Clearing Up the Bayless-Draft Debate

Seems accurate, clear analysis to me

But bear in mind, for this to be a truly worthwhile trade, Bayless MORE than just a small upgrade over Jack. You’re correct in saying that talent-wise, Bayless will likely be better than Jack.

However, one thing this team lacks is veteran leadership, and Jack was on of our biggest “veterans” on the team. Not a veteran by most teams’ standards, but on our team, he was an old goat that commanded a lot of respect. As much as the fans gave him a bad time, the guys in the locker room gave him respect.

So for Bayless to be an appropriate replacement, not only does he have to come in and be able to get to the foul line in the fourth quarter like Jack and play semi-solid defense like Jack, he has to contribute to the locker room in a positive way like Jack did. Obviously, due to his age, he likely won’t be considered a leader on this team, but he must not be a hinder. Some have given him a bit of a “me first” label, while others have said he is completely unselfish. That remains to be seen.

If he comes in and outplays Jack but is a jerk in the locker room, we really didn’t gain a whole lot. Part of the reason we won 41 games last year with so much youth is because we are a team of mature players who know how to act. Most young team experiments (see: Clippers) are usually composed of screw offs that don’t take things seriously. They may have talent (Corey Magette, Darius Miles, both who were pretty good in their youth), but in the end they jack around and wind up wasting their careers. If that is what Bayless becomes, terrible move. If, however, Bayless comes under the Blazer umbrella and meshes with the team and is a classy guy, even if he puts up only Jack-esque numbers (which I think is his worst case scenario—I honestly think he’ll be quite a bit better), then it’s a victory.

So really, great post, but don’t forget about his attitude. That will determine the “success” rating of this trade.

You say Ike is an upgrade over McRoberts because he’s proven that he can play at an NBA level. You know who else proved that? JJack. You know who’s unproven in the NBA? Bayless!

Just wanted to point that out. Consistensy is important in logical analyses.

Even if the first quarter is a shoot out, I like the Blazers chances, because Nate sure can coach some good defense. One time, I saw him coach a young team to a thirteen game winning streak, with just a zone defense and an outside shooter.

ughhhh boy got game

Our first Fremen Atreides poster. Very nice.
I think the draft was a steal talent wise. I will agree with prez (fairly common these days for me) that the loss really may be Jack’s leadership. Even though I am quite sure Brandon will pick up the slack, Jarrett was really a vocal leader where as Roy is more of an on the court leader.
Bayless won’t likely be a leader, but hopefully will fit more in the mold of Steve Blake. Wants to win but knows his role. At least that’s what I hope. I think McBob was a good locker room guy but not a great NBA player. Diogu is pretty decent and at one point in GS was an emerging star. Dont remember what happened there but he got pushed back in the rotation when Al Harrington arrived. It may have been Nellieball. I guess we find out when the season starts.

No, really!

I loved what another poster had to say. Say that Bayless was taken with the #4 pick of this draft. where he probably rightfully should have gone. Then KP trades Jack and #13 for Diogu and #4. All of a sudden KP is a genius. He robbed ‘em again! But because his guy slipped to #11, the one premium lottery pick we had any shot at, then it’s “Meh, Pritch just did okay.”

Bayless’ “high ceiling” is at the all-star level. KP picked up a PROBABLE future all-star for what amounts to loose change. At the same time, he improved our bench and freed minutes in the guard rotation for Rudy and two draft picks.

Oh, and later KP snatches the Spurs’ sneaker pick of the draft, Batum, from under their noses. And the Spurs are awesome at scouting international players. What did this pick do for us? It added defense, I know that’s sound weird with a Euro, and gave us an extra dimension at SF. BEdgers everywhere have been begging for help at the 3, right?

Now the cry is, “What about a true PG?” Roy is a great distributor. Rudy is a very good (most don’t realize how good) assist man at the 2. Bayless is a combo guard. Blake is a serviceable PG if we need more of a handle. For those kvetching about the 1 spot, I just gotta say, wait until you see us this fall. How they gonna stop this attack?

To summarize, KP added to a packed roster at the same time the log jam of role players, and getting us into 2009 with even more draft picks as trade bait. We needed to unload players so we could add our best draft pick, bring Rudy over, and bring the Euro of our choice. (Pobably Batum or Koppponnennnn.) And KP kept all the pieces anybody here really wanted, including both Martell and Trout.

KP = A+
Bayless for #13 = A+
Batum in the Twenties out from under the Spurs = A
Diogu for Jack = B+

I will agree that we could use veteran help. I would like to see us get a three-point specialist to help fill Jones’ sneakers. But longterm, maybe the best thing about these last drafts is that it sets up a LONG championship window where we have awesome talent under Larry Bird rights for a LONG time.

I hope the world doesn’t end in 2012 like they’re sayin’, cuz that could be a decade of Blazer dominance!

I can remember almost everybody was begging to get devin harris which wasnt going to happen and didnt, but we did what was best for us, I mean damn be happy we ended up with Jarryd bayless instead of Westbrook just compare those stats dudes got plenty of potential id say a higher ceiling than Westbrook might even end up better than Devin.We have plenty of time to develop I mean we are the youngest team in the nba so just have patience.

But I just have a feeling he will be Ben Gordon part 2. I see him doing quite well off the bench.

......................... He may be, he may not be.

We know that Rudy is NOT.

We know that Roy is a natural 2 that handles the ball a lot in the 4th Q.

If Bayless is not the 1, then there will be a shuffle shuffle shuffle and we’ll try again.

But the Blazers had better damned well make the playoffs this year, or I start breaking furniture. Five straight years of “potential” = CLIPPERS.

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I think the jury is still out in getting But-tomb. I like the thought process in getting him though, because it is like gambling at a casino on house money. Our roster is pretty good as it is, but Batum was drafted as a young player with tremendous upside…a player who could have a big impact at the SF position, where as the majority of players on the board in the late 20’s and early 2nd round will likely be nothing more than role players.

Bayless was a good pickup. I think the worst case scenario is that he will only be about the same as Jarrett Jack. The best case scenario is that he will evenutally be a mid to upper tier point guard in this league.

At the end of the day, our roster is no worse than it was. KP got rid of a utility player in McRoberts, and got rid of a player who was near the top of his ceiling as a player in Jarrett Jack. He replaced them with a forgotten but quality player in Ike, and a dynamic young backcourt talent. Sounds like a good accomplishment for a 13th pick.

Neither will Bayless for us. Guards need a little more time to develop in the NBA (and this is just summer league). Way too early for the fans in Chicago to decide if Beasley would have been the right #1 pick. Same goes with our “PG of the future”. A 1 to 3 year horizon sounds adequate.

Nate is going to ask him to bring the ball upcourt,put it in Roys hands,go to 3 point land and get some respect and play defense.He can do all these things and if he dont fit in the locker room,trade him.NY can always use another jerk.

to see Granny play in the NBA. Thank you, Mrs. Johnson, for making my dream come true.

Bayless is only 19 and will develop into an all star PG by the time he is 23 – ala Chauncey Billups. He has all the tools (size, athleticism) to become a really great point guard, we know he can score like crazy and he is one of the hardest working players you’ll ever see. His freshman season he didn’t have any great inside players on his team to balance the attack AND he had to deal with a new coach who nobody liked. There is a reason he was #4 on KP’s board – just wait and see.

“After getting a look at him over the last few days, the word is the Blazers are a bit stunned by how less far along Bayless is than they thought. Remember, they didn’t work him out prior to the draft. This is why he fell from a potential top-5 pick to #11. He will play almost exclusively at the point guard spot so be patient. That isn’t an easy transition and it will take time. This is not an immediate impact player, folks. I would expect him to play no more than 15 minutes per game early on. However, it appears he’s got a mean streak a mile wide which this team definitely needs.”

...sure you can simplify the whole thing down to the question: Was what we received greater than what we traded away? You can do that, and probably should, with almost any trade. The opportunity to have Brandon Rush (or anyone still undrafted at that time) , keep Jarret Jack and still have Josh McRoberts vs. Jerryd Bayless and Ike Diougu. That’s basicly what happened with our 13th pick. Are we a better team sans Jarret Jack and McRoberts and Plus Bayless and Diogu? Well we’ve reset the clock with Bayless. He probably deserves some development time. So only time and results will really define and answer the debate. As stated by Blazer Management we didn’t touch our core. Jarret Jack was a well liked player but not really part of our core. I like the potential of Bayless, and if healthy, like having an Ike Diogu on the bench. But only time and tangible results from all parties involved will ultimately define the draft day debate.