At what point do we admit we are being out-coached?
by swg777 on Nov 21, 2009 6:24 AM PST
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PrintI am not going to go into a large statistical diatribe to make my point because I don't have the time and perhaps the capability. The point of this post is to give you one man's humble opinion. Here it is.
Nate is a good coach, not a great coach. I like him as a person and admire the type of team he wants to have. However, DESPITE THE IMPROVEMENT OF OUR WIN-LOSS RECORD EVERY YEAR, HE HAS STILL UNDERACHIEVED. We have succeeded in-spite of him and not because of him. This is not a snapshot of a reaction to the last month of play. This is an opinion I have had for more than a year. Let me give you a few reasons.
1. Nate is horrible at making the vital in-game adjustments that great coaches make. If something is working, invariably, he will go away from it. If something is not working, he will often continue it.
2. Nate will start a game with a decent plan and he will abandon it within minutes. Desperation makes a short memory?
3. Nate has one style that he knows how to coach, slow and methodical. This may work for the Spurs but not for us. We do not have the personnel. We are long, young, and athletic. If you have a Ferrari, why drive it only 75 MPH???
Specifics:
1. Rick Adelman handed Nate his a$$, coaching-wise, in the playoffs last year. Adelman pressured Nate to change his strategy and formula for what got us to the playoffs in the first place. Example: Nate experimented with all sorts of rotations and plays that he didn't do in the regular season. He played the two towers often, among other things. This was not done out of some genius strategy but was borne out of panic.
2. I think I read someone refer to Nate as "Nate Mcbrilliant" after he employed the three-guard lineup. I almost choked on my high-fiber Raisin Bran while reading that. The three-guard lineup was an act of desperation that does not make our team better in the long run. We will almost certainly not employ this lineup in the playoffs so why are we doing it now? The injury to Outlaw may be a good reason to continue the three-guard lineup for awhile but this all came before his injury. Tough decisions have to be made when it comes to minutes.
3. Nate is too tame when it comes to his treatment of the anti-Portland or anti-small market bias employed by the refs. We need an advocate on and off the court to counter what I see as a major problem. Last night I would have loved to see him get a technical, at least, for some of the horrible calls. He is too restrained, too passive, and does not appear to advocate for us as well as someone else might be able to.
4. In-game decisions with examples. Since the start of the 08 season, I have always said Oden needs the ball 100% more than he gets it. Why on earth did we go away from him after the amazing start he had? Sure, he got into foul trouble but even when he came back he was just another player on the court. This is an example of the failure to sustain a game plan and the inability to make the vital in-game adjustments great coaches make.
Another player that I would key in on is LMA. His running hook and his general post game is improving greatly and undervalued. Can you imagine an offense where Oden and LMA are working nothing but the post, Roy takes care of penetration and mid-range jumpers, and Blake or someone else either feeds the ball or takes the open three? Oden and LMA should get the ball in the post 70% of the time. We would get the other teams big men into foul trouble, would open up the rest of the floor, would allow for better passing, and would have to rely less on jump shots. It seems like Nate will often go away from Oden or LMA and they will take turns at hiding alternate games.
Why, oh why are we not giving the ball to Martell Webster more? We are going to NEED him to score more, and have a much larger role at the end of the year. I am talking second-unit touches now, not first-unit. He is explosive, athletic, and we are treating him like he is 50 years old. Nate avoiding him has systematically killed his confidence.
I think I would take Dante Cunningham over Juwan Howard, but that is a symptom of a larger problem. Nate has been generally horrible at getting players minutes. There have been so many times when we need a scoring jolt and he fails to make a change, i.e. bringing in Bayless for 5-10 minutes. I can't stand how he doesn't bring players like Bayless or Cunningham in when we are down so much late in the fourth quarter.
5. Is there any better evidence we are being out-coached when we lose to a team last night that fielded 7 players???
6. Bottom line = we have a Ferrari and it is being driven like a Toyota Prius.
I am not a Nate hater, but I am a Blazer lover. Please provide constructive criticism, not one line that says "you're dumb."
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I will agree with you.
If we are going to win a championship in the near future, we need to have a different coach.
by TallTimber on Nov 21, 2009 7:10 AM PST reply actions 1 recs
A long time ago
I don’t think Nate is horrible, in fact I think he was ideal for the ‘growing’ seasons. But I’m not sure he’s the guy to take the team to the next level. He’s been CLEARLY outcoached at least five or six times already this season. His stubborn attitude and rigid thinking is eventually going to become an obstacle for him.
Blazer Fan
This is how I'm starting to feel about Nate.
He was great and the perfect guy to get a young team ready to compete, but I don’t feel like he’s the guy to take it beyond that.
I have been pretty shocked to see Nate not make the obvious adjustments to get us back in games, especially when it’s so obvious because it was working 2 quarters ago before he decided to go away from it for no reason.
One of the worst things Nate does is match teams by going small who are much better suited to small ball. You can’t preach half court low risk offense and match a team going small and expect good things. Play to our strengths, which recently has been Greg Oden. I’m so tired of Nate doing something in the first quarter like running post ups for Aldridge and Oden and when one of them dominates the first quarter that’s usually the last time you’ll see them get many set touches.
I'm starting to see this from him as well. As much as I like Nate, his stubborn attitude I think is costing us games.
He always goes back to " The line-up that won us 54 games last year." Like it is some magical achievement. Like that line-up can’t be improved upon. The way I saw that line-up was " This is the line-up that got toasted, embarrassed, out manned, and out hustled in the playoffs."
I think Nate overvalues the PG position a little too much, ergo why Blake is still getting more minutes than our top 10 PG Andre Miller. He is just not comfortable with change. Oden is playing better this year, and yet he still doesn’t get the ball on offense for LONG stretches of the game.
Despite all of these worries about Nate, I think he is going to be coach for this team for a long time, or until we have an obvious melt down, like the one that may happen this year if our guys don’t pull it together. ( I don’t think this is happening btw, but it is a possibility if we keep playing like sillynannies ).
by dario argento on Nov 21, 2009 8:58 AM PST up reply actions
" This is the line-up that got toasted, embarrassed, out manned, and out hustled in the playoffs."
A six point swing and the Blazers win the series 4 – 2..
Yep and that Blazer team took
Houston to 6 games WITH Yao. Houston took the world champs to 6 games without Yao. That was not a series we need to be ashamed of.
If this Blazer team doesn't light your fire, then your wood is wet!
but it was a series that Portland needs to learn from
and dario’s original point
He always goes back to " The line-up that won us 54 games last year."
was right on the money. It’s not just Nate, it’s also KP who has been “settling” for regular season accomplshments when playoff results are what establishes a team, coach and player’s NBA reputation and legacy
I hope Dwight Jaynes is right (for a change) and Paul Allen starts “requiring” changes that can elevate the team to the finals, sooner. Roy is not going to be “vintage Brandon 2008-2009” in 5 years. Who knows how long PA’s “health window” will stay open?
When reached 40 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!
i would argue
learn from in the growing process and put another year under the belt, but no roster changes seriously needed.
There were two teams i thought could take the blazers west side… Dallas and Houston. East side I was worried about Orlando but figured we could take them.
Another year under our belt and same situation, i’m not worried.
However, this doesn’t support nates coaching job this year. I stated 20 games before i judged. We’re getting pretty close to that.
"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
Coach Nate
has been riding B.Roy for the last two years to success. This year he has to use the young powerful big man, andre, aldridge and B.Roy. He is not capable enough to perform that task.
by The Natural ala Mode on Nov 21, 2009 8:09 AM PST reply actions
ha ha ha ha...
becuase after last night……………
This feeling can be possible?
The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out, burns out farms, and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.
At what point....?
maybe when we have a losing record. And not after we lose to a team that has killed us for a couple years now in their house. I wonder if Laker fans call for Phils head and say he’s out coached when they lose in Portland? Not that i’m totally disagreeing with you, Nate does use very odd substitution patterns that often make me mad. But I don’t think he’s a bad coach. The good thing is Nate only signs one year contracts so if everything falls apart, we can just let him go at the end of the year.
...and that's a good thing
Well
There are 5 losses and one was Oden’s fault for missing free throws and another one was Roy’s fault for dribbling into a double team twice and passing to Blake. I’m not ready to jump off Nate’s bandwagon over 3 losses.
Neither am I.
But I am starting to get frustrated with several aspects of his coaching. His dependence on Blake for one, I see as a serious coaching flaw. His coaching of Greg is also very suspect. I am getting really tired of seeing him sit for half the game.
by dario argento on Nov 21, 2009 9:02 AM PST up reply actions
Maybe Nate is just loyal to players that have done well for him in the past.
Maybe he wants them to feel like he appreciates what they’ve done for this team. Joel and Steve have deserved playing time and have earned their coaches trust. I can’t blame Nate for sitting Oden and giving Joel playing time or for wanting Steve to play.
...and that's a good thing
by In Walks Rudy on Nov 21, 2009 9:26 AM PST up reply actions
I can.
Greg is a better center than Joel this year, and Andre is a better PG than Blake. They should play more minutes.
by dario argento on Nov 21, 2009 12:18 PM PST up reply actions
Nate's no Phil.
Maybe when Nate has a few rings, the second guessing will cease (or ease).
However, it might by worth asking LA fans whether/when they were calling for Del Harris’s head. He’d had three seasons of 53, 56 and 61 wins [losing in 2nd or 23rd round of playoffs each year] and then got replaced after starting the year 6-6. Isn’t there a Bedger that’s also a L@ker follower?
I'm suprised people aren't ranting about what I'm about to say, as it was a huge hotbutton topic last year. The ONE SINGLE thing that frustrates me the most about Nates coaching,
is the switching. God, the switching. Nate. It is terrible. TERRIBLE. It is so predictable. You can tell when the Blazer D will get broken down before it happens. As soon as they get that switch on the perimeter against our big men, it’s over.
I think maybe our perimeter defensive scheme may be the single biggest hurdle in Greg’s development, seriously. When he gets minutes, he is very good, affecting the game at both ends. When he sits after two fouls, you really notice it.
Nate even said last year that this was his plan, to have the centers switch on the pick and rolls, to learn how to move quicker. Nate, I don’t think it’s working.
It drives me nuts too
Our perimeter defense, and not just effort, but concept, are terrible.
Witty Unpredictable Talent and Natural Game
Nate lost the team this summer with his "Blake is still the starter" line of crap
Nate’s usefulness as this teams coach has run it’s course. He was the "Sarge" when we needed one, but he is clearly not an X’s and O’s coach. Nor is he flexible and willing to adapt when necessary.
I have been saying this all year; there is no way in HELL that this team would be performing this way under the coaching of Phil Jackson, Greg Popovich, or Rick Adelman. Those coaches would be utilizing the talent on this team with much more consistency and success.
We obviously have NO GAME PLAN or identity, it’s a complete joke. I think that Nate screwed up BIG TIME when Miller was signed and Nate proclaimed that Blake was still the starter. He immediately gave permission for Roy to act like a whiny baby about playing with someone who actually knows how to handle the ball and might take a little control of the game other than him.
That decision by Nate instantly screwed up everything. And now, instead of just sacking up and starting the 5 he should be (Oden, Aldridge, MARTELL, Roy, and Miller), we have to do this frigging dance of the 3 guard line up that is a joke and leaves our best player as a mediocre rotation Small Forward. What a joke.
The people defending Nate say "He’s the one that got us from a 21 win team to a 54 win team in 3 years"… To them I say, that is total crap. Kevin Pritchard’s draft moves, Paul Allens willingness to dump problem players, and the players (most notably Brandon Roy) got us from 21 to 54.
It’s obvious that Nate has lost the team at this point. The only problem is, who’s available to replace him; Byron Scott?
Eeeek………
myspace.com/marktwainindians
by mark twain on Nov 21, 2009 9:35 AM PST reply actions 1 recs
What about a coach who has experience with dominant centers
Mr. JVG – Jeff Van Gundy. He has coached Ewing and Yao.
IMHO we have the next dominant big man in the league. We need to use him correctly. I want a coach who has already had experience with a dominant center.
I'm glad to finally see BE fans giving respect for Adelman
I remember how much flack I got when I said Adelman>Nate prior to the start of last season.
meWOW
by Philthyanimal on Nov 21, 2009 11:47 AM PST up reply actions
Indeed, Rick Adelman is the epitome of a first-rate X's and O's coach on offense.
Dear Paul Allen:
Fire Nate McMillan & hire Jeff Van Gundy.
Sincerely,
AK1984
on offense i have to agree
I’m not sure there’s a better offense coach out there.
"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
Watching what Adelman is doing with Houston this year
I’d have to agree with you. My knock on Adelman was the perception that he’s an offensive only coach and that one dimension doesn’t work for me.
On the other hand, i have no doubt he’d be doing a MUCH better job with the blazers this year.
My conclusion will wait a little bit longer, but Nate has been underperfoming with a lot of talent.
"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
Dunno... I don't really see PJ in the same category as Pop or Adelman...
there is no way in HELL that this team would be performing this way under the coaching of Phil Jackson, Greg Popovich, or Rick Adelman. Those coaches would be utilizing the talent on this team with much more consistency and success.
PJ isn’t really an Xs and Os guy at all — he just lets them play and find their own way and is smart enough to realize that when you’ve only got 7 competent players, or whatever number you are willing to concede the Lakers have, you ride that pony as far as you can each and every night without trying to cobble something meaningful out of the other 5 guys who can’t play.
PJ is more about keeping the ship on an even keel.
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
his assistant coaches
i believe, are the more X and O variety. PJ is the glue that holds all the egos together.
"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
Rec, Rec, Rec!
Time for a change. This was made clear last year- especially during our man-handling by the Rockets in the playoffs. Nate was good for breaking the Jail Blazers and turning them into a winning team but he can not progress the team much futher. Far too one dimensional…
I HATE NATE MCMILLAN SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I wish he would go back to seattle!!!!!!!! He’s weak, didn’t win in high school, college, as a nba player or coach!!! At least Byron Scott won rings as a player and has been to the finals twice as a head coach, And Avery Johnson has won a ring as well with the spurs.
Nate can’t tell us a dam thing about winning because he never has done it, or even been on the verge of doing it. In fact, had B Roy not went in his office and begged for liberation last year we might still be a lottery team. Roy deserves the credit, NOT NATE!!!!!!!!!!
avery johnson's ring
avery johnson inherited a polished team…its not really fair to compare him to Nate. If Avery was that great of a coach on his own, then he would have still kept his job. Lets not get carried away tho…Nate is a solid coach, he may not be great, but it is hard to deny that he has been successful here. His success has also been noticed by his peers, which is why he was on the olympic team. Something Scott or Johnson did not do.
meWOW
by Philthyanimal on Nov 21, 2009 11:51 AM PST up reply actions
I'm tired of scratching my head
about Nate. There are times where I just wonder what in the world he is doing. I try to give him the benefit of the doubt, the “he must know what he is doing” thought, but then see blunders sometimes that just leave me scratching. I’m not sure there is a coach available out there who is better, but really, some of his decisions just don’t make sense. The written in stone “two first half fouls and you are out of the lineup Greg” rule is silly because he is not figuring in momentum or flow of the game. If he is going to sub like that then he could just write it all on paper, turn it in, and not bother showing up for the game. Nate’s sub patterns just drive me crazy and it’s killing us at times. How many times is he going to take out a hot-handed player because “it’s time” and he is worried about someone else’s minutes? I’m not a huge Bayless fan, but there are times when he is really on fire and Nate yanks him because his minutes are up. That is absurd. The same can be said about many other substitutions. Coach, just go with the flow of the game and quit worrying about making all the players happy. Your job is to win games, not make players happy.
Brandon Roy, 'nuff said.
i Just had a thought...
someone made big bank in vegas last night…… someone did.
The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out, burns out farms, and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.
We aren't giving the ball to Webster more because Webster is not very good, at all.
I agree with some of your other points, though.
Webster IS good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He was killin’ earlier this season until he was demoted for no reason other than for nate to keep his girlfriend in the starting 5.
Webster scores, plays d, rebounds.
What does Blake do jksnake99?
Webster can't hit a three point shot for some reason
Last game, he missed two open 3’s. Isn’t Webster supposed to be the one with the pretty stroke?
The Kings have the best bench I’ve seen. There are easily 14 guys on this team good enough for every bench in the league. Now if we could only get some starters, I’d totally jizz in my pants.
Kings fan
by dyshooter182 on Nov 21, 2009 11:48 AM PST up reply actions
Both Webster and Blake have played very poorly this year.
I would actually like to see the Blazers go back to the conventional lineup, with Webster at the 3, for defensive purposes, with Blake on the bench. I don’t want him to get the ball very much, though.
Webster unfortunately doesn't score
At .289 three point percentage this year (and a career average of .368), I think we can officially retire the notion that he is a better outside shooter than (Travis .387/.361) and Nic (.369). Pretty shot mechanic, doesn’t make them.
Ceterum censeo Lakers esse delendam
Besides
How good is he suppoose to be when he can’t get into his rhythm??
NATE IS THE ONE WHO IS NOT GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
exclamation points don't make you any more right or wrong.
But I love you :-(
by Mortimer on Nov 19, 2009 7:04 PM PST
by TheTinfoil on Nov 21, 2009 11:50 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Are you SURE???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
didnt he coach the USMNT to a world championship?
I mean he was a coach on the team that won a championship. But your probably right if he is the head coach.
by tevisthe4th on Nov 22, 2009 12:40 PM PST up reply actions
Nate has grown tremendously since he first came here
I for one have less and less to complain about Nate as the years go by. Sure I have some things to complain about this year, but overall they aren’t as many things as there used to be.
The worst In Game coaching move I recall Nate making was Por v Cle like 2 or 3 years ago. We had a slight lead that eventually squandered into a 1 point lead. It was the final possession, and for some reason Nate did not insert Joel in the game for defensive reasons. Well LeBron got the ball as expected and drove to the rim for an uncontested layup that costed us the game. I remember Nate saying in the paper that he lost a ton of sleep on that one, but honestly no one on BE could figure that one out.
Would LeBron have missed it had Joel been in there? I can’t say for certain, but I could at least rest a little easier knowing that Joel would have done a better job at contesting the shot and giving us a better chance to win.
meWOW
I remember that.
Was that one the where Lamarcus Aldridge even had a hand on the ball, but Lebron James still powered it through effortlessly and reverse lay upped it in?
The Kings have the best bench I’ve seen. There are easily 14 guys on this team good enough for every bench in the league. Now if we could only get some starters, I’d totally jizz in my pants.
Kings fan
by dyshooter182 on Nov 21, 2009 11:45 AM PST up reply actions
Nate's worst aspect, from my perspective, is his use of big men.
I do not trust him with substitutions of Centers and PFs. Witness the propensity he shows to put small ball teams on the floor (while still playing at the Ultra-Plodding Offensive Pace he favors)… LMA at Center is ALWAYS a disaster. He has little touch with his use of Oden and Pryz (although the 2 foul rule applied to Oden actually seems to work, assuming you want to have some use of an effective Oden after halftime… Once Oden picks up a cheap foul followed by another cheap foul, it’s an avalanche.)
Nate also underutilizes young players (Rex, Inferno) and overuses marginal veterans (Blake, Juwon). Young athletes are what the NBA is all about, and other teams know this and use them, effectively against the Blazers. Nate loves the CONTROL he has playing less athletic and more predictable “system” guys.
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
I don't trust Nate's use of guards--see Miller vs. Blake.
So, we don’t like his use of centers, PFs, guards, marginal players, and young players. What’s left?
Nate is a good man, but unfortunately, not the right coach for this team.
by RenoBlazerFan on Nov 23, 2009 8:00 AM PST up reply actions
While I have always supported Nate McMillan, I blame the Golden State game against him.
I only watched the first half but I couldn’t help but cringe at some things.
First off, why in the world did Nate McMillan only play Lamarcus Aldridge 6 minutes the entire half? I know he had two fouls, but Aldridge is good at controlling his fouls unlike Greg Oden. Juwan Howard was absolutely HORRIBLE. He made one good rebound and two horrible turnovers. Howard simply couldn’t keep up with the speed of the game, and he wasn’t doing anything to slow it down. Howard was clearly rushed and made some bonehead plays.
Second, why didn’t he at least put Jerryd Bayless in the game after Andre Miller got hurt. Miller hurt his ankles again and was really ineffective. He was making lazy decisions against a GOLDEN STATE DEFENSE for crying out loud. Jerryd Bayless would have been perfect. Did McMillan notice how STEVE FRIKIN BLAKE was blowing by Stephen Curry again and again. If Blake could do it, then Bayless could’ve done it a LOT better.
While I actually do support benching Greg Oden if he puts up two fouls in the first half, here I think he should have adjusted. Golden State were just destroying the Blazers defense with Przybilla in. It wasn’t Przybilla’s fault, but Greg Oden would’ve have brought post offense back to the game. Without Greg Oden and Lamarcus Aldridge, the only players who can really post up is Andre Miller and Brandon Roy, both of whom were chucking up too many jumpers.
The Kings have the best bench I’ve seen. There are easily 14 guys on this team good enough for every bench in the league. Now if we could only get some starters, I’d totally jizz in my pants.
Kings fan
Coaching really can be critical
Nelson slaughtered Nate last night imo I dont even think Nate knew what hit him even though it seemed obvious. Does Nate have the mental ability to read, recognize and adjust during the game? I have been a TB fan for 40 years and am really starting to doubt him. Are his hands are being tied by PA or KP?. Please do some coaching!!!
I also agree with you.
Non Nelson in his own way is a great coach. Nate got ate up like a hors d’oeuvre.
I suspect that we have supreme success against weaker teams is because the level of coaching is not there. It would be nice to start keeping track of his success against weak teams with above average coaches. Havnt we lost 8 straight at GS?
I doubt his hands are being tied. I see a reluctance by anyone on the air to criticise or question Nate. KP even seems to make it clear he does not want to step on Nate’s toes.
Land Rondo.
"He needs to realize that he can't stop every shot, especially from a smaller and offensively potent player. Get your hands up, make him shoot it over you, but let him shoot every once in a while. They score a little but you stay in the game a lot. And when you stay in the game...smashy smashy!" Dave on Greg Oden
by loyal_blazer on Nov 21, 2009 12:45 PM PST up reply actions
I'm not a Miller fan; that was a bad acquisition...
Comparing the PER of individual players means nothing to me. To me a TEAM is how the pieces fit together. Miller is a better individual player than Steve Blake but the question for this team is how does Miller fit with Roy. The answer was always obvious – HE DOESN’T! Blake is struggling with his shot but he is a better fit with Roy offensively because he can shoot outside 12 feet while Miller can’t.
Now if you are KP and Nate and you truly believe the team is better off with Miller handling the ball and with Miller playing off the ball in crunch time (that’s a joke since the guy can’t shoot outside 12 feet) than you needed to trade Roy for a shooter in my opinion. Roy is not a spot up shooter and never will be.
If you believe Roy can utilize his skills and take you to the promised land with LMA and Oden then you never should have signed Miller.
I blame Nate in trying to force Miller and Roy into the same starting lineup. It’s getting more and more disastrous to me each passing game. Memo to Nate: It’s ok to sit Miller down or to sit Roy out for long stretches in order to win games. You have to utilize the pieces that KP gave you the best you can and I’m just not seeing this Miller and Roy thing working out.
All that being said, it’s still early and miracles can happen…
I blame Nate for not trying to line up Roy and Miller without Blake in the game
That line up is ridiculous. The problem is that he isn’t giving them a chance to work together as a PG and SG. He never has. That and the fact that nobody is asking Roy to make adjustments just grates me. We can’t win a championship with more play like last year. There will have to be some adjustments in everyone’s game.
I am with you brother
We are being outcoached most of the time.
Land Rondo.
"He needs to realize that he can't stop every shot, especially from a smaller and offensively potent player. Get your hands up, make him shoot it over you, but let him shoot every once in a while. They score a little but you stay in the game a lot. And when you stay in the game...smashy smashy!" Dave on Greg Oden
Great freaking post! BTW
“6. Bottom line = we have a Ferrari and it is being driven like a Toyota Prius.”
Exactly! The bottom line too is that the radio personalities are company guys. They are not going to sit there and talk about Nate. We the listener don’t have to be blind to that and just accept their take on it.
Its apparent and has been for a year and a half, Nate is not the touted coach he is thought to be. I have been saying this since then, no knee-jerk reaction here. I agree on the playoffs too.
rec rec rec
Land Rondo.
"He needs to realize that he can't stop every shot, especially from a smaller and offensively potent player. Get your hands up, make him shoot it over you, but let him shoot every once in a while. They score a little but you stay in the game a lot. And when you stay in the game...smashy smashy!" Dave on Greg Oden
100% agree with everything in this post
Yeah, he was good for a young up and coming team, but even with that, most decent coaches could take a team that drafted Roy, Aldridge, Oden, Rudy, etc to a yearly improvement. The amount of talent we accumulated within that short amount of time was nothing short of amazing and had nothing to do with Nate. Unfortunately, the organization seems to highly overvalue Nate just because we’ve improved with him, even though it obviously has more to do with the talent of players. I can’t see them firing him for a while. We could see 2 more first round exits before they would think of doing that. When Nate plays better than decent coaches, all of his many, many faults just become so glaringly clear.
He should thanks Brandon's ISO the last couple years
Not hard to call it and you have very little to do with Brandon’s ability to win it for you.
Land Rondo.
"He needs to realize that he can't stop every shot, especially from a smaller and offensively potent player. Get your hands up, make him shoot it over you, but let him shoot every once in a while. They score a little but you stay in the game a lot. And when you stay in the game...smashy smashy!" Dave on Greg Oden
by loyal_blazer on Nov 21, 2009 12:46 PM PST up reply actions
It also sucks to think we could waste 2 years of progress with him.....
Then a transition phase to someone who may or may not be able to do it.
Good timeline = 5 years to championship in that scenario folks. Are you all prepared for that?
Land Rondo.
"He needs to realize that he can't stop every shot, especially from a smaller and offensively potent player. Get your hands up, make him shoot it over you, but let him shoot every once in a while. They score a little but you stay in the game a lot. And when you stay in the game...smashy smashy!" Dave on Greg Oden
by loyal_blazer on Nov 21, 2009 12:47 PM PST up reply actions
At what point do we admit we are being out-coached? This point works for me!
I have not quite gotten to the “Fire Nate!” point, but it would not take much more of his stubborn idiocy to get me to that point.
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LMA Rocks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I <3 LMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
LMA - Putting the POWER in POWER FORWARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The concussion must have jarred him into "Destroy All Opposition Terminator Mode!" - BlazersOrBust
Stop playing the 3 Guard Line up and Stop Using the 2 Foul Rule – NATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
to argue just one point of your post,
“Why, oh why are we not giving the ball to Martell Webster more?”
he’s shooting 35% from the field, 29% from 3 point range. And to me his defense seems to be getting worse as the season goes on.
Juwan Howard, drafted June 29th, 1994. Netscape first released November 14th, 1994
by kengriffey on Nov 21, 2009 2:03 PM PST reply actions 1 recs
I have pretty much loved all of our Blazer coaches that I was old enough to watch.
I tend to be easy on coaches because they have a very tough, year-round job and take blame for the losses while the players get credit for the wins, in many cases. It is not easy juggling playing time among too many talented players. I found it challenging with a group of 12-year old girls I was coaching.
I am now firmly of the belief that McMillan is wrong for this team. His glaring inadequacies have been enabled by a very friendly local media, and (typically) homer announcers. His inept bumbling of rotation decisions, the “Blake is my starter” fiasco, the failure to play the best players in the correct positions, etc have caused me to lose faith in the coach. I can’t imagine how pissed Bayless, Rudy, Oden, and Miller are at his stubborn refusal to see the light.
It pains me, because he is a solid citizen, and probably a great guy, but I don’t want him anymore.
Nate is a good man, but unfortunately, not the right coach for this team. What happened in the 2nd quarter against Golden State on November 20?
I would so like to see what the "right" coach could do with this Blazer team.
It is frustrating to feel that we are not making the most of our talent.
Loosing Nic and Travis are a significant factor, be with out depth, they aren’t an adequate explanation for the team breakdown. I want to believe we could have a Ferrarri, and I do want to see it properly tuned up and driven.
Ben’s notes on the team “tuning out” coach convey a significant problem. We seem to have lost the team excitement and energy we had last year. And I totally agree with, let Oden foul out some, and get some T’s on these bogus calls that are making him afraid to play. Back Oden up, please, coach!
I remember when hothead Rasheed went to the Pistons, and there was Larry Brown speaking out in his defense on how the refs were targeting the kid for technicals. Backing his player up, and Sheed responded to the tune of a championship. Nice coaching.
Of course, the mythical “right” coach may not be available, but I hope KP has a scouting channel open on that. I’m much more ready to try the rather more convenient option of a coaching change, to a significant roster change at this point. I am impatient.
"Travis went all wang-dang diddly wubba SPROING wow-wow on everybody " Dave's recap, season opener
Agree 100%
Sticking your head in the sand, and thinking that last year’s 54 win team can win a championship is criminal.
There are different kinds of coaches..
There are guys that are good with team unity, building up spirit, handling the egos of the stars.. making them think they can do anything. I thought NAte was pretty good at this until he said that Blake was his starter after the Dre trade. And by “handling star egos”, I do NOT mean completely giving into their every wish, as Nate has done with BRoy.
There are guys who are good floor coaches, knowing when to sub, when to run, when to yell at the refs… Nate is terrible at that…
There are brilliant offensive game plan guys… Obviously, “the Portland” doesn’t qualify..
The Blazers starting 5 should include Miller.
The offense should go through Oden and LMA down low.
The defense shouldn’t switch on every single pick…
I don’t see, at this point, how anybody can argue Nate will lead this team to the promised land…
Don't give up on Nate, yet.
The guy is still young for a head coach and will continue to learn and grow. This is a good time to get some mistakes out of the way as this team is not yet a championship-caliber team. We may need a different head coach to win it all, but I want to see how the Blazers do in this post-season before I condemn a coach who has drastically improved his team and is now winning a high percentage of games.
Ridiculous Post
I’m really amazed at the number of Know-it-all “coaches” on this string.
Reads like mindless babble… I’d like to see some of the shit talkers, that think they have all the answers, on this site say the crap to Nates face. He’s too professional to actually knock you out, but I’d love to see it happen.
Try listening to the credit his peers bestow on him… Or do you guys think your smarter than all the other coaches & GMs in the league to.
You guys spout that crap around some NBA insiders, execs, or coaches and your half-wilted ramblings would be shot down, and flushed.
Everyone seams to think J. Vangundy is the greatest (and I’ll agree that he is one of the best) He thinks Nate is an excellent coach. Ask Mike K. what he thinks of Nates coaching, or are you guys smarter than him to?
I’d pay money to see the Jerk-Wad (blaze1) that called Blake “Nates Girlfriend” say that to Blake, because I think he would kick your dumb-ass.
Hey mark twain lets see you call Brandon a whiny baby to his face you puke.
And the rest of the shit-talking idiots on here should try and be an NBA coach.
Loyal_blazer, Why don’t you have a job in the NBA… Because you are better at hiding on the internet and taking shots at people, who actually have made it to the top level of their profession.
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