Dwight Jaynes: Portland's Talent and Hidden Problems

Practice report coming later today. I got sidetracked watching the incredible SonicsGate....

on CBSSports.com, Dwight Jaynes offers a great survey of the Blazers as they inch closer to the start of the season. He ends with some big time questions and a surprising conclusion...

"But the long-range question remains something quite different: Can McMillan continue to sell his young team on the unselfishness that he's demanding? Can he keep players focused on team goals even though they're not playing the number of quality minutes their pals, their families and their agents are telling them they deserve? Can he keep a disgruntled player or players from figuratively blowing up his locker room?

Can he, in fact, get his team to deliver the unselfishness he's requesting? If so, he may have the inside track on the Coach of the Year award..."

over 2 years ago Ben Golliver 18 comments 0 recs |

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Naw

I think Nate will likely be over looked again. We’ll see, but that’s my feeling. If people couldn’t appreciate how he performed last year, I’m not sure they’ll see it this year unless the Blazers have the top record or maybe the second best record in the league.

"Fernandez, to my eyes, is the Blazer who walks that walk most comfortably. A lot of Portland's fans (egged on, dare I say, by their local broadcasters) lament things like how Ron Artest or Yao Ming get to hit Brandon Roy's arms.

But I suspect Fernandez sees all that and thinks: We get to hit arms! Cool!"

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-39-135/On-Playoff-Experience.html

"I told Pau the Lakers never win here in Portland; I think it's great." -- Rudy Fernandez

by ratbastird on Oct 12, 2009 2:55 PM PDT reply actions

Nate will never win...

by tmundal on Oct 12, 2009 3:04 PM PDT reply actions

I love Martell Webster

For his part, Webster is not tied to being a starter. “I care more about finishing the game than starting,” he said. “Nicolas wants to start so I hope he does.”

I hate Comcast.

by blazeraddict on Oct 12, 2009 3:18 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs

Jaynes has long worried about our impending "talent crunch"

He was one of the first who – prematurely in my opinion – wanted to trade Rudy away expecting future problems.

"I think he can still play" - Kevin Pritchard on Juwan Howard

by Norsktroll on Oct 12, 2009 3:37 PM PDT reply actions

I agree.

Maybe Rudy will be problem but from the way Nate has been talking about Rudy I have a feeling that he’s going to be getting a bigger role and probably enough minutes to keep him happy for at least this season and who knows after that. We’ll see what happens after the season starts but Jaynes sure does seem to want to get Rudy out of Portland for some reason.

Playing time for everyone is all up to Nate really and he’s made some mistakes but overall he’s a great coach so he’ll do what’s necessary to win. I’m sure someone will be unhappy and maybe get shipped off but seems like we should wait to see who’s upset before jumping to conclusions. I have my thoughts on the matter, and Rudy’s not the one I see being a problem first.

by somanluna1 on Oct 12, 2009 10:45 PM PDT up reply actions

Dwight and Kenny Vance

have been around the NBA for 25+ years and remember scenarios like with Drazen Petrovic where a star player is “blocking” another very good player from getting enough PT to progress

Rudy isn’t Drazen, but it’s difficult to envision Fernandez and Roy playing in the same backcourt and being able to adequately defend the perimeter on a championship-caliber team. As long as Rudy is content with a “6th man” role and he or his agent don’t “go public” with the desire to be traded, then fine. But we’ve already learned (backchannel, or via European reporting) that concerns re: Rudy’s “role” have been made known to Blazer management. So Jaynes and Vance’s speculation about his future is certainly not without foundation

When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!

by two4larue on Oct 13, 2009 1:12 PM PDT up reply actions

I don't buy it

Dwight is making some pretty bold predictions. He’s a smart man with a huge amount of Blazer knowledge, history to draw upon and insider info most of us only dream of.

But I think no one would be worried about anything if we could watch the games on television.

Nate’s issue isn’t with his players. Everything will be fine.

-Sophia

The Princess of Blazersedge

It just takes an iron fist to keep the riff raff under control and her princess hand is mad strong- Idoltime

by BlazerFan1 on Oct 12, 2009 3:51 PM PDT reply actions

Simple solution to the Blazers problem:

Give away those whiny ball hogs, B-Roy and LA, and bring back a real post scorer—Z-Bo. While we’re at it, we should probably ship off the chronically weak Oden and Batum (because he’s French). It doesn’t really matter what we bring back for them. They’re worthless and superfluous.

Clearing out that log-jam of losers will allow Rudy to get the minutes he deserves, free the ball up to flow beautifully from Dre’s hands, and leave plenty of touches for the preeminent post scorer of our generation, Zach Randolph. I can see the headlines now, “Conquering Hero Returns Home.”

A deep, talented roster. What a curse.

Seriously, though. I agree with Jaynes. Too much YOUNG talent is a problem. It’s really not fair to all our guys. At some point, we’re going to have to either consolidate our talent (which probably means getting ripped off in a pure total talent sense), or trade present assets for future ones. Frankly, there’s not a lot of room left for stars in our future. Even if we could land one, finding one that would fit it could be tough. I think we’re going to have to open ourselves up to the possibility that we become the team trading more talented players for guys who fit our squad better, ala Houston’s trade of the draft rights to Rudy Gay for Battier, or young guns with loads of potential for older guys with proven talent that is fading.

by DC Blazer on Oct 12, 2009 3:51 PM PDT reply actions

or young guns with loads of potential for older guys with proven talent that is fading.

Every contending team should have a few vets (over age 30) who have been through the playoff wars and won’t mind if their regular season minutes are reduced. (But they also should have more “tread” left on their tires than Juwan Howard, or less of a desire to start than Andre Miller…) Przybilla and Blake are the closest examples of this kind of player who are currently on the Blazer’s roster, they seem to be willing to “play less and achieve more” in a team concept. KP should try and reduce his wing population and add a veteran at PF who can play emergency center. Less depth will naturally mean more minutes for the remaining wings, and less potential discontent from young players “deserving more” than 20 mpg

When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!

by two4larue on Oct 13, 2009 1:46 PM PDT up reply actions

I wateched SONICSGATE-pretty sad & depressing

I’m really glad that did not happen to the blazers.

We all know what K*be did in Colorado to that girl. Dear Lord, please let whatever team that plays the LA Clankers beat them to oblivion. Amen.

by Pritchslap on Oct 12, 2009 7:38 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs

ain't dwight the unemployeed one who ain't got a job no more becuase all he wanted was drama and not actual factual news?

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out, burns out farms, and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

"New Man Law: If you don't show up for the draft you don't get to come later if you're picked. If you believe in yourself, show up and sit there. If nobody else believes in you, take it and cry like a man...in front of the cameras."

-Dave

by faith on Oct 13, 2009 5:22 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs

Sounds like Dwight trying to pick up a paycheck.

Otherwise a pretty useless piece.

People who like to worry about a minute crunch over look something. It is not only about average minutes per game. There are ways to get players involved and feeling that they are contributing and playing significant minutes.

One way, as Martell recognizes, is to get minutes when the game is on the line. Players appear to value them higher,, as it sends the message that they can perform under pressure.

Another is to vary playing time from game to game, depending on matchups and who is hot. If Portland is rolling with Rudy, Andre and Webster, then Nic, Brandon and Steve Blake might get to relax on the bench as fans, cheeriing on their teammates.

Still another is to field two lineups. This apppears to be Nate’s preference. It allows him to get 10 guys regular minutes. It also has the advantage of allowing the players to get comfortable playing with a consistent group. When a player feels comfortable on the court and confident in his teammates, he usually plays a more relaxed and productive game. I believe it is more important to the players to believe they are getting the opportunity to play at their best than it is the total number of minutes they play. These two get confused because it is generally believed that you have to play a lot of minutes to get comfortable.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Oct 13, 2009 9:09 AM PDT reply actions

lineups. This apppears to be Nate’s preference. It allows him to get 10 guys regular minutes

This will work for the 1st half of the season, but even Roy admitted that as the playoffs approach, the roation would need to be reduced to 8. Who gets “left out” of that scenario?

it is generally believed that you have to play a lot of minutes to get comfortable.

Do you have evidence to the contrary? How many mpg does it take for a player to “play at their best”? This would seem to vary from player to player

When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!

by two4larue on Oct 13, 2009 1:54 PM PDT up reply actions

number 1 – why are you worrying about the 2nd half of the season already? A lot can happen between now and then. Arguing that two lineups isn’t an option because it wouldn’t work come the second have of the season is pretty weak. By the start of the second half, certain players might make the whole minute crunch moot by the level of their play. And if it does work, who says the rotation has to be shorten? You don’t go away from something that is working just because conventional wisdom says you are supposed to.

number 2 – yes, how much playing time it can take to “get comfortable” can vary from player to player. It can even vary from game to game for a particular player. The point is that there are things you can do that may help shorten that time frame. One of them is to play guys in a steady lineup and with a regular substitution pattern. If Miller/Rudy/Martell/Travis/Joel play together as a unit and know going into a game when their lineup is going to be inserted and how long of a run they can expect each time, then you’ve removed a great deal of uncertainty. With less uncertainty, the players can concentrate on execution and not worry about whether they will get pulled.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Oct 13, 2009 4:46 PM PDT up reply actions

I guess you'll just have to wait and see

but the next time that Nate substitutes 5 bench players for the 5 starters at the same stoppage of play will be the first time. (The black team vs the white team is a practice scrimmage reality, but a regular season urban legend)

and McMillian is just as much a proponent of a short rotation at the end of the season as any other NBA coach who has been following NBA “conventional wisdom” for decades

but it’s not up to me to convice you. Just use your eyes

When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!

by two4larue on Oct 13, 2009 8:25 PM PDT up reply actions

BTW, here's a quote from Nate

McMillan also has also young players who believe they should be rotation players — yet might not see that rotation.

“We’re going to try to use a 10-man rotation,” said the coach. “But if we can’t, if that doesn’t work for us, we won’t use that many. The team comes first.”

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/story/12352349

When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!

by two4larue on Oct 13, 2009 11:13 PM PDT up reply actions

Dwight Doubter

I’ve held my tongue, but I have to express this…why is Dwight Jaynes given god-like status as a sports guru. Having lived in PDX for over 30 years, I remember his ineptitude as a columnist at The O and the Trib. Having grown up reading the NY Times and it’s renowned stable of first rate writers, I admit to having pretty high standards. But I simply could not take seriously DJ’s column at The O and now to see that he is a regular on 95.5 and on BE is taking the whole PDX sports dialogue down several notches. Here’s my beef…when he was at The O, he was lazy…always wrote about the obvious, never worked hard to get to the hidden story gems, mundane, banal, ordinary, but above all lazy. We may not like what Canzano says, but the man has energy…gets out from behind his computer, finds the stories that are not your usual subject matter, does his homework and his research and talks to people. Dwight…none of the above. Dwight…still a lazy, garden variety sports observer…Dwight…spare us the bar stool pontificating. BE…don’t waste time giving so much space to a guy with no credibility or insight.

by PDXOldschool on Oct 13, 2009 1:04 PM PDT reply actions

you're not going to find a lot of writers around

who sat in on complete Blazer practices and learned the nuances of the NBA game from Dr. Jack. I don’t agree with a lot of what Jaynes has written/said, either. But I know that’s he been privy to a whole lot of Blazer/NBA info that I’ll never hear about, unless someone invites him to share a little of it

When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!

by two4larue on Oct 13, 2009 11:17 PM PDT up reply actions