Why would anyone not take Moses Malone?

I’m taking Clyde, Cutting Brandon and Sabonis and adding Moses Malone and Steve Johnson. Will I have to redo this when Moses is taken out of the equation?

Moses is ineligible, since that would be too easy.

I’m taking Clyde, cutting Roy and Buck (who I was making a 6th man anyway).

I’m also adding Brian Grant and since my dad would be disappointed if I didn’t have someone from the 77 team, I’m also taking Dave Twardzik (even though I never saw him play).

So, my team is:

C- Greg Oden
PF- LaMarcus Aldridge
SF- Scottie Pippen
SG- Clyde Drexler
PG- Terry Porter
—-—-—-——-
6th: Drazen Petrovic
7th: Brian Grant
8th: Dave Twardzik

And I’ll add Ruben Patterson and Kenny Anderson

C- Oden
PF- Buck
SF- Ruben
SG- Drexler
PG- Porter

Bench 1- Sheed
Bench 2- Kenny
Bench 2- Paxson

C – Walton
PF – Aldridge – moves into starting role replacing Lucas
SF – Kersey
SG – Drexler – replaces Roy.
PG – Porter

G – Drazen
C/PF – Sidney Wicks
PF/SF – Outlaw

I could not resist Drexler. I grew up with him as the franchise player. Roy is quickly gaining a spot in my Red & Black heart but it will take a while for him to reach the Glyde’s status.
Outlaw and Wicks are picks to fill out the roster with scoring and versatility. I have never seen Wicks play but how can I not take a PF/C who averaged a double/double four of his years in the league. Mychal Thompson was a wuss. Brian Grant fell apart. Duck and Joel were up there but 20 and 10 versus defense with Joel and size and shooting from Duck…
Outlaw fits in at 3 or 4 and provides scoring off the bench. Elie and Natt had way too many injuries but they were in the running for the final spot. Steve Smith/Damon may be better players than Travis but I need a forward over another guard.

In the end (I am sorry ROY!) I gotta go with Drexler and Porter. As tempted as I am to replace Oden with Sam Bowie or Chris Dudley (lol), I am going to surpress my erges and go with replacing Kersey with Lucus actually and bring Sheed from the bench as my starting PF:
Oden, Sheed, Lucus (can Lucus keep up with guarding a SF’s? maybe i should move sheed to the 3, he does love his 3’s) Drexler and Porter.
Now i need two bench players, my choices are:
Kenny Anderson, who has been a great PG his whole career, very unselfish and i feel won’t hurt us when porter sits
And I’m pulling a fast one here with Mychal Thompson, he had a very good career and was a good scorer and rebounder his whole career and he started with Portland so I get his WHOLE career! (sorry for saying career so much just then)

I’ll take Drexler, drop Roy and Kersey. Pick up Elie for small forward and Tracey Murray for pure shooting ability.
My team, if I’ve remembered correctly:

Strickland
Drexler
Oden
Williams
Elie
Paxson
Wallace
Murray

If I had known it would work out this way with Drexler, I think I would have gone with Porter instead of Strickland, but there you are.

So for my last pick I will use…. Calvin Natt

Walton
Lucas
Kersey
Roy
Porter

Aldridge
Paxson
Natt

Not much ego in the bunch and while I don’t necessarily have role players I do have players who want to win and I think would sacrifice playing time for championship rings.

If everyone is ditching their lineups to add Drexler, what was the point of making selections in the first place? I refuse to follow that path.

I have:

Oden
Lucas
Kersey
Roy
Porter
Robinson
Petrovich

I’ve got bangers in Oden & Lucas, hustle/defense in Kersey, penetration/pick&roll in Roy, floor general in Porter, outside shooting in Petrovich, and versatile big man in Robinson. I’m looking for backcourt help so I’m going to take:

Stacy Augman

He can spell Brandon and Kersey, brings great defense, and could even play with Roy when he runs the point while Porter rests.

Drexler is out.
Why:

1.) Mentally weak vs Roy who is a real leader.
2.) Roy has excellent all around scores and his LEADERSHIP (Love court rivals) helps win games that the blazers have had no business winning.
3.) I think Roy will be a better 3pt shooter and I could use some of that.

Risks:
Drexler has a LONG proven carrier
Roy may die or vanish

Reward, I like my team chemistry better (not looking at stats). I have hard workers that will set the tone.

I’m still weaker than I’d like with three pointers. So the real debate in my mind is… Rudy or Bayless. I’m gambling, but I feel this gamble puts me over the edge.

I gotta go with Bayless. he fits too well with Roy, although he’ll never be a 3pt threat. If I’m looking for a TEAM and not stats, this is what I want.

Oden
Aldridge
Kersey
Roy
Porter

Lucas
Paxson
Bayless

A risky move for Bayless, I know, but I truly believe that as long as Roy plays, that kid is our starter at PG and will do amazing things. I also believe he’s one of the best players to play with roy.

Time will tell with my team, but i’m more than happy with it.

I’m positive I would dominate all those who did not pick oden if we did fantasy league on these teams over the next fifteen years. I’ll definitely win the later games. Non-fantasy, I still win because Oden is the second coming of shaq. I think a lot of people really can’t see that yet or are afraid to see that. This kid is goign to blow you away.

In other words, I’m pretty happy and I’m okay taking a risk on bayless. He’s rough around the edges, but I think he should be able to start in 42 games or less.

Drexler stays off my team, I like having Roy cause he is also my backup PG and has a great all around game.
I don’t need another center, as Oden is a beast and can be backed up by Wallace when Lucas is in.
Mostly known as a shooter, I don’t really trust Kiki’s defense and drive ability (in the later part of his career). Also Petrovich doesn’t help much on defense. So I need another athletic forward or big guard who is able to score some points while on the field but also a good defender.

Options include:
- Sidney Wicks (6’8 forward, very solid career in college and with the pros, #2 pick, ROY, four All-Star appearances)
- Calvin Natt (6’6 small forward, first team All-Rookie, very good FG%, might be able to play some shooting guard)
- Ron Brewer (6’4 shooting guard, first team All-Rookie, father of Ronnie Brewer)
- Lloyd Neal (6’7, first team All-Rookie, undersized for his usual PF position, smart, capable of getting double-doubles)
- Bob Gross (6’6 forward-guard, second team All-Defensive)
- Larry Steele (6’5 guard-forward, led the league in steals the first year they were recorded, NBA champion)
- John Johnson (6’7 SF, NBA champion with Sonics, lots of assists, good scorer)
- Stacey Augmon (6’6 forward-guard, but half his career was before Portland)

I leave away our current forwards Martell and Travis, as they still have a lot of work to do to reach some of these guys. I think my decision is between Wicks (PF/SF), Natt (SF) and maybe Steele to improve my SG defense, leaning towards Wicks for all his achievements. Considering his size and body he could and would play as a forward today (kind of like Outlaw). Freakishly athletic, his UCLA coach said he was the most physically talented player he ever coached. Very solid rebounding skills (still holds franchise record), even capable to block consistently, lots of assists (more than Natt), okay free throw shooter, good fieldgoal percentage throughout his career.

Oden (Sheed)
Sheed (Lucas)
Kiki (Wicks)
Roy (Petrovic)
Porter (Roy)

Coach: Jack Ramsay (Rick Adelman as assistant to keep any bad boy behavior in check)

Strengths: Everyone is a scoring threat (inside and/or outside), outside shooting, athletic big men (especially on defense), passing
Weaknesses: Defending SG when Roy sits

Old Team:
Walton
Williams
Kersey
Roy
Porter

Reserves
LMA
Jim Paxon

New Jam:
Walton
LMA (replacing Williams)
Kersey
Drexler
Porter

Reserves
Sidney Wicks(new)
Jim Paxon
Kevin Duckworth(new)

PS I really wanted to put the Plastic Man on my team

Oh and my team is deep, I have a guy who can come off of the Bench and step in for any on this team.

Kersey will be flying in for the boards, Walton provides good/great hands down low, and strong weak center defense and he will be able to pass out from down low, and terry porter provides 3 pt shooting and the alley-oops to Drexler as he comes flying in. If we are playing Tim D or Shaq on any given night Kevin Duckworth can come in to shoulder the load. Jim Paxon is great off of the bench as a point guard who plays around the perimeter and can hit his shots when he is open, which helps us spread the floor for a Drexler Dunk™ as he leaps from the 3 pt line. Lamarcus is a great fit next to Walton or Duckworth, providing rebounding with Walton, and the soft touch when Duckworth is in. Wicks provides some high-flying fun both inside and outside of the paint. Man this team is awesome.

I’m cutting Roy and Kersey, picking up Clyde, Bob Gross, now who’s my last pick? Here’s my squad so far:

Walton
Lucas
Gross
Drexler
Porter

Sheed
Drazen

Which means that I’m thin at the point guard spot, then again most of the good blazer point guards have aready been used. I also could use a little ruggedness up front, to compliment the gracefulness of Walton and Sheed.
I’ll take … Damon.
Decent assist numbers, good 3-point shooter.

So, to recap, my team is

Walton
Lucas
Gross
Drexler
Porter

Sheed
Drazen
Damon

I think it’s solid. Sheed can play C/PF. Drazen can play at the 2 with either Gross or Drexler in. Damon can play SG with Porter. It’s very versatile

Roy and Kersey are out. I’m replacing Kersey with Calvin Natt because of stats alone. Kersey was the only starter I could live without and I’ve never seen Natt play but his stats were the best of any small forwards that I saw. Finally I’m adding Mychal Thompson to my bench to complete the roster.

C-Bill Walton
PF-Maurice Lucas
SF-Calvin Natt
SG-Clyde Drexler
PG-Fat Lever

BN-Cliff Robinson
BN-Drazen Petrovic
BN-Mychal Thompson

This team is geared up and ready to compete for the title. Walton provides a little bit of everything: scoring, rebounding, passing, defense, leadership. Mo Lucas is giving us rebounding, scoring, and toughness. Natt appears to be a good scorer, but thats about it. Clyde is just a freak of an athlete who can do it all (I didn’t know that he is our all time leader in offensive rebounds!). Lever is a distrubuter and a playmaker as well as a great finisher around the basket. Cliff is a sixth man extraordinair who can fill it up as well as rebound and defend. Drazen can shoot the lights out, he is the only pure shooter on my team. Thompson will provide front-court depth and can be a beast under the basket. Thats it, I’m done, lets go win some rings.

But I’m going to have to pass on Clyde the Glide (although it hurts me to say this):

Team Donkey:

C – Bill Walton
PF – Maurice Lucas
SF – Jerome Kersey
SG – Brandon Roy
PG – Terry Porter

BN – Clifford Robinson
BN – Jim Paxson
BN – Calvin Natt

Robinson can play either PF or C and has a good 3-point shot to spread the floor. Paxson is a great pure shooting guard who can spell Roy (or play tandem with Roy if Roy slides to PG). Natt was a great SF that can spell Kersey.

It was hard not to pick Clyde (since who can argue with a Clyde / Porter backcourt?) and drop Roy + Kersey. Also it was hard not to pick Bob Gross. However, I’m sticking with this team.

Steve Smith.

Pure shooter, pure money

And grab Sidney Wicks to round out my forward positions. I might even start him, if he outplays Vandeweigh.

C: Walton
PF: Lucas
SF: Vandeweigh
SG: Roy
PG: Lever
6: Wallace
7: Paxson
8: Wicks

Pretty high powered team, I must say. And one that is well balanced and ready to contend for a championship!

For real, I’m putting these two guys back together: Rasheed Wallac & Bonzi Wells.
C Walton
PF Lucas
SF Kersey
SG Roy
PG Porter

6 Wallace
7 Petrovic
8 Wells

Old team:
Walton
Lucas
Kiki
B-Roy
Fat Lever
Bench:
Aldridge
Paxson

New Team:
Walton
Aldridge (now a starter)
Kiki
Drexler
Fat
Bench:
Thompson
Natt
Paxson

I’m going to continue my most unique, yet still effective roster on this site: Jim Jackson
I need another guard and Jackson can score, defend, and handle the ball in a crunch. He also knows the league well after having played for 12(!) NBA teams. Unfortunate that I can’t have him during this Dallas years, but he was still effective afterward

Sabonis
Lucas
Vandeweghe
Roy
Strickland

Wallace
Petrovic
Jackson

That is the question. On one hand I like my lineup but to have Clyde on the team makes it intreaging. If I was to select Clyde I would cut Kersey and Porter. I know that this sounds crazy ,but Drexler can play the small forward position and I would be able to keep Roy who is so versitale. I would pick up Damon To start at the Point and Mychal Thompson to handle backup center.

The question is do I want to loose Porters playmaking ability and Kerseys hustle for one of the best ever?

I’ll go for it because I would love to see how Clyde and Roy would play together.

Old lineup

C – Sabas
PF – Buck
SF – Kersey
SG – Roy
PG – Porter

Bench

C\PF\SF – Cliff
SG – Paxson

New Lineup

C – Sabas
PF – Buck
SF – Clyde
SG – Roy
PG – Damon

Bench

C – Mychal
C\PF\SF – Cliff
SG – Paxson

WHAT HAVE I DONE!!!

D Marty

After much deliberation, here is the team that I am putting on the floor:

C – Greg Oden
PF – Maurice Lucas
SF – Jerome Kersey
SG – Brandon Roy
PG – Terry Porter
6: Rasheed Wallace
7: Drazen Petrovic
8: Danny Ainge

I’d like to believe that the team that I have put together has the ideal blend of youth, leadership, and chemistry (don’t laugh Sheed haters, explanation to follow).

Center – If I were picking purely on the basis of contribution to franchise history, this pick would have been Walton. But alas, while my blog alias brought glory to the great City of Portland and left generations yearning for a parade on Broadway of their own, the Big Red Dead Head’s career was marred by leg injuries that left him a shadow of the player he had been. And although he later won a second ring as a key reserve as a member of the Celtics, Walton never seemed to recover from the injuries or the hangover of reaching the pinnacle in 1977. With all due respect to Walton, Arvydas Sabonis was arguably the greatest passing center in the history of the game. Had Sabonis joined the Blazers when he was expected to, Portland may have a few more banners and fond memories of different parades up Broadway. And while Kevin Duckworth did yeoman work in the middle for the Blazers on the early 90s Blazers teams in contention for the title, Sabonis likely would have vaulted Portland into untouchable territory and perhaps one of the greatest teams of all time. Sadly, the one called Sabas opted to stay in Europe, further damaged his wobbly legs, and by the time he reached the NBA could scarcely step over a thin piece of paper let alone run the floor and dunk with the ferocity of his youth now only seen in grainy YouTube tributes. Sabonis was a crafty and productive player for Portland late in his career, but never could overcome the pure brute strength of nemesis Shaquille O’Neal. Greg Oden has yet to play a game for the Blazers and his future as The Next Great Big Man is far from certain. But, I need to believe that Oden will become the championship anchor that we have all been waiting for.

Power Forward – Not even close. Lucas is the nastiest power forward to ever play the game. Buck Williams was a working class hero and the unheralded key to the success of the Blazers of the early 90s, but nobody else is The Enforcer. I only wish that I could see Maurice suit up in his prime and protect Oden’s back.

Small Forward – A very tough call. Kiki Vandeweghe is exactly the type of offensive player that would open up the floor for the Blazers and allow Oden and Lucas to operate inside. Kiki could shoot the lights out, but never realized his second calling as a matador. Kersey brings the energy and passion to this starting lineup. No front line in the world would want to have to go up against Kersey, Lucas, and Oden in a froth.

Shooting Guard – Obviously Clyde Drexler is the greatest Blazer to ever play the position of shooting guard for Portland. Drexler needs to be on any All-Time Blazer team. Clyde is a first ballot HOF player and probably the single best Blazer in history. But again, I am going for potential and youth over the known quantity. And leadership. Consider Roy’s TUP (tremendous upside potential) compared to Drexler’s career for a moment: 1) Roy was a starter from Day 1 as a Blazer (granted he played for a miserable Blazers team), Clyde came off the bench his first couple of seasons. 2) Roy was named Rookie of the Year. 3) Roy made his first All Star appearance as a reserve in his second year, Clyde made it in his 3rd season. 4) Leadership: Roy became the de facto and undisputed team leader midway through his rookie year in the soon-to-be-legendary confrontation with faux team leader Zach Randolph. Clyde, as great as he was, never really was a leader in the traditional sense until very late in his career. Clyde was the best player on his team, but left a void in leadership which was filled by Terry Porter. If Roy continues his ascension at the rate he has started, championship dreams and the potential to become the all-time favorite of Blazer fans is not too far fetched.

Point Guard – Terry Porter may be my favorite Blazer of all time so I am biased with this pick. Rod Strickland was one of the most exciting PGs I’ve ever seen in a Blazer uniform, but Terry had the cojones and swagger of a leader. A perfect compliment to Clyde Drexler or Brandon Roy in the backcourt.

Bench – The notorious Rasheed Wallace was a tough choice over the youthful Aldridge. However, having already filled my youth quotient on my team with Roy and Oden, I opted for Mr. T. Say what you will about Sheed, but he is considered one of the great teammates in the NBA. And while he is an often frustrating player who has never fully met his potential to be great, Wallace is one of the great defensive players in the game and one of the smartest. As a basketball player, LaMarcus Aldridge appears to be a younger version of Sheed without the baggage. But I still take Sheed’s court savvy and willingness to play team ball over individual attributes for my all time team. My team as constituted so far desperately needs outside shooting. Petro became a 20 ppg scorer when set free in New Jersey before his life ended tragically early in a car accident. His deadly range would keep defenses honest against Roy’s penetration and Oden’s presence in the paint. Home grown Danny Ainge fills out my roster. Even on the downside of his career, Ainge brought scrappiness and heart to the floor. Plus he can step in at point guard on occasion and keep defenses honest with his outside shot. Plus he plays the role of villain well.

Whew…that felt good to get off my chest. Now where’s that parade?

I’ll take Wicks as my last player.

My team is about chemistry and talent. And I believe Sid will be the last piece in my puzzle.

C-Arvydas Sabonis
PF-Maurice Lucas
SF-Scottie Pippen
SG-Geoff Petrie
PG-Lafeyette Lever
bench-Drazen Petrovic
bench-Sidney Wicks

My team and depth chart so far:

Oden
Buck
Kiki
Roy
Porter
LMA
Drazen

C – Oden/LMA
PF – LMA/Buck
SF – Kiki/Drazen
SG – Roy/Drazen
PG – Porter/Roy

With a starting 5 of Oden/LMA/Kiki/Roy/Porter I have a good blend of defense in the middle, good shooters and play makers. When Oden sits LMA moves over to the 5 and Buck comes in. At backup wing I can put Drazen at either SG or SF and at PG I can slide Roy over to PG when Porter sits. I think the biggest need is a player who can fit with Roy when he is playing PG. For that I will take Bayless.

Final Roster
Oden
Aldridge
Kiki
Roy
Porter

Buck
Petrovic
Bayless

... has been the toughest decision of all.

Passing on Clyde is not as hard as I thought. In some ways, the easiest method to pick the greatest Blazer team ever is to either take the 77 starters and add three players or take the 90’s Blazers (who I believe were the better team) and add Sabonis and a couple of other picks. However that would eliminate having any of our current young Blazers. That’s something I can’t do. I have this feeling that Portland is on the cusp of greatness and not including any of the key players who will bring that greatness would be a huge mistake. Therefore I’m going to pass on Clyde.

As for my final selection. Several names stood out. Brian Grant, Stacy Augman, Mario Ellie, Danny Ainge, Sidney Wicks, Joel Pryzbilla and Chris Dudley, Outlaw, Webster and a few more. Looking at my roster, I have a backup bigman and a scorer off the bench. That leaves a defensive stopper, preferrably at SF. My first choice would be Scotty Pippen, but he’s off the board. Leaving Brian Grant off the team is tough, as few players ever put their heart and soul into playing like he did. I really don’t have a backup PG, so Danny Ainge or Greg Anthony or Danny Young, or even Steve Blake would be a nice complementary piece. But I need a wing defender. That shortens my list to Stacey Augman and Ime Udoka. Pretty much flip a coin, as I’d take either one.

My lineup

Oden
Buck Williams
Kersey
Roy
Porter

Aldridge
Drazen
Augman/Udoka

Dave – you have to let us round out the team to at least 12.

Like:

5 foul man – Dudley or Pryzbilla
Backup PG – see above
Hot young draft pick – Webster/O’Neill/Rudy/Bayless
Project – Outlaw/Batum/Khryapa