Portland’s new big 3 in a win against the Lakers: Ja 23 points on 9⁄13 FG, Dame 21/5/4 on 5⁄12 FG, Deni 23/4/9 on 8⁄15 FG
Portland’s offense keeps cooking early in the season
https://www.nba.com/game/por-vs-lal-0022600131/box-score
Big 4. Jrue had 22, 4 and 3.
Honestly. He is too important
I was gonna say big 4 with Toumani but fair enough, Jrue had a good game too
Crazy that Clingan, Rob Will, and Scoot are the 5th-8th best players. This team is legit.
sharpe hasnt even played yet too
2 of those players might just suck sadly
False. Scoot’s time will come. The other two are incredible. DC’s shooting alone is huge for us
only Scoot?
Big 7!
Having a starting caliber guy come off the bench is wild. He would start for many teams in the league.
That’s just the makeup of the Blazers right now. Such a well-rounded team for once.
I love Micah Nori. This team is so fun.
We miss him
I remember when people said Dundon cheaping out during the coaching search would be a disaster for the Blazers
Just because Nori is working out doesn’t mean Dundon doesn’t deserve shit for the contract he gave Nori. Fuck Dundon.
Yeah but that’s moving the goalposts
The original claim was that it would be bad for the Blazers
The new claim is that it’s not necessarily bad for the Blazers, but it’s immoral
First time on Reddit, sir?
To be fair, very few people complained about hiring Nori. The issues are that he was given only a 1-year deal.
Seems to be working out
Fans vastly underrate the importance of players relative to coaches.
Coaches matter, as do the team janitors, the ball boys, the doctors, etc
But it’s negligible relative to the players
As someone who sat through 4 years and one game of Coach Billups, I disagree.
I don’t know. I think coaching this team would be tough right now and there’s a lot of ways to mess it up. Finding the right combination of players to fit each moment with substitutions while that giving good playing time to their top 4 and recognizing who has the hot hand vs. who may be too much of a defensive liability would be tough. There are a lot of ways to kill momentum with the wrong call. And those are the issues outside of getting everyone to buy into a team offensive scheme that allows opportunities to score and organizing a defense that can keep up with ever evolving offenses and scheming for specific players.
Everyone hates Dundon but the success of the Blazers tells us that we should trust billionaires and lower taxes for them so they can do more good for society.
or trust owners who quickly found championship success in another professional sport
Any success we may have this year is not 95+% due to Dundon
It kind of was but I’m glad it worked out in the end and landed Nori
Dundon is still a fucking dolt. “A broken clock is right twice a day.” Or something.
Ja looks so good as the third option.
Reaves played well offensively but Ja cooked him badly on offense just shooting that floater.
Sums up Reaves’ entire career
If reaves could play defense he would be scary as hell.
He gets hunted on defense during playoffs. But what can you do?
This was the first Blazers game that I’ve watched this season but looks like he is really accepting his role too, wasn’t really forcing anything
He’s a pure hooper and there’s so much attention on the dunking that I think his handle, playmaking, and (surprisingly) BBIQ have been underrated. Could be an interesting phase of his career to see him lean on those traits instead of the posters.
It almost feels like he flashes his athleticism on defense for us more than on offense. He’s been so poised and under control with the ball in the paint. Amazing vision
Dude was pretending to be ass in the last seasons in Memphis just to get traded to a team that wouldn’t lose assets to nab him.
no, hes just healthy now
And not living in Memphis. That probably helps a bit
those portland’s stripclubs giving him strength
Ja didn’t live in Memphis.
He never lived in Memphis.
Weirdly constructed teams:
Heat ❌ Blazers ✅
Blazers have depth for once compared to the Heat. The experience that all our depth guys got is tremendous
Jrue has more rings than Bam and Giannis combined. If you value team success and winning at the highest level, he has to be a HoF guy. So additive and valuable without ever being the heliocentric star.
Yep, one of the best “role” players of all time. I quote role because it feels insulting to call him a role player, hes just so great at what he is asked to do
A hooper’s hooper
It’s a bit more than that, the Blazers flat out have a ridiculous amount of talent on their roster if they can stay healthy. Honestly would love to see them make a run.
Heat have no depth and bad guard play which is basically the opposite of Portland.
Scoot has no future in Portland too. Match made in heaven? But I heard Portland’s GM hates Miami.
That’s just Heat fan cope. Blazers got a far better deal from the Bucks and took it.
Scoot for Giannis, who says no? If you squint they’re kinda similar
Dame and Giannis on the same team, can you imagine the number of rings they’d win?
Dame is straight hooping which I love. One of my favorite all time players
Not terribly surprising, Portland was the better team last year and didn’t have to give up anything to get their new pieces
We gave up Jerami Grant and Kris Murray, so yeah, as much as I liked those guys as human beings, not much in the way of basketball players
Kind of a bonus if you think about it…
Edit: Grants contract was cheeks
Yeah and getting rid of Jerami has let Deni and Toumani flourish. They always played better when Jerami was injured or resting
Weirdly constructed? Blazers just have way more depth and talent than the Heat. What is weird about their construction? Good guards, good wings and good big men. Nice mix of youth and veterans.
Shaedon Sharpe also had the exact same point per 36 as Deni Avdija last year. Portland still has the second youngest guy in the league last year to score 20 plus on the bench, injured.
People just mad we have a lot of quality guards
Weird Ja and Dame are on the same team
It’s weirdly constructed but we also have 2 good ball handlers on the floor at all times with Dame, Ja, Jrue, Scoot so we are getting good looks and not having a shit ton of live ball turnovers out there. The center rotation with Clingan and Rob is good, we’re just thin at wing
Watching the three headed monster down the stretch is unreal. All could take the last shot. And nori is a very good coach
Call me crazy but Jru is our best player overall and he is coming off the bench. 🤣
It’s insane how deep this team is.
You are crazy. He’s excelling at the role that he should be in at this point in his career and we’re lucky to have him. But we’ve seen it on multiple occasions when he’s expected to be the guy and he can’t do it.
Who else is a two way street player in our squad at Jru level?? You are only looking at his game from offense.
His offense is wildly inconsistent and he tends to over dribble himself into a bad position.
As for defense, he’s obviously much better than the rest of our guards and he’s smart enough to make up for his loss of strength/speed but he has obviously taken a step back and is not the notorious shutdown defender he once was.
In fact, I’m going to predict he’s much better this year on both offensive and defense because we’re not asking so much of him and it’s going to benefit us greatly. Doesn’t mean he’s our best player. Deni is that guy right now who is an elite offensive engine and a solid defender.
No man we over relied on Jrue last year and it didn’t go well. He’s perfect behind guys
His role is perfect. And we are keeping him fresh too.
Jrue is at his best when he’s not relied on too much in the offense. He can actually be the most impactful player of a team if you have other offensive options.
You are absolutely crazy.
Better of the 2 centers is coming off ofThe bench too. Williams and Jru coming off the bench is better than Clingan and dame a lot of the time.
Exactly. Our bench was main reason for the comeback late in the game too. As a Blazers fan, this is fuckin weird shit to see. lmao
Definitely not our best player but he’s very good in this role
Deni is your best player and it’s not close. You can see the ball get to him come crunch time. Ja and Dame have their moments but Deni’s offense is automatic.
This dumbass sub told me Ja was washed lmao
If Ja is back, the Trailblazers are a real threat in the West.
Agreed, he is still a special player. If this team is healthy going into the playoffs they are a real contender. Little concerned about the defense but I like them a lot
Honestly it’s the best defense they have had in a minute, I think it’s a better defense than when they went to the WCF. But time will tell.
The nice thing is Dame, Deni and Ja all played 23 mins or less. Not over playing your stars is really going to help them stay healthy.
Then you have LA playing Luka near 40 mins.
That’s not sustainable and will only increase his chance of injury. He looked so gassed in the 4th, which is why he had only 2 points that quarter.
The defense I feel is just fine. Deni, Camara and DC provide sufficient frontcourt defense to offset the defensive shortcomings from Dame and Ja(for the most part). This game was just a clusterfuck full of foul baiting and bullshit calls going both ways that I feel both teams never really were able to get into a rhythm until the very end.
Why do people think Ja ever left? He had a shoulder injury and Memphis decided to move on. He didn’t forget how to play basketball
Ja is back
Our own fans were telling us his washed
Those fans are idiots, his problem was never talent, it was availability. It’s early this season, but hopefully with a reduced offensive load he’ll stay healthier.
Ja and Dame could both use a reduction in offensive load, which is what makes this lineup so crazy. They also have Jrue fucking Holiday and Scoot coming off the bench.
Agreed. Hoping he stays healthy him and the Blazers have been fun to watch.
So have the Grizz! Thursday is going to decide the best in the west!
Felt like a ja d rider defending him against them bro 😭 like we were all mad that he very obviously gave up on us last year in the lakers cup game, but bro he was never washed just availability and issues with him and FO decisions.
I’m really happy to see him succeed but he very clearly took a step back last season when he did play. Could’ve been Tuomas’s system of platoon subs, could’ve been dissatisfaction with the org, could’ve just been a slump, but it’s a little disingenuous to say it was JUST availability. I would’ve happily said that for 2023-2025 because he was still amazing when he did play, but last year he did not look right.
Your front office told you that too
He will go back to his normal self next game. Had the magnets going tonight and Reaves did not guard him particularly well either.
You mean Reaves cant guard shit?
Does this work both ways? Because who was Ja guarding because reaves put up 26 and luka 41?
dread it, run from it, dame time always arrives.
This was an awful Dame game, but no matter what he’s still going to get the attention of the D and he’s still a permanent clutch threat
Father Dame Time
Death, taxes, Germany in the World Cup, Dame Time
This is the year. The Blazers have improved so much under this new offense. They’re focused. They’re having fun. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re a dark horse for the Finals.
WE GOT OUR BIG 3 YA’ALL
The little big three!
Great game. Western conference finals preview
great when the teams actually got to play and not when scott foster decided to make the night about himself
You didn’t enjoy flopapalooza?
i don’t see the Rockets in there wdym
???
You have Wolves, OKC, Spurs, Rockets. Lakers are somewhere in the 5-8…
Wtf you on about with that Celtics flair. Lakers ain’t making it to the WCF…
Was a great game to watch, Portland is a fun team. Ja could always hoop, just needed to be on the court!
this Big 3 also costs like what, 65 mil?
Dame and Deni only cost us $26M this season it’s ridiculous
Portland’s def my team in the west this season. I’m all in for the return of Dame and the Ja redemption arc (Let’s hope he keeps his gear in the holster, both the literal and figurative ones lol).
Jru- 22 pts. The amount of potentially closers Blazers have down the stretch is insane. Dame’s best team to have been part of his entire career, easily.
Nah, that Dame/Wes/Batum/Aldridge/Lopez was elite, but Aldridge fucked his thumb in January and then Wes blew out his achilles in March of 2015. We had a chance to make some serious noise in the playoffs that year. Obviously Dame wasn’t quite Dame yet, although it was after the .9 shot against Houston during the 2014 first round of the playoffs. This team has the potential to be his best yet, but I think we need more than 3 games before we can make that statement.
From what I can remember though, our bench wasn’t all that imo. That’s what makes this team insane when you look at the overall makeup of the roster. Dame has too many options all around.
Yeah the bench was alright that year, but when the starters went down and you have the bench guys fill in the gaps, we were really running a skeleton crew to end the season going into the playoffs
Big reason why I wasn’t worried going into the 2nd quarter when the Lakers built a lead. This team can keep the engine running for a whole 48 minutes because they are at least 2-3 deep in every position and that’s scary.
Lakers have gaping holes in their roster. The team can shoot lights out offensively but can’t win when your backup guard is 5’8. Too small
Don’t forget Jrue. He was so good.
Ja is good in the paint. Dame and Jrue and amazing veterans leading the team, along with Deni, a real scoring threat.
Ja was amazing
Is it safe to say Ja was able to recover his joy back?
What were the trades that led to this happening?
It’s mindfuckingly complicated. But essentially the Bucks gave a lot up to get Dame. It didnt work out. The Blazers used all the shit the Bucks gave them to improve. The Bucks gave dame back to the Blazers for free for some reason and are paying him still. The Blazers just bought Ja Morant because noone else did. So now the Blazers have all the guys they got from the Dame trade, Ja, Jrue (from the dame trade) and a bunch of picks as well.
it’s honestly kind of hilarious when you spell it out like this
I mean, am I wrong?
Wait wait, Jrue was traded away and then traded back, don’t skip steps
I was trying to streamline things, but go ahead and ellucidate
the Bucks bought out Lillard because he was going to miss the entire season, and they needed a good year to try and convince Giannis to stay for his next contract. That meant clearing cap space to replace Lillard. Hindsight is 20⁄20 but they were just trying to make an appealing offer to keep Giannis. Nobody was going to trade for Lillard on his existing contract coming off an Achilles tear and a year off
Youre not wrong but Dame is hitting stepback bombs in PDX rn on Milwaukies dime. So im not wrong either.
The Dame trade turned out amazing for us. Got us Toumani and the assets that led to us getting Deni and Timelord (plus some very intriguing future Bucks picks/swaps). Without Dame, we were able to do a full rebuild and tank for Scoot/Shae/Clingan, then we got Dame back and traded scraps for Ja.
Dame trade to Bucks got Portland a haul of Toumani, Jrue, and Deni
Bucks release Dame and Dame signs as a free agent to Portland for 13m a year.
Grizzlies gave Ja up for basically nothing
We traded Malcom Brogdan (who retired) plus two mid round 1st frp for deni on a start of 4year/50 mln contract. Unreal
Essentially dame trade, everything else we traded here and there
Dame trade brought us Jrue, Toumani, and Ayton. Blazers acted very professionally towards Jrue and sent him to Boston where he won his second title. We received Brogdon and Timelord +draft assets. We traded Brogdon and draft picks for Deni. We drafted ClingKong with our rebuild lottery pick. We swapped Ant Simons for Jrue, because Boston couldn’t afford the repeater. Nobody would allow Dame to rehab at home, so we signed him to the MLE and Milwaukee is paying him $20mil. We traded Jeremi Grant and Kris Murray for Ja Morant. That covers the basics. We still own all our picks, and control Milwaukee’s for 28, 29, 30.
Was a shootout down the stretch, sometimes the other team just can’t miss , gg … lakers will bounce back
Eh I mean the Lakers played well today and lost, while the Blazers also played well but missed 15 free throws. Ofc the Lakers will always be great but I think the Blazers are simply a better team I’m excited to see them this year
It’s the rebounding that kills us. We are bottom of the league in it and it is showing bad the last 2 games
I only watched the last two quarters but just looking off stats for this game rebounds were pretty close no? I mean they only had one more OREB and like 5 more DREB but I don’t think that’s a notable difference. I was thinking yall’s bench is really bad and AR isn’t ball dominant enough when Luka isn’t in, you guys literally only have those two guys to handle the ball. Also of course defense is a major issue.
They had 20 more rebounds total. The bench is also bad, we need a proper backup big because the looney minutes are basketball terrorism
The game thread shows way more total rebounds so maybe it’s off or something
the depth is really what is gonna make us killers this year. teams like LA fall apart when their star isn’t in but when dame and ja come out jrue and (sometimes) scoot is there to pick it up. Time lord is also a top 3 back up center in the league and then you have the high energy, defensive pest in sidy. There are zero breaks playing this team rn
You guys have crazy depth. I didn’t know how Dame and Ja would look coming into the season, but they are looking refreshed and ready to go. The West will always be a bloodbath.
And it seems like they’ve kinda bought into it unlike what a bunch of reports were saying during pre-season.
Ja doesn’t look like he wants to fuck around anymore too
Great start to the new season but we’ll see what happens after
they both seem to have lost a step compared to their primes but that doesn’t matter when neither has to be the first, or really second option on any given night. Blazers had 4 guys with more than 20 points tonight and another two with more than ten.
yeah, thats yalls best aspect i think its safe to say that your bench can perform better than the starters way more often than other teams. and scoot was pretty terrible today too so when he’s clicking yall are even scarier
yep. really any two of our main guys can have a down night and it won’t matter too much. just too many guys who can create for themselves and others
Robert Williams off the bench has been huge as well.
Bruh it’s dame
Lakers beating up on play in teams, the blazers are the best play in team they’ve faced thus far.
someone’s mad
Nah, y’all(Portland) are gonna be a fun team I just haven’t been impressed by the Lakers start. Easiest schedule in the league right now.
Blazers aren’t going to be a play in team lol
If they’re play in teams who are the good teams in the west then
Houston, San Antonio, Minnesota, OKC
Portlands probably the 5th best team in the west. Not a play in team.
Well ant is injured and so is j dub, San Antonio hasn’t looked the best, and Houston and the lakers are in the same boat
Jazz will be good. Don’t be surprised if they end up being better than Portland.