Game Day (Preseason): Blazers (3-1) @ Suns (1-2), Wed 10/11/17

[carey]

Again. What's going on with Bledsoe? He's been trash this preseason.

[O_Gardino]

Coasting. He'll pick it up in the regular season.

But I do worry that he has peaked and those knees are going to slow him down noticeably this year.

[OE32]

I wouldn't mind dealing Bledsoe to make room for Mike James to take over.

[Split T]

It's preseason guys, these aren't real games. If we're shooting 36% and getting 32 turnovers in the regular season, then flame away, but I don't see the point in criticizing every little thing our guys do wrong in games that don't count.

[The Bobster]

I wouldn't mind dealing Bledsoe to make room for Mike James to take over.

Well, if we're looking for the first pick, that's a pretty good plan.

[The Bobster]

It's preseason guys, these aren't real games. If we're shooting 36% and getting 32 turnovers in the regular season, then flame away, but I don't see the point in criticizing every little thing our guys do wrong in games that don't count.

You don't complain if there's 20 turnovers, because that's just a bad night. 32 turnovers is an indication that there's a real problem. You're basically turning the ball over every third time down the court.

[Split T]

I wouldn't mind dealing Bledsoe to make room for Mike James to take over.

I think he'd be greatly overmatched as a starting PG. He produces against 2nd and 3rd units. He's less of a playmaker than Bledsoe and is essentially a mini Brandon Knight, the 2015-2016 version.

[Split T]

It's preseason guys, these aren't real games. If we're shooting 36% and getting 32 turnovers in the regular season, then flame away, but I don't see the point in criticizing every little thing our guys do wrong in games that don't count.

You don't complain if there's 20 turnovers, because that's just a bad night. 32 turnovers is an indication that there's a real problem. You're basically turning the ball over every third time down the court.

I'm not saying it's not a problem, but we all know we're going to be bad. It just seems unnecessary to get frustrated about stuff we should be expecting in games that don't even count. We've got 4 20 year olds that we're telling to be aggressive, attack, and push the ball at every opportunity. They are going to turn the ball over a lot.

Come regular season, we'll put the ball back in Bledsoe's hands and we'll go back to our 20 turnover games.

[O_Gardino]

I wouldn't mind dealing Bledsoe to make room for Mike James to take over.

I think he'd be greatly overmatched as a starting PG. He produces against 2nd and 3rd units. He's less of a playmaker than Bledsoe and is essentially a mini Brandon Knight, the 2015-2016 version.

He's not a playmaker, but he does attack the basket more and shoot fast than Knight. Knight would cross himself over on the perimeter until he had almost tripped himself, then shoot an off balance shot. James attacks a lot quicker and keeps his balance better.

That's not to say that Ulis / James is a winning PG rotation. Just, you know, I feel I have to defend anyone compared to Knight.

[ShelC]

Mike James is a baller. He could be a legit change of pace scoring guard off the bench. I just don't know if we have the minutes to give him and Ulis time.

[O_Gardino]

It's preseason guys, these aren't real games. If we're shooting 36% and getting 32 turnovers in the regular season, then flame away, but I don't see the point in criticizing every little thing our guys do wrong in games that don't count.

You don't complain if there's 20 turnovers, because that's just a bad night. 32 turnovers is an indication that there's a real problem. You're basically turning the ball over every third time down the court.

I'm not saying it's not a problem, but we all know we're going to be bad. It just seems unnecessary to get frustrated about stuff we should be expecting in games that don't even count. We've got 4 20 year olds that we're telling to be aggressive, attack, and push the ball at every opportunity. They are going to turn the ball over a lot.

Come regular season, we'll put the ball back in Bledsoe's hands and we'll go back to our 20 turnover games.

Hey, we only had 11 TO last night, and Bender/ Chriss / Jackson combined for 48 points on 49% shooting with 26 rebound, 5assist, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.

That's the kind of "bad game" we can live with. The young guys did some good things along with the mistakes, and we improved on our area of emphasis from practice.

I think it's fair to complain about the games with 32 TO, because we know we are capable of games with 11. We know we aren't going to win a lot, but we shouldn't be trash.

[O_Gardino]

Mike James is a baller. He could be a legit change of pace scoring guard off the bench. I just don't know if we have the minutes to give him and Ulis time.

I'd like to see us run some sets with James and Bender similar to what DEN does with Harris and Jokic. Get Bender on the top of the key, and James passes the ball to Bender then makes a hard cut to the basket.

[TOO]

I wouldn't mind dealing Bledsoe to make room for Mike James to take over.

Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope.

[Split T]

It's preseason guys, these aren't real games. If we're shooting 36% and getting 32 turnovers in the regular season, then flame away, but I don't see the point in criticizing every little thing our guys do wrong in games that don't count.

You don't complain if there's 20 turnovers, because that's just a bad night. 32 turnovers is an indication that there's a real problem. You're basically turning the ball over every third time down the court.

I'm not saying it's not a problem, but we all know we're going to be bad. It just seems unnecessary to get frustrated about stuff we should be expecting in games that don't even count. We've got 4 20 year olds that we're telling to be aggressive, attack, and push the ball at every opportunity. They are going to turn the ball over a lot.

Come regular season, we'll put the ball back in Bledsoe's hands and we'll go back to our 20 turnover games.

Hey, we only had 11 TO last night, and Bender/ Chriss / Jackson combined for 48 points on 49% shooting with 26 rebound, 5assist, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.

That's the kind of "bad game" we can live with. The young guys did some good things along with the mistakes, and we improved on our area of emphasis from practice.

I think it's fair to complain about the games with 32 TO, because we know we are capable of games with 11. We know we aren't going to win a lot, but we shouldn't be trash.

I just think it's dumb to complain about it in preseason

[Superbone]

Hey, the posters here need to get into regular season shape too. I think they're in midseason form already.

[djy2j]

Yeah, I'm watching Watson's post game interview and a few things:

I applaud him for making them run sprints for every turnover they had for the past 2 games with the goal of improving their focus and mental toughness.

What I don't follow him on is that he says after this brutal workout they would either hit the wall or break through the wall the following game. He claims they broke through. Umm, they got smoked, Earl so WTF?

So far his words of encouragement to be mentally tough have resulted in hot heads on the court and ejections. His words have not translated to anything meaningful on the court.

[OE32]

Yeah, I'm watching Watson's post game interview and a few things:

I applaud him for making them run sprints for every turnover they had for the past 2 games with the goal of improving their focus and mental toughness.

What I don't follow him on is that he says after this brutal workout they would either hit the wall or break through the wall the following game. He claims they broke through. Umm, they got smoked, Earl so WTF?

So far his words of encouragement to be mentally tough have resulted in hot heads on the court and ejections. His words have not translated to anything meaningful on the court.

I liked what he had to say about wanting to "win the season" not "win the game." I think what he means by that is that he would rather have these guys learn and go through pain and see if they can start winning personal battles, even if it means they (and the team) have to take some lumps along the way. For example, killing themselves in practice and coming in with dead legs the next night, trying to compete, losing, but hanging tough and putting up some pretty solid performances.

Right now, I could do without Bledsoe on this roster. It's easy to forget how great a player is when they're not doing well... I know that. But I think Bled's a scorer who needs shots to be effective, and we have enough of those guys in Booker, Jackson and Warren. So when he's not playing hard or well, I get salty.

I hope we're aggressive at the deadline. Who needs so many second round picks, anyway? Cut some of our vets loose and see if you can get vets that fit this squad a bit better. Shed salary and designate those funds to re-signing Len and James.

James-Ulis-[Bledsoe]
Booker-Daniels-Reed-[Knight]
Jackson-Warren-DJJ
Chriss-Bender-[Dudley]
Len-Williams-[Chandler]

If I could trade Bled, Dudley, Chandler and three seconds for expiring deals, I would.

[Ring_Wanted]

If I could trade Bled, Dudley, Chandler and three seconds for expiring deals, I would.

If as a GM that's all you can muster from those three, you need to get fired. Denver gives you crap and their '18 for Bledsoe if you put him on the table. If those two are healthy come the deadline, there will be buyers. Chandler can totally go for an expiring and a second (or not, doesn't matter). Dudley is worth keeping, he knows the damn house. Knight's contract (that's totally a thing, btw) is the damn problem. I bet many franchises wish there was another amnesty clause.

[OE32]

If I could trade Bled, Dudley, Chandler and three seconds for expiring deals, I would.

If as a GM that's all you can muster from those three, you need to get fired. Denver gives you crap and their '18 for Bledsoe if you put him on the table. If those two are healthy come the deadline, there will be buyers. Chandler can totally go for an expiring and a second (or not, doesn't matter). Dudley is worth keeping, he knows the damn house. Knight's contract (that's totally a thing, btw) is the damn problem. I bet many franchises wish there was another amnesty clause.

We received a second for taking on Troy Daniels's contract. That was $3.75m. I think the teams with cap space are playing hardball. And teams that are competing may like Chandler, but certainly not at that $$$. IDK. I don't much care. This is what I prefer to see on the court. I've lost interest in Bled and Chandler in particular... note that I don't mind them as much as I did Tucker or either Morris while they were here.

Brandon Knight is much less of a concern now that we don't even have to stock his locker, imo.

[Ring_Wanted]

We received a second for taking on Troy Daniels's contract. That was $3.75m. I think the teams with cap space are playing hardball. And teams that are competing may like Chandler, but certainly not at that $$$. IDK. I don't much care. This is what I prefer to see on the court. I've lost interest in Bled and Chandler in particular... note that I don't mind them as much as I did Tucker or either Morris while they were here.

Brandon Knight is much less of a concern now that we don't even have to stock his locker, imo.

Oh, don't get me wrong, I've wanted to move Bledsoe and Chandler for some time now. Chandler can be gone for a mere expiring if you can find one, I don't care either. But Bledsoe is worth at least a decent 1stR, and come draft time you know you always want that mid first to gamble on a less talked abou prospect. It's one thing to rebuild and another to squander a tangible asset. I believe he will be traded at the deadline unless (god forbid), we 'surprise' our way to 39 wins.