PF Prospect Board v1.5
by RoyGoesTheDynamite on Jun 18, 2009 12:41 PM PDT
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I figured we needed a sounding board for all our PF prospects just as much as we needed a Draft Prospect Board, so, here goes...
I'll keep tabs on comments, including suggestions for additional players, then run a version 2.0 with a further in-depth look at our top candidates. For version 1.0, I stuck with "Rebound Rating" as my primary metric, available via 82games.com, and supported this with a few brief observations about the players. Basically, the goal is to narrow this list down to a manageable number (like 5 to 10 candidates) and then compare every last detail of their individual games to determine who we believe would be the best fit.
Veteran Candidates
1.) Antonio McDyess – UFA - 12 year vet seeking championship… Rebound rating ranks McDyess in the Top-10 ahead of David Lee and Emeka Okafor… Rough estimate would be a salary between $4 - $5 million, but would not surprise me if he signs with a championship contender for much less…
2.) Troy Murphy - $23mil over 2 years – 7 year vet with a ridiculously disproportionate contract… $11 million salary would require all of our cap space plus an asset (likely Joel Przybilla)… Rebound rating is phenomenal, just behind Marcus Camby for 7th in the NBA and Murphy also shoots 45% from three- point land… Used to playing 34 minutes per game, which would presumably decrease dramatically.
2b.) Brandon Bass - UFA - 3 year vet that currently fills the exact role we're looking for on the Dallas Mavericks (with Dirk Nowitzki playing the part of LaMarcus Aldridge)... In 19.7 minutes, Bass averaged 8.5 points and 4.5 rebounds while shooting a respectable 49.6% from the field... Size wise, Bass weighs in at 250lbs, so he's not going to get pushed around like a Channing Frye or Travis Outlaw... The biggest question mark is what Dallas offers him to retain his services. They are also trying to re-sign Jason Kidd and they're already over the cap at roughly $72 million (without considering either of these two players), so I think an offer of $4 million to start seems about right for a backup big man. Bass' availability almost entirely depends on how crazy Mark Cuban gets with his wallet...
3.) David Lee – RFA – 3 year vet with a rebound rating slightly behind that of Tim Duncan for 10th in the NBA… Averaged 16 points per game but only averaged .27 blocks per game last season… Averaged 34.9 minutes/game which likely means he would require more than backup minutes to land in Portland (i.e. sign-and-trade that includes Zilla or by some unlikely turn of events, LaMarcus)… Rumored to be seeking contract in the neighborhood of $10 million…
4.) Nick Collison – 13.2 million over 2 years – 4 year veteran stuck on a roster that fails to maximize his strengths… Rebound rating is slightly better than Chris Bosh and slightly worse than Kevin Garnett… Played at Kansas (KP and Kirk Hinrich connection!)… Averaged 25.8 minutes per game (6.9 rebounds in that time) for a lottery team, so 15 minutes doesn’t seem out of the ball park so long as he’s playing for a competitor… Shot 56.8% from the field for 2008-2009… $6.5 million salary means he could be “absorbed” through our cap space or we could offer a combination of lower-tier assets (Sergio Rodriguez, signed-and-traded Channing Frye, etc) to acquire Collison.
5.) Charlie Villanueva – RFA – 3 year veteran who thinks he’s better than he really is… Rebound rating ranks in between Pau Gasol and Anderson Varejao… Averaged 26.9 minutes per game, but doesn’t seem content playing less minutes on a more competitive team… Took over 1,000 field goal attempts last season, which would not be available in Portland… Loves Twitter… From an outsiders point of view, it seems like anything over $8 million gets Charlie V. out of Milwaukee as they can’t afford to pay both Ramon Sessions and Villanueva big bucks for the production (W’s and L’s) they’re getting…
6.) Udonis Haslem – $7.1 million expiring contract – Ranks just below Villanueva and Pau Gasol in terms of rebound rating… Averaged 10.6 points on 51% shooting next to D-Wade, which is the kind of efficiency Portland should be looking for out of a backup big man… Played most of last season out of position at C… Averaged 34.1 minutes per game, which would mean a steep reduction in playing time … Could be theoretically acquired using a low-tier asset + cap space (Sergio Rodriguez) but Miami considers Haslem to be a veteran leader, much like Przybilla is for the Blazers, so it would likely require a true big in return (Przybilla or the rights to Joel Freeland + an additional asset)…
7.) Andray Blatche - $9.78 million over 3 years (about $3.25mil/yr) – Ranks just below Tyrus Thomas in Rebound Rating… 47.1% shooter isn’t very efficient for a backup big man… 24 minutes per game last season, but not sure how interested Blatche would be in seeing those minutes decrease (he’s only 22 years old)… With Washington looking to win now, despite being in the lottery, it seems like Blatche could be had for either an additional scorer off the bench or a true shooting guard, which means your looking at Bayless or Rudy being included in the deal and hopefully getting Washington’s draft pick as well…
8.) Ronnie Turiaf - $12.5 million over 3 years (about $4.25mil/yr) – Because Roy gets what Roy wants… Extremely reasonable contract considering he’s only 26 years old and averages the perfect amount of minutes (21.5 minutes/game) for a complimentary big man… Has Channing Frye and Jerryd Bayless-like ability to cheer from the bench during important moments of the game… Slightly better Rebound Rating than Lebron James (yeah I said it) but slightly worse than Matt Bonner… 50.8% shooter from the field… Could be absorbed with cap space or matches up almost 1-to-1 with Travis Outlaw’s contract (which means the deal could also include any of our low-tier assets like Sergio, Joel Freeland, Petteri, etc)…
9.) Linas Kleiza – RFA – Not the prototypical “banger” that has been previously listed, but Kleiza would seemingly match-up well with the PF’s who also have a mid-range game (the Luis Scola’s of the world) so long as he has a big man covering the rim, like Chris Anderson or Joel P in our case… Needs to spend more time around the basket or in transition, but shoots 32.6% from three-point land… Rebound rating ranks below Kevin Durant but above Caron Butler (Kleiza really plays more like a SF that guards PF’s)… Travis Outlaw is slightly statistically greater in nearly every category except Kleiza has 40 pounds of sheer mass on him (so take Outlaw and add 40 lbs)… From a salary stand point, a rough, rough guess would be 60-70% of what Lee signs for (so between $5 million and $7 million)… Portland would have to out-bid Denver, because a trade between inter-divisional rivals at this point is unlikely, except in the most dire of circumstances…
2009 Draft Candidates
1.) Blake Griffin – Projected #1 (LA Clippers) - Too high and too pricey for a guy who’s likely only getting 15 minutes per game… Admittedly, I’m not super high on Blake Griffin, so I won’t even mention possibly trading LaMarcus Aldridge and filler for the #1 pick…
2.) Jordan Hill – Projected #7 (Golden State Warriors) - Again, probably too high and too pricey and I’ll be honest, as a Pac-10 basketball fan, I’m a little surprised to see Jordan Hill as a Top-10 pick… I think this speaks more to the limited amount of “big” talent available than to Jordan Hill’s actual skill level…
3.) Dejuan Blair – Projected #13 (Indiana Pacers) - “Red-flagged knees” sounds an awful lot like the “Kidney problems” that led to the Blazers acquiring Nicolas Batum last season. #13 seems a little high for a pick to be sold for cash, but if we could acquire a second pick (from New Orleans, Atlanta, Utah, or Minnesota), then I would imagine 2 picks + $3mil in cash gets you in the top-15 and a shot at Dejuan “Bad Knees” Blair.
4.) Tyler Hansborough – Projected #20 (Utah Jazz) - I’ll let someone else write a quick scouting summary about Hansborough, because personally, I can’t stand the guy. If he’s able to get Erin Andrews to at least a couple games in Portland, then I’m all for trading up and grabbing her him…
5.) Jeff Pendergraph – Projected #38 (Portland Trail Blazers) - Pac-10 represent… According to Ben, Pendergraph had a very strong workout against Psycho-T and some of his other competition… Advanced metrics (points per possession especially) love Pendergraph and he spent most of his time getting put-backs at ASU… Unfortunately, he could stand to gain about 15 – 20lbs in order to limit the number of players that are able to abuse him on the low block…
6.) Taj Gibson – Projected #36 (Memphis Grizzlies)
7.) Josh Heytvelt – Projected #37 (San Antonio Spurs)
8.) Victor Claver – Projected #41 (Milwaukee Bucks)
- Golden State of Turmoil: Allegedly Monta Ellis is unhappy in Golden State, meaning that the Warriors could spend the #7 pick on a PG or SG (even though they’ve promised that Ellis will be running the show next season) which could make Ellis available to a team with cap space and “win now” talent available. If not, then the Warriors will likely target Jordan Hill and could effectively eliminate 1 of our PF options
- Out of Ammo in Washington: Antawn Jamison may be included in a cap-clearing move that sends Ben Wallace (likely to retire) and Sasha Pavlovic to the Wizards for Jamison and Mike James. If Washington throws in the #5 pick, then this usurps the Pau Gasol trade for being the most lopsided in recent history. Conversely, this also means that Antawn Jamison is available, but he would command more minutes than Portland has available.
- Rubio to become member of the Wolfpack?: Minnesota’s David Kahn has been shopping his little heart out, apparently… Kevin Love has allegedly been offered to Memphis for the #2 pick (Rubio) which shows relative value for trading up that high.
- Need Speedy?: Atlanta is offering the #19 pick to anyone that will take Speedy Claxton’s contract off their hands so they can re-sign Mike Bibby. If we’re interested in Bibby, we don’t bite, but if not, then Claxton’s contract is covered mostly by insurance and we’d be able to offer the #19 and the #24 to a team in the Dejuan Blair range (#11 - #15).
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Update 1.5:
After 24 hours, the current "Prospect Board" looks like this...
1.) Dejuan Blair
2.) Antonio McDyess
3.) Ronnie Turiaf
4.) Jeff Pendergraph
5.) Tyler Hansborough
6.) Nick Collison
7.) David Lee (tie for 7th)
8.) Udonis Haslem (tie for 7th)
Honorable Mentions: Sean Marks, Joe Smith, Ben Wallace and Eduardo Najera
63 comments
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Comments
Updated...
Bass didn’t show up in 82games.com rebound rating metric (maybe not enough minutes?) but I’ve added him to the grocery list…
Between J-Kidd and Brandon Bass, I would say it’s about 50% likely that a former Maverick winds up in a Blazer uniform this off-season.
"Now, you take a bobcat or a Jayhawk. You know they'll run if you give 'em the chance. But when one don't run, why, you shoot him and shoot him quick. Raef's my dog, Pa. I've gotta do what's right..." Old Yeller (1957)
by RoyGoesTheDynamite on Jun 18, 2009 2:25 PM PDT up reply actions
+1
Blair and Hansbrough (in that order) are my favorites if KP goes at this through the draft, but Bass is a proven commodity, young, and would be the optimal player at this slot
Team Bayless - The takeover begins in 2009
by blazeraddict on Jun 18, 2009 9:10 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
if Hansborough
is still on the board at 19, then I bet KP does that trade for the 19th pick and speedy. Picking up both TH and Pendergraph would be a good bench of youngsters. While I would rather have a vet back up PF, I won’t be too disappointed if we went this route.
Ben II Blazersedge.com || New to Blazers' Edge?
I would be so hard....
to root for tyler hansborough :( and so easy to hate him as the sterotypical white resrve big man in Utah!
Is Joe Smith on your board?
Seems like he would be a decent fit with his skill set, needs and attitude. I suppose rebounding rating probably affected that decision.
Also, I know you’re in the information gathering stage right now, but I think Murphy, Lee and Villanueva are probably not likely, as none of them are going to start over Aldridge, and would not be satisfied with the playing time that would be left. I’m sure you knew that though, as your list isn’t about who we can acquire, but who would be the best to acquire talent-wise. Hence inclusion is a good thing at this point. Yet I don’t know if I would go through the trouble of researching candidates that have no hope of ever being here, but I’m lazy that way.
εἴγε καὶ ἐνδυσάμενοι οὐ γυμνοὶ εὑρεθησόμεθα.
Intentionally excluded...
Again, this is my opinion, but I left Joe Smith out because he didn’t fit the criteria for a wide variety of reasons… In my mind, if the Blazers are going after a ‘hired gun’ (someone who plays with the team for only 1 or 2 seasons), they’re going to target someone with a long history of playoff experience and leadership roles (Antonio McDyess) OR a player who flies off the charts in a desired statistical category (like rebound rating – which would again point to Antonio McDyess).
Unfortunately, Joe Smith is an average rebounder who used to score, but no longer does so efficiently.
If you’re going to target Joe Smith, why not target someone 12 years younger? 6.5 points and 4.7 rebounds in 20 minutes doesn’t seem like lofty expectations for anyone else on this list, rookies included…
"Now, you take a bobcat or a Jayhawk. You know they'll run if you give 'em the chance. But when one don't run, why, you shoot him and shoot him quick. Raef's my dog, Pa. I've gotta do what's right..." Old Yeller (1957)
by RoyGoesTheDynamite on Jun 18, 2009 2:35 PM PDT up reply actions
I like Joe Smith
I think joe smith would be a great pick up, he is veteren and he has been deep in the playoffs the last two years, and he can shoot pretty good which I think is important in the back PF because that person will be playing most of the time with Joel who can’t shoot.
Bass is a UFA, he needs to be on the list. Kleiza is more or less a 3.
"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
RFA, sorry.
"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
We are a championship quality team
Would Antonio Mcdyess want to come here?
He Seems the best combination of experience price and willingness to fit the role.
"Knowledge will get you from A to B. Creativity will get you anywhere." Einstein
I'd take him if he came for 3 mil a year.
Playing spot minutes could allow him to get another few years and we could grab him a title by then.
The Princess of Blazersedge
Antonio might not think we are...
remember he didn’t want to play in denver because he din’t think they were playoff contenders…
McDyess and Turiaf are the only vets I like
Pendergraph is the only prospect who I think might seriously exceed expectations.
by southern oregon on Jun 18, 2009 1:32 PM PDT reply actions
I agree
I house an unreasonable dislike for all things with tar on their heels.
by BlazerFanFromDenver on Jun 18, 2009 5:34 PM PDT up reply actions
This is so exciting!
One of these guys will be on our team next year.
I think the only ones we should seriously consider are:
Turiaf
Collison
McDyess
Blair
also:
Bass
Joe Smith
Any of these 6 would help our team immensely, and the differrence between them would not be enough to absolutely hate picking up one of them. I chose McDyess because he is the coolest of these 6, but Blair is young and if KP believes in him then he wins this race in a landslide!
Good post btw. Hopefully V2.0 poll will be limited to these 6 studs. I’d like to see what the breakdown of votes will be for only those 6.
2 Q’s:
1) Can anyone give me a breakdown on how likely it is that Bass comes to Portland, and what his price would be? My gut feeling is that it is VERY unlikely he’s a Blazer but he’s gotta be on the list.
2) Does anyone else strongly agree with what KP said yesterday about us not NEEDING a veteran at PF? Instead, he said we just need the “right guy”, which makes total sense to me. Youth necessarily a bad thing in our situation this summer.
"Tough times don't last. Tough people do."
-Chauncey Billups
My choices would be (in order)
1. B. Bass (17.4 pts/40, 9.3 rebs/40) age in PTB favor
2. A. McDyess (12.8 pts/40, 13 rebs/40) age is against him
3. R. Turiaf (11.1 pts/40, 8.5 rebs/40) lots of energy, age is favorable
Draft choices depending on availability, D. Blair, Pendergraph, Psycho T
Since the poll had Troy Murphy at 2 instead of Bass, I chose other…
The idea the blazers need to sign someone to play around 12-15 minutes a game is
ridiculous to me. Also as long as Travis Outlaw is on this team those minutes are fine going to him. We should be targeting a legit defender at point guard and not be spending any time worrying about a back up power forward who would get basically no minutes.
Truth never was or can be propagated by fire and sword - Albert Gallatin
Bayless sucks! Trade him; or at least stop the annoying bayless homerism. his best case is gilbert arenas which is something the blazers don't want and don't need. He was a KP mistake.
Areas of need...
It’s the off-season, we hammer out scenarios for every position…
I think the general consensus amongst the more vocal BE population is that Travis Outlaw will most likely be traded this off-season. He proved to be the weak link during the playoffs and, throughout the season, he had a notoriously difficult time backing up LaMarcus Aldridge at the PF position. Look at Aldridge’s on-court/off-court stats and you’ll get an idea of just how bad our backup PF was last year.
If we’re able to address the backup PF position using a low tier asset (Sergio, rights to a player overseas, or draft pick) and/or cap room, then Outlaw’s minutes at PF are no longer available and he can be used in a trade for the PG you’re craving… The other major difference is there are a myriad of options for “backup PF” (as I’ve tried to outline) whereas if you were to do the same study for the PG position, you’d only have a few options (Iverson, J-Kidd, Mike Bibby) then you’d just be throwing out trade proposals left and right.
Those 12 – 15 minutes of a game tend to matter, though. I’d much rather spend the season up by 12 points at halftime rather then down by 15 and having to “storm back” with a furious fourth quarter rally…
"Now, you take a bobcat or a Jayhawk. You know they'll run if you give 'em the chance. But when one don't run, why, you shoot him and shoot him quick. Raef's my dog, Pa. I've gotta do what's right..." Old Yeller (1957)
by RoyGoesTheDynamite on Jun 18, 2009 4:17 PM PDT up reply actions
I agree generally, but a large number of players on this prospect board aren't cheap or easy to get so that's part of the problem
I realize Travis had a poor playoff series and isn’t always the best back up pf, more rebounding please, but I would honestly be surprised to see him traded. This is coming from someone that is not a particularly big fan of Travis just someone who had seen a number offseasons come and go where Travis was “going” to be traded then wasn’t. He also fills a defined roll on this team, something that can’t be said for players like Jarret or Channing who have been recently traded or are going to be let go.
Truth never was or can be propagated by fire and sword - Albert Gallatin
Bayless sucks! Trade him; or at least stop the annoying bayless homerism. his best case is gilbert arenas which is something the blazers don't want and don't need. He was a KP mistake.
True...
I’m with you on the “Another Off-Season, Another Travis Outlaw Trade Rumor” band wagon, but at the same time this off-season is a little different…
1.) Travis is one of the few contracts we have that has any sort of dollar value behind it ($4 million), so he’s a likely trade candidate in any deal that surpasses our cap space. Think of it like this: if you could trade Travis OR Rudy + Batum + Bayless, which deal do you make?
2.) Travis has a partially guaranteed contract and is still able to contribute at a young age, which means cheap GM’s can say “Hey, we got a good young player” when they’re really saying “Nice, we’ll save a cool couple million when we wave this Bo guy…”
3.) Travis was flat out terrible in the playoffs and I think the Blazers are developing an understanding of what they need to take the next step. Roy said “We need toughness” and endorsed Ronnie Turiaf, even though Travis is one of his closest friends on the team. Who is Turiaf theoretically replacing?
4.) Presumably, had Martell Webster been healthy all season, we would’ve already lost one of our SF’s already. You can’t have 3 SF’s of the future, even if one of them moon lights as “backup PF’s that don’t rebound and only shoots corner threes and 1-dribble pull up jumpers”. Batum is too good to sit behind both Martell and Travis. Martell’s trade value is hovering somewhere around zero right now, even though (and I’m going on record right now) I believe he’s our best option at SF…
"Now, you take a bobcat or a Jayhawk. You know they'll run if you give 'em the chance. But when one don't run, why, you shoot him and shoot him quick. Raef's my dog, Pa. I've gotta do what's right..." Old Yeller (1957)
by RoyGoesTheDynamite on Jun 18, 2009 4:52 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
i understand all your points, but to put my opinion very simply I think the blazers will make a small on draft day shipping off sergio plus picks to a higher pick
and then no more move will be made until Martell has proven that he is healthy and has value.
Truth never was or can be propagated by fire and sword - Albert Gallatin
Bayless sucks! Trade him; or at least stop the annoying bayless homerism. his best case is gilbert arenas which is something the blazers don't want and don't need. He was a KP mistake.
A legitimate backup 4 could also be a spot backup 5
which we needed at times last year and we used Frye. If we are going for a PG in free agency then I, for one, will assume Outlaw will be part of the trade. He has the most value and he fills a loaded spot at the 3.
It would also be good to give LMA a little more rest, even though he seemed to come on pretty strong at the end of the year. We also have to consider injuries. If LMA was injured would we have to or want to rely on Outlaw at the 4? Most of the 4’s on the list are better at the position than Travis.
If we go for a backup 4, I would want either Outlaw as the backup 3 or Webster at the backup 3, but not keep Outlaw as the backup 3 and 4 choice. If you feel inclined, change backup 3 to starter, but it’s still the same.
This
Whether we keep Outlaw or not, I think it’s important to have a backup 4 who can play the 5 in a pinch, or in case of injury which is definitely a possibility given Oden and Pryzbilla’s histories.
MLB2PDX!!! (someday...)
by The Cactus Leaguer on Jun 19, 2009 9:57 PM PDT up reply actions
My order of preference
1) McDyess, if he’ll come to PDX
2) Bass, if he’ll take the 10-15 scrap minutes backing up LMA and the centers
(Since options 1 and 2 are unlikely…)
This is the “DeJuan Blair drum”
bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang
This is the sound of Blair's knee"s
Crunch crunch crunch
by southern oregon on Jun 18, 2009 6:46 PM PDT up reply actions
The sky is falling
http://www.gohuskies.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/112904aaa.html
Good thing we didn’t draft that Brandon Roy kid.
And this is the sound of Blair playing paradiddles on his drum..
bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch bang crunch bang bang crunch bang crunch crunch…
"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
You have to sit down to play a paradiddle
So maybe that would work if we were looking for a trap drummer
by southern oregon on Jun 18, 2009 8:56 PM PDT up reply actions
Hey I'm a fan, but for every success story there are many other failures.
Even Roy admitted in that SI article that he was extremely worried about his knee.
more like 58
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lloyd_Neal
“Though undersized for his position, he endeared himself to fans with his hard work and tenacity
"
Yes he did. Neal had bad knees before arthroscopic and microfracture surgeries were an option. So he has several pair of “zippers” running up both legs, but he always gave everything he had and then some, both on the court and in rehab
Blair reminds me of Neal, so I wouldn’t hold these reports of knee problems against him. With today’s medical advances (and improved nutrition) DeJuan has a good chance of having a long and successful career in the NBA. Especially if he goes to a team like Portland where he can come off the bench and play 6-10 minutes a half
"Bottom"
that guy could play… wonder what he (and Walton) would have been able to do if today’s sports medicine were available.
MLB2PDX!!! (someday...)
by The Cactus Leaguer on Jun 19, 2009 9:59 PM PDT up reply actions
That was so dumb
That’s not even a flagrant 1
Price is small Turiaf is big
And he cut himself on the floor. Turiaf got thrown out because Price can’t fall correctly
"Tough times don't last. Tough people do."
-Chauncey Billups
I started thinking again
What about Sergio, the 24th, and 38th for the 11th pick the nets have a trade exemption so it would work financially. We could then draft Blair
Draft Cole Aldrich 2010
yessir
Norsk and I had similar thoughts after reading Givony’s “word on the street” rumors the other day
The Nets like Casspi, and they could pick him at 24 and pay him closer to what he’s worth. They also need a backup PG to play behind Harris, and Sergio’s contract is cheaper than what they’d be paying for the 11th pick in this year’s draft, plus it expires 2 years sooner
makes a whole lot of sense for both GMs
To be honest?
Ben Wallace. Play 15mpg. Could teach Oden & Aldridge a lot about defense(One of the best on that end in the last 25 years), using your body rebounding(Because he did a lot more, with less physical advantages etc. We respect him, pay his salary… In return, after this contract is over, takes a big pay cut after his contract is done, we resign him to a value contract. He still prevents problems for opposing teams, albeit in shorter bursts. A huge upgrade defensively over Frye. He is a McMillan type of guy.
Offseason:
PG Options: Terrence Williams(D), Rodrigue Beaubois(D)
SG Options: Mickaël Piétrus(T)
PF Options: Ronnie Turiaf(T) - Taj Gibson(D), Kevin Seraphin(D)
C Options: Alexis Ajinca(T)
The French Invasion !
Sean Marks?
Why isn’t he being talked about? A super cheap unrestricted free agent. Ideally I’d want Bass, but Marks would be a solid option in my opinion.
Turiaf could be our next Brian Grant
That would be awesme
I know less than half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.
Again, what about Bass?
He makes more sense (and is a better player) than any of the honorable mentions, any of the draft eligibles and some of the other free agents.
To summarize: Wade too quick, Kobe too skilled, LeBron too physical - Batum
I don't get the love for Blair
He reminds me of Byron Houston who came out of Oklahoma State in 1992 (went #27) or Danny Fortson who came out of Cincinatti in 1997 (went #10). I’d hate to trade up for the likes of either of them today.
Maybe somebody can give me an example of a better short but large power forward who dominated in college with whom I should be comparing Blair.
short and fat pf?
Maybe somebody can give me an example of a better short but large power forward who dominated in college with whom I should be comparing Blair.
I can’t think of any decent ones, and that’s just turrible.
dinasour type of guys choir boys
he reminds me of joey dorsey
but that pick worked for portland so who knows.
fire nate before its too late
Barkley?
Sir Charles went #5 in the superstar packed 1984 draft. Even in what people are calling a very weak draft, Blair isn’t forecast to go that high. I don’t think that they’re comparable players.
Antonio McDyess is the top propsect in my book
He is 34 years old and has played in the league for 12 years. This says he may be more willing to serve as a role player than the others.
He has played in 84 playoff games, tops among the candidates. This experience would be very useful next spring.
Last year he grabbed 10.4% of the offensive rebounds while he was on the court, and 25% of the rebounds at the defensive end, both very high percentages. His rebounding rating is a stellar 35.6.
His PER last season was 16.6, above average and reasonable. His TS% and eFG% were .529 and .510 respectively. His assist % was 7.3, and turnover rate 8.3% — neither are steep drop offs from LaMarcus’ numbers. The assist and turnover rates of all of the others with NBA experience were much worse.
The most significant issue with McDyess is I’ve heard he wants to stay in the east to be close to his family and because he thinks he can have a longer career as a core contributor in the east than in the west. Maybe fewer minutes would help some, but may also be a detriment to someone who still has something to prove. Can we make it worthwhile for him to come to Portland? I don’t know, but he sure brings a lot we could use.
Pgh native here
Blair’s knees are fine. Never bothered him in two years @ Pitt… two years of Big East+MSG+NCAA tourney… never a problem. Guy runs the floor well – he’s an athlete, not just a big body. Game similar to Barkley, IMO. If you’re gonna trade up for an NBA PF, then you trade up for Dejuan Blair. Word on the street is that Blair dominates workouts with other PF prospects (minus Griffin perhaps – not sure those two have worked out together anywhere yet)
I can’t think of a better fit for a blazer team that needs rebounding, inside toughness, and passion/grit. Blair is ideal for a half court team like Portland. Blazers lost too many leads/close games because they couldn’t clean the glass and limit opponents to just one shot… gave up way too many off. rebounds to weaker teams, IMO.
KP should trade from depth (frye,webster,sergio) and find a way to snatch Blair. Portland would love him.
try rethinking your opinion
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/stats/byteam?cat1=Total&cat2=opponent&sort=333
maybe if portland didnt allow the least rebounds to the opposing team in the nba you would have cred but they did. and they allowed the second least amount of offensive rebounds. 13th in rebounding and 1st in offensive rebounding, what a horrible rebounding team. blair is something portland doesnt need. you can love blair just like everyone from oregon loved joey harrington and luke jackson. great college players, but not very good pros.
fire nate before its too late
whatev
quote all the stats you want… i watch the games and i see what i see. Portland generally doesn’t get inside position – the forwards don’t box-out well – and it hurts them against better teams. Outside of Pryz/Oden, the Blazers don’t compete much for rebounds, imo. i won’t argue the stats because frankly i don’t care about the stats. i call em like i see em.
Blair vs. other smallish PFs
I think the Barkley comparisons are spot-on. Blair’s a bit shorter, perhaps not as high a ceiling as Sir Charles, but their games are very similar… hold post, clean glass, score inside. Blair can pass, too. Nice hands. Good basketball sense.
Blair>Fortson. I saw both play, alot (Fort also from Pgh). Blair is the banger/rebound machine that Fortson could have been. Blair LIKES rebounding… that’s the difference. Always thought Byron Houston was too soft, a little like Fortson. Blair is NOT soft.
Portland needs grit/attitude. I think Blair’s got it.
Blair is taller than Barkley
Barkley was only 6’4" without shoes.
Blair = Tractor Traylor?
Thanks for your thoughts on Fortson. I have another large PF who might be a better comparison, Robert “Tractor” Traylor (from Michigan) who went #6 in the 1998 draft. I’d consider him another bust.
Is Barkley the only exception to the rule? (Short but heavy PF don’t do well in the NBA.) In Barkley’s case, I wouldn’t call him heavy but large. He had serious hops.
Blair = Paul Millsap, Reggie Evans
(nm)
by Mad Matt the Road Warrior on Jun 24, 2009 12:39 PM PDT reply actions
Larry Johnson, first pick of the 1991 draft
If you’re too young to remember, google “Grand-mama”
DeJuan has similar size and game
I don't believe I've ever seen Kurt Thomas
mentioned for this list. Great rebounder, good defender, great locker room guy, can even consistently knock down the 15 footer. Definitely a good backup for a couple of years. Milwaukee probably doesn’t want him.
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