It seems so simple

by collectiveshane on May 7, 2009 10:08 PM PDT

Our future lineup in about 3 years that will establish our dominance.

Starters:

Greg Oden

LaMarcus Aldridge

Nicolas Batum

Brandon Roy

Jerryd Bayless

Reserves

Joel Przybilla

Rudy Fernandez

Sergio Rodriguez

Eight man rotation, everyone gets their minutes, 8 elite players. A 3 big man rotation would work well, especially when Oden develops a strong postup game. And what is the deal with everyone saying Rudy wouldn't be satisfied with being a sixth man? Ginobli does it and is obviously considered a superstar.

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The only problem is...

… that Brandon Roy is the only one of those guys who is elite.

Oden has a shot to become elite but I don’t think any of us can say for sure. Aldridge is a top-40 to top-50 player who might someday be top-30 (but I doubt it).

I think Rudy will be a tremendous player— not as good as Manu but very good.
I think Batum’s going to be a really good player, not an all-star but close.
Joel is Joel and we love him, but he’s not elite.

Calling Sergio or Bayless elite is simply laughable.

by jksnake99 on May 7, 2009 10:12 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs

right now...

I agree with snake on that Roy is the only one who is ELITE right now…. BUT, the post is talking about 3 seasons down the road. So, when you write “will be”, “going to be” etc. means that you understand that over time experience and maturity add to a players skills and production.

Honestly, no team has a top-to-bottom “elite” team. But then again, if you are looking at players in context of “eliteness” for their specific role… i.e. who are the most elite backup point guards in the league, or who are the most elite scorers off the bench, or who are the most elite back-up centers in the league… I can see how this guys argument can make sense. If “elite” for a specific role means Top-5 NBA, and we are guessing what is in store for these players with 2 more full seasons of experience under their belts.

B.Roy is a Top-5 shooting guard
LMA has a good chance of being a Top-5 power forward
Rudy has a good chance of being a Top-5 6th man
Oden has a legitimate shot at being a Top-5 starting center
Pryz right now would be considered a Top-5 bench center

Batum, Sergio and Bayless have good upside and nice skill-sets, but to quote Master Yoda “Cloudy the future is with (them)”

by Portland Dynasty on May 8, 2009 10:08 AM PDT up reply actions

wow

thanks for the analysis…

C*mcast sucks!

by Blazermaniac77 on May 7, 2009 10:12 PM PDT reply actions

I feel like KP2 just delivered a stat bomb

on my Blazer brain.

by tominrehab on May 7, 2009 10:33 PM PDT up reply actions

Its called THREE Years from now!

This year is NOT a building season!!

by collectiveshane on May 7, 2009 10:13 PM PDT reply actions

if either Sergio or Bayless reached their potential

i still don’t think either would be considered elite. above average…sure, but top 5 is a little much to ask.

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

by Philthyanimal on May 7, 2009 10:30 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs

rec

A person wiser than I (and I’m damn wise) once said:

If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep getting what you’ve always got.

by tominrehab on May 7, 2009 10:32 PM PDT reply actions

i'd hate to see your definition of an unintelligent person.

I'm the only thing I'm afraid of.

by prezofdeath on May 8, 2009 12:46 AM PDT up reply actions 2 recs

I'll be extremely happy

if KP can keep 8 out of the 9-10 rotation players from this team 3 years from now.

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

by Philthyanimal on May 7, 2009 10:41 PM PDT reply actions

Same.

Okay so I was wrong in saying elite, but 3-4 elite and 3-4 good role players. Maybe a Kurt Thomas style guy in there also.

This year is NOT a building season!!

by collectiveshane on May 7, 2009 10:43 PM PDT up reply actions

with our current offensive/defensive philosophy

i doubt we will ever see 3 elite players. we play at too slow of a pace offensively for 4 of our players to put up huge offensive numbers to become elite.

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

by Philthyanimal on May 7, 2009 10:47 PM PDT reply actions

joel and sergio wont be here

Woof

by Charles Barkley McLovin on May 7, 2009 10:59 PM PDT reply actions

Sergio is gone this offseason

I also don’t like an 8 man rotation for the regular season. Fine to tighten it up for the post, but 82 is a lot of games.

3 bigs is definitely not enough. Even if nobody is injured.

2 hot 2 stop it

by dan_the_man on May 7, 2009 11:00 PM PDT reply actions

Oh, also the problem with Rudy isn't being a 6th man

It’s that he is a shooting guard. He’s not a SF. He’s just too small. He’s not a PG. He’s much better off the ball. Putting Brandon at the point is effective for a few minutes a game, but I don’t think it’s a good long term strategy for our offense.

Being that he and Brandon are both SGs, and Brandon will likely always be the (far) better player, Rudy just isn’t going to see many minutes.

2 hot 2 stop it

by dan_the_man on May 7, 2009 11:07 PM PDT reply actions

It seems so simple

That’s probably why it’s so unrealistic. Too many questions unanswered. Where is Martell? Did we not draft anyone of significance for three years. No free agent moves for three years? With the way KP deals, there is no way this is our team in three years.

by Blaze of Glory on May 8, 2009 9:07 AM PDT reply actions

Exactly.

Even if Rudy ascendes to a Ginobiliesque level he alone can’t carry bench scoring. Joel isn’t a scorer and I highly doubt Sergio is still bricking 3’s in Portland three years from now.

Blazers+Blazersedge=Mind Blown

by TappedPotential on May 8, 2009 5:22 PM PDT reply actions