Breaking down the Blazers...part 1

by ucatchtrout on Aug 7, 2009 10:50 AM PDT

Breaking down the Blazers by position....Part One

Its starting to look like the Blazers roster is shaping up nicely for next season and some team officials have indicated they think their won't be any more personel moves before the games begin. Originally, I thought I'd begin this series with the 1 position, but with todays big news about the Brandon Roy contract I found myself thinking about him.

Other than perhaps center, the 2 is the strongest position on the Blazers.
Brandon Roy, starter
Rudy Fernandez, backup
Bayless, & Blake may play limited minutes at this position

All star Brandon Roy, recently rewarded with a five year contract worth over eighty million dollars, is the unquestioned leader of our team. If you look back at the impact Brandon has had on the Blazers one might go so far as to say that the day he was drafted was the end of the Jailblazer era. On and off the court he has been a model of what ownership and fans alike want from a player.

Draw up a list of how many 2 guards in the league are better than Brandon Roy. Or even a list of how many players are better than Brandon Roy. Your list might not be the same as mine, but it in any case it won't be a long list. For the Portland Trailblazers, Brandon Roy has been just what the doctor ordered.

What can we expect from BRoy this year? Brandon is not the kind of person or player whose performance will drop after they get their big payday. I think we can all assume that barring injury he will have another allstar season. With a deeper team, I'm hoping Nate will be able to reduce Brandons minutes just a little bit, and turn over some of the offensive responsibilty to Andre Miller. I think last years playoff series with Houston showed not only how much the Blazers rely on Brandon, but that at times they rely on him a bit too much making them a bit too predictable. Miller will help with that, and I'm looking forward to seeing opponents not knowing from which direction the Blazers are going to attack them.

Second year guard Rudy Fernandez is a player who could start for many teams. Last year he teamed with fellow countryman Sergio Rodriguez to form the Blazers Spanish Armada. Rudys acrobatic dunks and three point shooting were at times spectacular. A seasoned veteran of international and Olympic play, in many respects Rudy was no rookie. However, I do think the physical play of the NBA took some getting used to for him. In some ways I think he may have been underutilzed last year. Much of the time offensively he was little more than a spot up three point shooter. In Europe Rudy was accustomed to having the ball in his hands a little more and has a bit more to his skillset than we shown. He has proven to be a deadly and willing passer, and before the Blazers picked up Andre Miller there was talk of playing him some at the 1. Rudy is never going to be a lock down defender, but has quick hands and is capable of disrupting an opponents offense and picking up some steals.

Its unfortunate for Jerryd Bayless that he didn't grow six inches this summer. During the Las Vegas Summer League he didn't impress anyone with his performance as a point guard. In fact, he was outplayed by Pooh Jeter. What he really is, is an undersized 2 guard. Jerryd is well liked by fans for his hard work in practice and aggressive style of play. He is also in the unfortunate position of having to compete for minutes at the two positions he plays with teammates who are better than he is. His jump shot and three point shot are not what they were in college and need improvement. And these are areas where we can reasonably expect him to improve. Fans enjoy his aggressive drives to the basket, but I think he is overrated as a finisher as he commits a lot of fouls, doesn't pass well off the drive, and often gets his shot blocked. I think it will help Jerryd if his role is more clearly defined as a 2 or a 1, and then put him to work on what he needs to do to earn time at either position.

Steve Blake may also see time at this position due to his shooting ability when Nate runs a three guard lineup.

Your thoughts?

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Comments

Unless there is an injury ...

I don’t see anyone playing the “2” for us besides Brandon or Rudy. I’d love to see what a lineup of Miller, Roy, and Rudy could do. Throw LaMarcus and Oden in there, and that lineup can go up and down or play slow. Lots of versatility with Miller in the lineup now.

"These are dreams that we have." --Rudolfo Fernandez

by bfan on Aug 7, 2009 11:26 AM PDT reply actions

Bayless was outplayed by Whinnie the Pooh?

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.

by haildablazer on Aug 7, 2009 11:39 AM PDT reply actions

don't get too locked in on positions

while they play a role, its more about matchups. Brandon COULD play the 3 if the other teams goes small, Travis CAN play the 4, LaMarcus CAN play 5…

Reagrdless of what Nate or anyone says, we’ll probably start games with Miller, Roy, Batum, Aldridge, and Oden (unless we play a team like GS that goes all small ball)

Bayless will never “become” a PG, nor does he have the size to be a full-time 2, but I like what he brings to the table for us. Why not have a guy on the roster than can theoreticaly play either guard spot and bring a change of pace/different style of play to the roster. We have 2 older guys at the 1.

And Blazer fans might hate me for saying it, but Rudy is not going to be here for long. With his options of playing in Europe AND in the NBA, there’s no way we can offer him a contract (with BRoy already maxed and a big ext. for LA and GO on the way) that will compare to what he can get overseas or elsewhere, plus why would we want to pay our BACKUP 2 that much? I think Bayless becomes more of an asset when Rudy leaves

by rip_city_swagger on Aug 7, 2009 2:19 PM PDT reply actions

Player evaluation???

Your analysis of Jerryd Bayless???

No one was impressed? What about his defense? Did you see him staying in front of some very quick guards? Was there any progress? Did he look to pass the ball more? Did he make any nice passes? How about his body? A little more flexibility and agility? Shot look better? Foul rate? Decision making? Maturity level? I could make an argument that he improved in all of these areas.

Outplayed by Pooh Jeter? Are you saying that Pooh looked like a better NBA prospect? This is all about the NBA. An NBA talent level is necessary in order to actually outplay someone else in the summer league. You have to show yourself to be a better prospect rather than merely showing that you have a flashy skill or two. Defense? Ability to get your shot off against NBA level defenders when it counts?

Analysis of a player at the NBA level is a highly complex undertaking. Too often it seems that we get caught up in an individual play that has a style or flair to it. We see a particular skill, such as 3 point shooting, and fall in love with it. We see someone jump really high and let our guard down. We tend to think WE have discovered a player. And somehow forget about who was guarding them.

The truth of the matter is that each player is a sum of all their attributes, from speed, to endurance, to quickness, to jumping ability, to agility, to strength, to size, to vision, to injury proneness, to age, to instinctiveness, to experience, to learning ability, to attitude, to desire, to heart, to where they are on particular skill’s learning curve, etc. GM’s must ask themselves, "How can this player contribute to wins?" Defense? Rebounding? Scoring? Passing? It is not just, do they have a skill, it is, "Can they execute against this level of competition?"

I’m sorry, but I get a little bit irritated, at times, with what I consider to be oversimplification in player evaluation. I understand that a lot of people do it, even general managers do it, and in the end you have to toss your hat in the ring and make a decision about a player. But as PTB fans, it seems that many become way too critical of our young and talented players without really taking all of the factors into consideration.

I’m just glad that it seems like KP and his staff do very thorough player evaluations. I am pretty sure they would not even consider a straight up trade of Jetter for Bayless. Not even close.

There is more to an athlete than how fast they can run, they also better be able to see what they are doing and know why they are doing it.

by KINGofMACct on Aug 9, 2009 11:48 AM PDT reply actions