Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19

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Phalanx
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by Phalanx »

Kanter's first game line: 8 of 9 from the field for 18 points, 9 rebounds, five of them on the offensive glass. All of this in 20 back-up center minutes, anchoring an otherwise abysmal effort from the second unit.

Neither Collins or Leonard got in the game. Fancy that. I think Stotts is getting his playoff rotation ready, and both of those guys are on the outside looking in.

It sure looks like Olshey landed in cream this time. I wonder what he will do this summer.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by oregontrack »

i love me some zach collins but performances since the calendar rolled over to 2019 speak for themselves. it'll nice to have some offensive punch off the bench. i'd love for hood to really solidify his role -- he's been mostly good since coming over (54.5% from the floor, 40% from 3) in 22 minutes/game, but he's also only taking 6.6 shots/game. i believe there's room for an expanded role offensively as he continues to get acclimated.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

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Blazers beat the 76ers on the road. Not sure how impressive the win is since Embiid didn't play. Nurkic has been going off the last few games, playing like he did when he was first traded to Portland. When he plays like that, the Blazers are hard to beat.

Kanter with 16 and 8. Collins played only 4 minutes and Leonard didn't get off the bench at all. Layman with 8 points, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks. I think this is the template for the rest of the season, and I feel more optimistic about the playoff chances than I have in years - probably since Nurkic first came to the team and before he was injured. For the first time in awhile, maybe since the Sabonis days, the Blazers are big enough to lean on other teams and beat them up a little. Easy buckets in the paint go a long way to winning playoff games. Way better than relying on Lillard and his 40% lifetime playoff FG percentage. It really is too bad they can't keep this team together beyond this year.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by UOducksTK1 »

Destroyed them on the boards.

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Phalanx
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

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And the domination of the eastern conference continues as the Blazers beat the Celtics on the road. Portland is now 18-4 vs. the east on the season. If the playoff seeding was by conference record, the Blazers would be virtually tied with the Lakers for the 8th seed. Instead, they are 4th, only a half game behind Oklahoma City, and it seems like assuming the 3rd position is only a matter of time.

This victory came the traditional way, with Lillard and McCollum taking over half the shots. Kanter and Layman provided the only bench scoring, and Collins and Leonard never got in the game. Moe Harkless had a nice game, which is good to see at this point in the season. I was critical of Olshey last fall for signing so many guards when it seemed like small forward and a post player who could score were the real needs. It looks like, whether purposely or by happy accident, everything is coming into place nicely for the team though, right at the end of the season with the playoffs looming. The competition among the guards led to Curry beating out the rookies and Baldwin and Stauskas, who were then traded away for a small forward before the stretch run. Meanwhile, Layman developed at forward and Harkless is healthy again, and then they signed Kanter, who fit the bill for back-up center very nicely. Even Collins and Leonard got a chance to work on their game on the court and provide depth in case somebody goes down. I don't think they are ready to contend with Golden State or anything, but the improvement from last year and the start of this season is undeniable. Olshey has had a pretty good year, despite the salary cap mess they are still in.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by UOducksTK1 »

Ya good start to east coast road trip.

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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by lukeyrid13 »

Getting the 3rd seed would be massive. They could realistically make the WCF if they got the third seed.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by oregontrack »

that celtic game was fun. we blew a double digit lead in the 4th quarter (i think it got down to 2?) with about 9 minutes left and i assumed that was it, but we had a great response.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by Thurston »

I think Westbrook and George are going to feast and this will be the second year in a row Portland nabs a 3 seed but fails to advance.

Someone convince me otherwise. I'm looking/hoping to be wrong.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by UOducksTK1 »

Thunder are definitely a tough first round matchup.

But if we somehow got by, winning our 2nd round game is definitely doable

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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by GrandpaDuck »

How hard is it to lose a must lose game? Sheesh. OKC is not who we want to face in the first round.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by Phalanx »

The third seed may not look good in the first round, but in the second round there is a world of difference between the Warriors and the Nuggets. Lillard and the Blazers need to be able to beat teams like OKC and Denver if they want to be considered a success. It's time to stop whining about how underrated you are and start winning some playoff games.

It would be cool if Simons got into a few games after last night's performance. He reminded me of when McCollum used to come off the bench and spark the offense. Nice to see Skal Labissiere doing some things last night too. He might have just passed Leonard on the depth chart.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by GrandpaDuck »

Without Nurk, Denver is a bad matchup too. I just wanted them to get past round 1 and OKC is about as bad a first round draw as they could get.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by Phalanx »

GrandpaDuck wrote:Without Nurk, Denver is a bad matchup too. I just wanted them to get past round 1 and OKC is about as bad a first round draw as they could get.
I know it looks like I was responding to you, but I didn't actually see your post until after I posted. :lol:

Anyway, I get a little tired of hearing how underrated Lillard is. He made a great shot against Houston that one time, but otherwise, he has been sub-par in the playoffs, with a career 40% fg%. Another choke job in this series will all but seal his legacy as possibly the most OVER-rated Blazer of all time. I'm not even sure who his rivals would be - Zach Randolph or LaMarcus Aldridge maybe.
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Re: Portland Trail Blazers 2018/19 Thread.

Post by Merganzer »

#3 Portland vs #6, last time we saw this movie, Portland got swept. But this time the role of #6 is being played by OKC, and Portland wins the first game, 104-99. The Blazers led the whole way, by 19 in the first quarter. It got closer, but the Blazers hold on. 30 points for Lillard & a 20 points, 18 rebounds performance from Kanter. Blazers finished shooting better from 3, 44%, 11-25 than from the field, 42%, 36-86. OKC was 15%, 5-33 from 3 & 40%, 37-93 from the field.
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