Dante Cunningham Earned a Promotion

So glad he’s getting burn as a rookie. Sucks about the injuries, of course…but Dante can ball.

Since Dante spent all four years in college he’s more NBA ready than a lot of guys.

Good to see the Inferno get some PT.

I’d actually disagree with your assertion that Howard is enough of a veteran to avoid making negative plays. Against the Warriors he traveled making a swing pass at the top of the key with no defender within 10 feet of him and bobbled a ball out of bounds through nobody’s fault but his own. Plus he lost his man on defense twice out of sheer slowness of foot that resulted in open 15-foot jumpers, both of which were canned in his face. I can think of absolutely no circumstances in which I want Howard on the floor instead of The Inferno.

  …in this situation the intangibles of each player become very nice. With Juwan Howard, from everything I’ve read, you have a player and individual at a stage in his career where he will play the role available without hesitation or complaint. If his role this season becomes mostly as a practice player and experienced mentor on the plane and in the locker room? I think Howard will accept that and be an asset. He’ll also keep himself ready if he need be called upon. But we have the advantage of having a player I don’t think will disrupt or become at all problematic if his role in actual games becomes reduced or far and few between. That’s the nice thing about having a Juwan Howard.

  As pointed out, on the flip side Cunningham appears to be one of those “mature” rookies. Yes, he’s still a rookie and prone to all that goes along with that reality and label. However, he appears to play calmly and within himself. I think that’s a natural ability that a person either has or doesn’t have, and it appears Cunningham has it.

  I don’t see this as really being a Howard or Cunningham situation. If Outlaw, Batum and Pendergraph were all healthy we probably wouldn’t even be discussing this at any level. I see it as something almost natural and intangible. Howard is playing the role we brought him into Portland to play. Flexible, wise insurance. Cunningham is living up to the role we hoped he could. Good young player, hustling and doing his best with a limited role. I’d call Howard and Cunningham the Hakuna Matata Duo.

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Dante is and has looked to be a much better option. He is stronger, more athletic and pretty savvy for a rookie thanks to the 4 years of college.

He can become a bit of a match-up problem in our favor on either end of the court whereas Howard has been taken advantage of whether on offense or defense.

Very glad to see Dante play as well as he did last night. I hope he continues to achieve at this level. If not, Howard is an adequate spare tire in the trunk – certainly not a liability. – Elgin

…I mean, more minutes!

Howard, bless his heart and his baggy Michigan shorts, isn’t exactly oozing production these days. While he might not do a ton of positive things, he is still savvy enough to avoid doing negative things.

really? all those turnovers and fouls and panic shots and missed rebounds? I would say he is a walking negative. I like having a veteran on the team and I hope he brings some savvy and lessons to practice but he should NOT be on the court.

You could see it almost immediately in summer league: Dante is going to be an NBA player. I dunno about Pendergraph; thanks to his injury, we might not really find out until next season.

Against big lineups, can Dante play the 3? Is he agile enough? With Webster as the only healthy SF on the team, even if Webster starts, Roy ends up defending the other team’s SF for a significant percentage of his minutes. If Dante can play SF alongside Aldridge and Oden/Przybilla, at least for a few minutes a game, it will alleviate some of the pressure on Roy.

The kid boxes out, and knows where to be . But I’m still waiting for a return date for Nic.

Go Blazers !!! Bring on the Nets !!!

He doesn’t seem fazed in the least. Something about him…

I don’t think he’ll ever be a superstar, but I think he’ll be a solid rotation player for a long time

On a team trying to win a championship every single role is important.

Great call to give the young fella some minutes. Can’t be a whole lot worse than Howard could it? It’s not like the kid was a one-and-done in college. Cunningham in many ways reminds me of Brandon Roy coming out of Washington. Keep something in mind guys. This kid played college basketball at the highest possible levels. Look at this NCAA tourney resume:

(Indicates which round they were eliminated.)

Villanova 2005-2006: Elite Eight
Villanova 2006-2007: First Round
Villanova 2007-2008: Sweet Sixteen
Villanova 2007-2008: Final Four

Most notable in the 2008-09 season was the rise to prominence of senior forward Dante Cunningham. Cunningham averaged 16.1 points per game, an increase of nearly 6 points over the previous season. He also managed to average 7.5 rebounds, 1.2 blocks, and 1.2 steals per game.

He’s a baller. What else can you say?

Dante is a beast. Don’t get caught sleeping.

Stoked he’s getting burn in his rookie year.

New Nickname!!!!???? :)

Blazersedge: You’re a pretty solid pick-setter. You’re out there roaming a little bit.

“I love the contact. I love getting out there setting screens. The problem is a lot of teams at the four position switch. So it’s kind of hard for me to set a screen without having the guard just switching and it being a moot pick.”

“moot pick” is my new favorite basketball term… I love it!
If it didn’t carry a somewhat negative connotation I would start campaigning right now for Moot Pick to be Dante’s nickname..
I love this guy!

Glad to see him out there. He’s earned it indeed.

I yelled “Put in Dante!” during a quiet part on Saturday, and they heard me and laughed on Saturday.

Smart, skilled, hard-working. Amazing what 4 years of college in a good program does for a person with the right body and mind set.

Will he be an all-star someday? Who cares? Will he be someone that you cringe when they sub him in? – not a chance.

Solid performed with his head screwed on right. Refreshing in today’s NBA.

32 other players were picked before him. If he was that good, Houston would have traded and picked him at 32.

I think we might have found our replacement for Travis. DC’s jumper looks smooth, and if he could extend his range to the three through practice (it took Travis a few years to start taking and hitting that shot), then he could be a real solid 3/4 off the bench for many years to come. Everything looks to happen within the flow for him, too. Definitely a step up intelligence-wise from Travis. I haven’t seen anything to suggest he can’t defend opposing backup 3s. I wouldn’t pit him against all-star 3s, but against the Andres Nocionis of the world, I think he’ll do fine.

That giant grin on Howard’s face, like he’s never had more fun in his life, comes from his awareness that these may be the last moments he ever plays the game that made him who he is today. And you’d advocate taking that away from him!? Geeze, why don’t you run over your 90 year old neighbor lady’s cat while you’re at it?

As the original member of the Dante Cunningham fanclub I just want to give him props! Way to take advantage of the opportunity!

Cunningham is a great rookie… I like that he’s willing to play to help the team not just focused on his own stats.

Thats how he screens out .Has great BBIQ.Isn’t out of position often.On work ethic alone,I’d want to get him minutes.Not afraid to be out there.I think DC will help out this team with his savvy.

I still feel a little skeptical though.