA is in 6'7-6-10 2-way wings and the Blazers have only one of those, barely, who is anywhere in the zip-code of proven

Wizenheimer wrote:

valleyman33 wrote:Even though they are very young, this is far and away the most balanced team we have had since LA left. I think Cronin did a great job and took a lot of heat for it. He got great value for Dame and did right by him sending him to a contender. The rotten legacy of Olshey is over and looking forward to the future. I for one will be cheering for Dame (just glad we only have to play the Bucks twice a year)

I'm not sure I buy the part about balance

if you assume a 10-man rotation with the 'best' most established players, it's

Scoot-Ant-Sharpe-Brogdon-Thybulle

Ayton-Williams-Grant-Walker-? (I mean, none of the other players at this point have proven a thing)

I see 5 players that are 6'5 and under; two C's that live in the paint and can't stretch the floor; a poor rebounding PF who may switch to SF in a pinch, and maybe a PF who may expand his end of bench game...or maybe not

that's not balanced especially when the strength of the NBA is in 6'7-6-10 2-way wings and the Blazers have only one of those, barely, who is anywhere in the zip-code of proven

Well said. It reminds me a bit of the toy story "This isn't flying, it's just falling with style".

We haven't really built a roster that can win so much as we have built a roster that wont lose everything. I think on nights where both Ant and Grant have it going from 3 we will be as competitive as our defense allows us but I worry those two will struggle to consistently perform because the team isn't really built to maximize their abilities.

It will be interesting to see how Murray develops during this season.

He'll likely be a rotation player in his rookie season but he's not as good as his brother. He
should however be a glue type of player, playing 12-15 mpg.

Norm2953 wrote:It will be interesting to see how Murray develops during this season.

He'll likely be a rotation player in his rookie season but he's not as good as his brother. He
should however be a glue type of player, playing 12-15 mpg.

Have a "gut feel" about Camara and that he may be better than Murray

I hope we go after OG in free agency next summer.
?s=20

RTG HD wrote:I hope we go after OG in free agency next summer.

Read on Twitter

?s=20

Unless we trade more and unload a couple BIG contracts for expiring's we will have no capspace

DeBlazerRiddem wrote:

Wizenheimer wrote:

valleyman33 wrote:Even though they are very young, this is far and away the most balanced team we have had since LA left. I think Cronin did a great job and took a lot of heat for it. He got great value for Dame and did right by him sending him to a contender. The rotten legacy of Olshey is over and looking forward to the future. I for one will be cheering for Dame (just glad we only have to play the Bucks twice a year)

I'm not sure I buy the part about balance

if you assume a 10-man rotation with the 'best' most established players, it's

Scoot-Ant-Sharpe-Brogdon-Thybulle

Ayton-Williams-Grant-Walker-? (I mean, none of the other players at this point have proven a thing)

I see 5 players that are 6'5 and under; two C's that live in the paint and can't stretch the floor; a poor rebounding PF who may switch to SF in a pinch, and maybe a PF who may expand his end of bench game...or maybe not

that's not balanced especially when the strength of the NBA is in 6'7-6-10 2-way wings and the Blazers have only one of those, barely, who is anywhere in the zip-code of proven

Well said. It reminds me a bit of the toy story "This isn't flying, it's just falling with style".

We haven't really built a roster that can win so much as we have built a roster that wont lose everything. I think on nights where both Ant and Grant have it going from 3 we will be as competitive as our defense allows us but I worry those two will struggle to consistently perform because the team isn't really built to maximize their abilities.

I think this team will score a heck of a lot of points, but will probably give up more than they score most nights. Having said that
I will enjoy watching the kids play, and who knows they might jell and be pretty good over the next few years. I have been waiting for Sharpe, Ant (I thought Nas was ready also before the trade) to take a step up to another level. More playing time may help and without Dame to use his magic to pull their butts out of the fire, I hope they will. It kinda reminds me a little of the mid 80's when we got a young point guard and over a couple of years the team seemed to come together. Since this is the team we have, only time will tell, but I am a glass half full kind of guy.

Blazinaway wrote:

RTG HD wrote:I hope we go after OG in free agency next summer.

Read on Twitter

?s=20

Unless we trade more and unload a couple BIG contracts for expiring's we will have no capspace

I wouldn't sign OG to $30+ million/deal. Draft Buzelis in the 2024 draft, a 6-10+ player very much in the mold
of Chet, Victor or the next generation versions of Giannis

RTG HD wrote:I hope we go after OG in free agency next summer.

I'd say go after Giannis, but since the picks/swaps aren't for a few years maybe we want him to re-sign in Milwaukie

All in all, I'm really happy with this. I think people are selling Aryton short, but regardless it is clear he is younger, better and healthier than Nurkic, so that's a considerable upgrade and more in line with our timeline. The picks/swaps are fantastic--I think they'll have a ton of value at a time where, you would hope, Portland would earn picks in the late teens or early 20s. Even if they're only slightly better, the swap will still help. And of course we get cap space sooner after a likely Brogdon trade (and Grant trade, since he no longer fits in the timeline either).

Seems like we have a future, when in the past we had a superstar but no real future.

The salty Miami tears are delicious....

Raps GM Bobby Webster stated that they made a significant offer to Blazers for Dame (their "biggest offer ever", which I don't believe). Has Joe Cronin referred to any Raps offer and if so, any details? I can't see anything in various media outlets.

ItsDanger wrote:Raps GM Bobby Webster stated that they made a significant offer to Blazers for Dame (their "biggest offer ever", which I don't believe). Has Joe Cronin referred to any Raps offer and if so, any details? I can't see anything in various media outlets.

The only report I have heard was OG wasnt in the deal - and assuming Barnes and Pascal were not on the table as well (Pretty good assumption) I would say it was Dick, Precious, filler and all the picks / swaps unprotected TOR could offer.

Then again maybe OG was offered. At this point I actually like the deals PDX made eve if OG was on the table. Like him as the guy that can put a team over the top - dont like him paired with Grant at 65M+ per year.

Portland negotiating with Miami:

Wizenheimer wrote:Portland negotiating with Miami:

Read on Twitter

Should be a double scoop of Dame and Jrue.

DusterBuster wrote:

Wizenheimer wrote:Portland negotiating with Miami:

Read on Twitter

Should be a double scoop of Dame and Jrue.

I was thinking the soup nazi from Seinfeld
"No Lillard for you!!"

DusterBuster wrote:

soobias wrote:

Shem wrote:Watch the first minute and 30 seconds of this video. Talk about a meltdown!!!

Watch on YouTube

lmao now i see why heat fans act the way they do, that guy thinks cronin was the problem but because he didnt get his prize that cronin didnt do right by dame and the blazers llol. imo thats the problem with media and social media and some people in general is that most people cant admit when they're wrong or they made a bad choice.

Yeah, South Beach sports media is kind of a selfish full-tile homer cesspool. Sports fans consuming that daily will definitely cause severe brain rot.

That’s kind of South FL in general

Breaking up is hard to do.

Feel for Dame. Broke up with his wife, so you know there's some "I don't want to spend my life on a 41-41 team getting swept by the Warriors every year" mentality. Start over. Refocus. I get that. The personal life aspect gets so overlooked when we judge players.

Feel for Cronin. He was dealt a bad hand my Olshey. Got a great return given the circumstances. Put Dame In a place to contend.

Hate the Vulcan group. So stupid that they didn't sell to a passionate owner (Uncle Phil). As fans, I don't think most of us know how good we had it under Paul Allen. We can criticize some of the moves he approved or didn't make, but he was a passionate Blazers fan. And other than maybe Kolde, we lack that now.

I actually trust Cronin, but we're looking at 2-3 bad years. But that's the cycle of the NBA. We have some great pieces. And we'll acquire a couple more.

Being bad 2 more years might allow the team to add Buzelis in the 2024 draft.

It's what this team lacks which is a kersey/Batum type to pair with Scoot/ Sharpe

Wizenheimer wrote:

valleyman33 wrote:Even though they are very young, this is far and away the most balanced team we have had since LA left. I think Cronin did a great job and took a lot of heat for it. He got great value for Dame and did right by him sending him to a contender. The rotten legacy of Olshey is over and looking forward to the future. I for one will be cheering for Dame (just glad we only have to play the Bucks twice a year)

I'm not sure I buy the part about balance

if you assume a 10-man rotation with the 'best' most established players, it's

Scoot-Ant-Sharpe-Brogdon-Thybulle

Ayton-Williams-Grant-Walker-? (I mean, none of the other players at this point have proven a thing)

I see 5 players that are 6'5 and under; two C's that live in the paint and can't stretch the floor; a poor rebounding PF who may switch to SF in a pinch, and maybe a PF who may expand his end of bench game...or maybe not

that's not balanced especially when the strength of the NBA is in 6'7-6-10 2-way wings and the Blazers have only one of those, barely, who is anywhere in the zip-code of proven

I feel like you're conflating balance with good.
I t hink the balance part is right on. But that balance might not result in success.

The accuracy of the balance statement might speak more to how imbalanced all the Dame and CJ teams were. I'm thinking about balance in relation to shot attempts. Dame and CJ got all the shots. Obviously an exaggeration, but not by much. In the 20-21 season Dame and CJ combined for over 2200 of the Blazers roughly 6500 shot attempts. This year I expect us to still be guard heavy, with Ant being our biggest shot taker and the other guards taking their fair share. But I expect Ayton to be second and Grant third. That's a lot more balanced than any of the Dame and CJ teams.