To Blame or Not Blame Portland's Steve Blake

Read it and decide for yourself

almost 3 years ago dblieberman 13 comments 0 recs |

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Ziller is usually better than this

While Portland could certainly use an upgrade at the point, Blake outplayed Brooks in game 3. If Roy, Aldridge and Outlaw hit shots at a halfway decent rate, the Blazers win.

While Ziller’s main point— an upgrade at PG would help a lot— is sound, the idea that Blake is getting toasted by Brooks just doesn’t stand up upon further examination. Brooks was dominant in game 1 (but not all on Blake), it was a standstill in game 2 (until the final minute) and Blake was better in game 3 (the dumb shot notwithstanding).

by jksnake99 on Apr 25, 2009 1:56 PM PDT reply actions

Agreed.

Game three came down to Roy and LMA not hitting their shots. Nor Outlaw, he could of helped stretch the defense and a touch of poor coaching.

by dpnim on Apr 25, 2009 2:46 PM PDT up reply actions

you missed his argument

his point was that Blake’s inability to create shots for his teammates when Brandon is bogged down is what makes Steve a liability.

by Blazin' on Apr 25, 2009 3:19 PM PDT up reply actions

Blake had 10 assists in this game

What’s more, his primary role is as a shooter to spread the D and allow Brandon to make plays for his teammates. I guess maybe you are saying that Ziller thinks Portland needs another dribble penetration. That does make some sense, but on my wish list for the PG position, that comes a long way after a defensive upgrade.

by jksnake99 on Apr 25, 2009 4:00 PM PDT up reply actions

Blake did a pretty nice job of setting up his teammates for 3 straight dunks

which I think were the only 3 times the entire game we actually attempted a pick and roll play.

How did you guys win that?
"We scored enough points. We scored 107, they scored 105.
-Nate McMillan Postgame, 3/4/2009

by douglast on Apr 25, 2009 8:21 PM PDT up reply actions

yeah Dwight Jaynes talked about that

Jaynes is uber-frustrated with Roy for not looking for big Greg on the roll.

by jksnake99 on Apr 25, 2009 8:30 PM PDT up reply actions

well, he hasn't looked to pass of a high pick all year

so why start now?

How did you guys win that?
"We scored enough points. We scored 107, they scored 105.
-Nate McMillan Postgame, 3/4/2009

by douglast on Apr 26, 2009 5:21 PM PDT up reply actions

Even the best defensive PG

will not stop speedy guys like Brooks, Parker, and CP3. With the current rules in place in the NBA it puts a premium on speedy guards. An upgrade at PG would be nice…but the ultimate PG stopper would not solve our problems.

Having 2 of the top 5 NBA defenders still didn’t stop Brandon the other night. So even if we had Rajon Rondo or whoever we cant take those PGs out of the equation.

I got 6 years of playoff blue balls going on, and I'm ready to release. GO BLAZERS. ~Mortimer

by Philthyanimal on Apr 25, 2009 10:47 PM PDT up reply actions

I don't see how Blake could be considered a net negitive on offense

The Blazers were 7.5 points per 100 possessions better on offense when Blake was in the game this season. Blake is very reliable at bringing the ball up the floor, he is good at setting up the offense, he gets a lot of assists without holding on to the ball that much and without turning it over, and he is an excellent 3-point shooter.

People are saying that Blake isn’t able to create easy shots for teammates, yet Blake has a full 50% of all Blazer assists in this series. That isn’t just 50% of assists when Blake is in the game, that is 50% of the total assists the Blazers have in the series. That is very impressive for a player who often plays off the ball. Plus Blake has a 7-to-1 assist/TO ratio in this series. Criticizing Blake’s defense is fine, but on offense Blake is the best PG the Blazers have.

by trk on Apr 25, 2009 2:08 PM PDT reply actions

Few things

I think that Blake is fine at PG. Are there better options? Yes Are any of them available? No. I know that KP is good but I am not sure he is that good.

As for Zillers main point about Blake not creating for other people, that is a fallacy. True he does not dish out 10+ APG, but lets take a deeper look. With both our starting Gs coming in with about 5apg, equaling about 10apg. In contrast Paul was the ast leader this year with 11 apg, their starting SG had only .9 for a total backcourt contribution of only 11.9. Paul is a much better passer than either Roy of Blake, that is a fact, but also a fact is that we have almost the same amount of APG as NO does.

In addition, game 1 was a fluke and should be buried as deep in the Earth as possible or jettisoned into the depths of deep space. Game 2 Brooks was largely held incheck for 47 minutes and then the team, playing not to lose, (worst way to play) let him get half of his points. Lastly in game 3 everybody is going crazy saying Brooks had a good game, 3-11 and 5ast? In his own house? Not that good.

I do think that Ziller is on the right path in his observation, however his conclusion is incorrect. Our backcourt has been letting us down, not creating for the rest of our team, but the main culprit has not been Blake, it has been Roy.

"Damn the Blazers. Damn them to hell. They are working the rest of the league like a speed bag." - Bill Simmons 6/26/08

by SpyderRyder on Apr 25, 2009 3:51 PM PDT reply actions

Yeah but...

So hard to make a judgment. We were puling our hair out last night watching him dribble out half the clock on every possession for no reason. Then interspersed with that he’d hit a three or make a good pass and we’d be cheering…

He definitely seems like one of the most intimidated Blazers out there…

by hobbseltigre on Apr 25, 2009 5:29 PM PDT reply actions

Please, please, please

don’t trade anything for Jason Kidd. Please.

by twggyy on Apr 25, 2009 6:08 PM PDT reply actions

Blakes primary responsibility isn't even to create for his teammates

its to hit the open 3. I don’t really blame Blake for not creating too much for his teammates, bc it doesn’t seem like Nate asks him to do that. His assist numbers are rarely impressive, but at the same time he doesn’t get to dominate the ball the same way that top assisting PGs get to.

I got 6 years of playoff blue balls going on, and I'm ready to release. GO BLAZERS. ~Mortimer

by Philthyanimal on Apr 25, 2009 10:53 PM PDT reply actions