If Blake is healthy. However, it’s offensive dominance is ofset by the fact that you are going to see more fouls on Greg and LaMarcus as a result of weak perimeter defense. The reason Martell was a virtual lock to start at the 3 was not just his willingness to defer and nail the 3, but also he could expend tons of energy locking down the other teams perimeter threat allowing Blake/Roy/Rudy to concentrate on offense. Now you are asking Roy to guard the 3 which in alot of situations will make him very tired. With either Batum or possibly Frye if he is healthy and quick enough to play SF you alleviate that additional pressure on Roy which I think is critical as he is coming back from surgery. Heck you could even start Bayless and have a chance of locking down the 1 or harrying the 3. Unfortunately, I think Bayless would be a bigger liability then Batum on offense simply because he will handle the ball alot. I think Batum’s defense makes him a possible fit although obviously it’s not my first choice.

I think your line up is clearly a good idea offensively but I’m not sold on the perimeter defense of that squad unless you ask Roy to do it on both ends of the court which I believe will make him less effective.

In Christian"s fine after action report interesting about how well Rudy and Bayless operated together on defense,Rudy dosent need to start but he is just to damn good not to play major minutes. I hear that JB is starting to click with Sergio as well and if Roy has to play the 3 for a month we will be fine.

you had me untill and Steve.

All very good reasons for starting Rudy… However, remember that he is still a rookie with no NBA experience, whereas Pierce was a seasoned veteran. That being said, I think we will see Rudy in the starting unit before long (perhaps by midseason) because he is just too good not to start and get big minutes. As far as what positions he and Brandon will play, remember that some of the best attributes of Roy and Rudy are their versatility, so I’m certain they will be able to mold their games to the position and role they will be asked to play, without detracting from their overall effectiveness.

As for their defensive responsibilities guarding the 1,2, or 3, I believe they both have the athletic ability to defend, plus the mindset and work ethic to become effective defenders. And we shouldn’t worry too much about how much energy they have to expend on the defensive end, because after all defense is half the game and every true star in the league has to play defense (e.g. Jordan, Kobe) so if they want to truly be considered as stars they will have to work just as hard or harder on defense as on offense. Plus we have the depth so that they will be able to get enough rest during games.

Mac already commented right after the Olympics on the fact that he was working on plays to fit Rudy into the lineup and move Roy to the 3 at times. This scenerio fits into that comment .

It’s also one we’re likely to see as much from necessity until Martel gets back, as from anything else. Travis, at least right now, isn’t showing he should be starting – regardless. So, no matter how we slice and dice it, we need a solution, and Batum needs some seasoning.

And that seems to leave us pretty much with only this scenerio. The other option would seem to be three bigs and two smalls.

Right now though, the issue is Travis. In reality, the second team player is supposed to be able to step up in case of injury, and he’s not showing he can do that. The small ball set, in Mac’s plan, was to be used strategically, not all the time.

On the other hand, out of this will come a certain reality. If Travis doesn’t make his case to start – and start doing it pretty soon, then it will be Travis, not anyone else, who puts himself permanently on the second team. Further, when it comes to trades, this weakness would very likely cause the Blazers to think about making moves to solve this issue. As valuable as Travis is off the bench, you simply can’t have a second team SF that can’t fill in for the starter when needed, and do a credble job.

I general, I have liked the idea of a three guard line-up all summer. Roy and Rudy both have great passing skills and super high b-ball IQ. I wonder if JBay may quickly become the third guard in this rotation?

In my opinion, JBay will quickly become a defensive upgrade over Blake against most of the fast PGs in the league. Blake seems to struggle keeping quick guys in front of him, and he is not much of a threat to take it to the hole. J-Bay’s limited playmaking skills would be compensated by by having Roy and Rudy on the floor at the same time. Having Roy, Rudy and JBay on the floor would give os three guys who can definitely take it to the hole.
J-bay would need to show that he can catch and shoot reasonably effectively.

What do the rest of you think?

If Kobe plays the 2,Roy is the 2 and Channing is on Odem at 3 with Blake et all but if Kobe is the 3 and Roy slides over then Rudy at the 2 makes the most sense but you cant ask Rudy to defend Kobe.