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Dan and Tara dive into the Portland Trail Blazers recently released schedule and take a look at Kevin Pelton’s NBA 2017-18 Season Projections for ESPN. Dan talks about how he approaches previewing teams and Tara talks about getting seduced by continuity last year. All this and more on the latest Blazer’s Edge podcast.
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Highlights
2:05 How we are trying to get our basketball fix
3:14 Blazer schedule is out and opening night is on Dan’s birthday
6:06 Schedule overview
7:08 Portland vs. Toronto is always a good game
8:34 How health will be important to withstand a difficult run in December and January
11:15 Will Shabazz Napier get more playing time and will Maurice Harkless find his place this season?
18:00 Dan’s preliminary projection for the Portland Trail Blazers in 2017-18
19:51 Kevin Pelton’s 2017-18 NBA Projected Records and Standings for ESPN
22:30 What is the Real Plus Minus (RPM) and how it is used in projections
27:29 How tight the race for the playoffs is going to be in the west
32:30 Putting together a preview: looking at a team’s strengths and weaknesses
40:34 How CJ McCollum gets his shots in the midrange (and how defenses might use analytics to stop him)
44:12 How much should we rely on projections?
Resources
Find us on Twitter
Dan: @dmarang
Tara: @tcbbiggs