Improving the roster

by timg56 on Jan 14, 2008 11:58 AM PST

BlazersOrBust asked this question in another diary. A question I was also pondering this morning. What does Portland need in terms of bringing on new players?

Before the season started a consensus list looked something like this:

A quality PG - a significant number of folks (Sergio fanatics excepted) thought we lacked a bonifide starting PG among the 4 guys on the roster.
A starting SF - the hole at the 3 spot was a close second (if not #1) to being considered Portland's biggest need.
A shutdown perimeter defender - this is sort of a 2a.
A bruising rebound machine off the bench.

With the exception of the first one, I pretty much agreed with this analysis. Now, I'm having a hard time saying it still applies.

We seem to be doing fine at PG. Blake is supplying steady play and is playing well off the ball when Brandon takes over ball handling duties. Jack has done decently coming off the bench and Sergio is showing some improvement in the areas Nate wants.

It is also tough to argue we need a SF. Martell has stepped up his game from last year and while still having lots of room for improvement, he's also showing he looks like he belongs. Meanwhile Travis seems to be blooming right before our eyes and Jones has been a very plesant surprise so far.

We are still lacking a lock down man-man defender. But out of Roy, Webster, Outlaw and Jones (and perhaps Rudy next season), who do you get rid of? Also to consider is the possibility of improvement from the guys we have. Outlaw in particular could become All Defensive team in a couple years if he works at it.

There are still a lot of calls for a rebounder off the bench (including mine up until a couple of weeks or so ago). But realistically, we have that guy in Oden. Also, Channing Frye is starting to show a desire to grab rebounds.

Therefore, I would now argue that there isn't much for Portland to consider in regard to revamping the roster. If we have any problem, it may be that we have too many guys deserving playing time. But that's not the question before us. The question is, what player or type of player do you think Portland should add?

Poll

What does Portland need?

A perimeter defender (as in bring back Ime)

15 votes

A physical rebounder off the bench

40 votes

something else (like a veteran _____ )

4 votes

A quality PG

16 votes

A SF

5 votes

80 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

I think we wait and see after out playoff run

next year, when Oden is back and we have Rudy here as well. Assess our situation then as we do not have all of our pieces in place yet. Possibly even wait until Freeland and/or Koponen are over as well. I wrote in another diary that Steve Blake will retire a Blazer and I will stand by that.

Vote Jerryd Bayless in '08

by SpyderRyder on Jan 14, 2008 12:17 PM PST reply actions

Consider...

Basically, for the time being I would argue that most of our "questions & concerns" are addressed by the following...

Rebounding/Quick Post Defender - GREG FREAKIN' ODEN... He's still on our team and until further notice, he's still the man we saw in all those preseason highlight videos.

'White Unit' shooting guard - RUDY FERNANDEZ... If nothing else, I think it's a safe assumption that Rudy will be able to provide some offense in the backup shooting guard slot, next to Roy/Sergio on the second line. The way his numbers compare to Marco Bellinelli and Juan Carlos Navarro, I'm assuming he'll be better than Jarrett Jack right away.

One minor concern, as stated in another post, is Roy's ability to guard opposing PG's. Assuming Blake remains the starter and Rudy takes Jack's spot, who defends the opposing team's point guard when the Roy/Rudy combo is on the floor? Do we play zone? Can Rudy guard a PG? Martell, Outlaw, and Jones don't seem like viable options...

At some point, we also need to address Roy's minutes. He played over 50 against Toronto, and it's not unusual for him to get 40+ per night...

by Champs2009 on Jan 14, 2008 12:17 PM PST reply actions

My only move would be

to bring a shooting guard in place of Jack. Juan Dixon strikes me as the type of player that would fit Jack's role perfectly. I dont think Dixon is the guy, but his style of play is what I am getting at. He had a good jumper with 3 point range, can help get the ball up the floor, scrappy and energetic, average defense that allows him to defend both point and shooting guards(granted not all that effectively), and can score quickly and in bunches. I think Dixon might be on the downhill slide but that is the mold I would like to bring in for Jack.

Everything else seems ok on the roster and even if we didnt move Jack I would be ok for this season...

RUDY > MJ

by myemic23 on Jan 14, 2008 12:20 PM PST reply actions

I think we need an all-world center

and a spark-plug combo guard. Ah, it will be sweetness itself with Greg and Rudy next year.

by EnglandDan on Jan 14, 2008 12:23 PM PST reply actions

I want a big guy

Who comes off the bench, punishes the other team's starters and picks up a few fouls. In a 7 game series, I like him to be the one who makes the starter on the other team so vexed that he gets tossed.

A shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a man who does not exit - Darius Miles

by tominhawaii on Jan 14, 2008 12:45 PM PST reply actions

completely agree

I'd like to see the Blazers get a Fortson-style player (not him, he's a chump, but somebody who plays similarly) to do exactly what you just described. Bosh might not have been tearing the basket off its stanchions every trip down the floor if our bouncer had mugged him on a couple of those dunk attempts.

by BlazersOrBust on Jan 14, 2008 12:50 PM PST up reply actions

Joel???

He only had 2 fouls against toronto and Joel can actually block shots cleanly, and if he cant block it, he can foul with the best of them. Nate didnt want that type of player in the game, I am not sure why but thats a different discussion...

RUDY > MJ

by myemic23 on Jan 14, 2008 1:00 PM PST up reply actions

Kurt Thomas?

Free agent this offseason, and probably won't command a high-dollar contract. Can you say "league minimum"? This might mess with the whole "cap space in 2009" plan, but if your are part of the group (and I am) that believes we have nearly everything we need right now so we don't have to go get a free agent, then a signing like this might make some sense.

Or we could just use Joel Freeland in this capacity. What's the Cockney slang for "I'm gonna foul you so hard you're mama's gonna cry"?

by bfan on Jan 14, 2008 1:50 PM PST up reply actions

He'd work

When I think of a player like that now, I think of Matt Harpring. Man, he ticks me off, but if he was on our team, I'd love him. Paul Millsap will replace Harpring in that role soon, and I will hate him too.

A shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a man who does not exit - Darius Miles

by tominhawaii on Jan 14, 2008 1:56 PM PST up reply actions

Perfect

Exactly what I was thinking of. Rugged interior defender, a guy that Timmy D said plays him straight-up as well as anybody he's ever played against, grabs boards in limited court time, and puts a forearm shiver into drivers whenever necessary. I agree with you re: petri-dishing what we have rather than making a big offseason FA splash, so this seems logical.

by BlazersOrBust on Jan 14, 2008 2:14 PM PST up reply actions

I too like Harpring and Thomas

The question is who do you bump from our current roster.

It would be nice if Miles wasn't taking up a spot. You could then sign Thomas to a short, relatively inexpensive contract. But you'd still have the issue of too many guys vying for limited (96) minutes.

I guess I'm trying to separate that might be a "nice" addition from one that might be considered a "required" personnel move.

by timg56 on Jan 14, 2008 3:19 PM PST up reply actions

Personally?

I would either buy Raef out to give Freeland some roll.

Or I would package some pieces to get rid of Miles: Maybe Jack and a draft pick. Maybe McRoberts. Sergio if I had to.

Let it be known that I don't want to ditch Miles just for the hell of it--I still think he could be a valuable contributor, and it seems like his head is back on straight for the moment. Moreso, I just don't see how he fits on this team. With the emergence of Webster and Outlaw, and the steady hand of Jones off the bench, how could you take time from them and give it to Miles when they're playing so well? If I were Nate I wouldn't, which means KP has some phone calls to make.

by bfan on Jan 14, 2008 3:35 PM PST up reply actions

So you think Freeland

is worth $12 million of Allen's money?

And Miles needs to go so bad that we should include some of our other players?

Although the question was about what type player do you think the Blazer's need to add, and not about opening up a roster spot or "Is the roster too crowed", I would point out that there is really only one spot we need to open up and that's for Fernandez. That's a fairly easy task - we don't resign one of our two 2nd rounders from this year. Buying out LaFrenz instead is the same as saying Green or McRoberts is worth $12 million.

Besides, James Jones might solve the problem by opting out of his final year. There's Rudy's spot. Then all Pritchard has to do is decide if any of the guys available to him in the draft are better than Green and/or McRoberts. If not, he trades or Euro stashes the picks.

by timg56 on Jan 15, 2008 7:57 AM PST up reply actions

Lots of things we need

A quicker starting center than Joel, good shot blocker, and a strong low post offensive threat -- Greg Oden -- check.

A big strong backup who can block shots, knock people around if needed, and grab a ton of rebounds, need not be an offensive threat -- Joel Pryzbilla -- check.

A backup shooting guard who will mesh with Sergio on the white unit and give Brandon some rest -- Rudy Fernandez -- check.

A backup PF who is a decent rebounder, can play in the high post with Joel in the low post and hit the mid-range jumpers, knows his role and figures out how to mold his game to fill it -- Channing Frye -- check.

A starting PG who knows when to run the offense and when to let Brandon, decent defender, good 3-point threat -- Steve Blake -- check.

A young SF who is dangerous from distance, rebounds, can go off at any moment and destroy a team but plays hard and contributes even when not hot -- Martell Webster -- check.

A guy who can play, in a pinch, everywhere from SG to SF to PF, good defender, decent rebounder, dead-eye from 3 point land -- James Jones -- check.

A dangerous forward off the bench who can simply destroy teams, jumps out of the building, still learning to rebound and defend but an assassin in the fourth quarter -- Travis Outlaw -- check.

A young pass first PG who is tall enough to defend the big PGs, can develop into a lock-down defender, with a superb outside shot, plenty of time to develop into the possible PG of the future -- Petteri Koponen -- check.

Yeah, there's lots of things we still need. The main thing this team is going to need is lots of overtime games so all these guys can get enough playing time.

by jscot on Jan 14, 2008 1:52 PM PST reply actions

You pretty much answered the question...

as I see it. In otherwords there isn't anything we really need that we don't already have (or at least may have).

by timg56 on Jan 14, 2008 3:21 PM PST up reply actions

Enforcer or bruiser

The team needs someone to stand in the middle of they key and body slam people who drive to the basket. This guy doesn't have to have any skills other than that. Maybe rebound and dunk three or four times a game. That guy this season should be Raef, since we're paying him $12 mil a year, but there must be some reason Nate never uses him.

by leeroyjenkins on Jan 14, 2008 2:24 PM PST reply actions

Joel

I think Joel will fill that role next year.

by jscot on Jan 14, 2008 2:25 PM PST up reply actions

I'm trying to decide if it's because...

a) Raef's knees are pretty much gone, thus limiting his mobility and ability to get up and down the court.

b) Nate has managed to carve out reasonable roles for at least 9 of his guys and doesn't want to mess with it by trying to find minutes for LaFrenz.

by timg56 on Jan 14, 2008 3:24 PM PST up reply actions

We're good

Make room for the finland kid and rudy and it's all gravy.

"No way. I love this town. We're gonna bring back the glory years. These boys are my boys. This is my team and my town." - Greg Oden when asked about leaving.

by ratbastird on Jan 14, 2008 8:04 PM PST reply actions