This was originally a response to a fan post which responded to Dave's podcast.  A few posters said I should resubmit this as its own fan post, so... Here it is.

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I am about five pages into an article about decision-making in the NBA.  I was originally planning on finishing the piece and then posting it, but I realized that the beauty of the Blazers Edge community is that with the high caliber of individuals here, discussing the issue before I have finished the paper will make for a better end product.

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All of the fanposts that are negative in nature are really starting to annoy some individuals on this website.  While pessimism isn't always welcome, it can be necessary and there should be a place for it even on a website like Blazers Edge.  I propose that we treat posts that are overly critical in nature much like other questionable material (like off topic material and trade posts)... we make a "drawer" about it.

Thus I give you the Player Haters Ball.  A single fan post where everyone can vent about those players that really get under your skin.  Hate Travis' BBIQ... post it here.  Bayless lover? Hater? post it here.

Why clutter the entire website with hate when it can be consolidated into one fan post?  Then anyone coming to the fanpost can't comlain about all of the hate because they know it is a forum dedicated to the venting of everyone's loathing for certain players on this team.

Enjoy.  And give respect to Silky Johnson... the greatest player hater ever.

via smokingsection.uproxx.com

UPDATE (8:16 P.M.): Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie has confirmed the buyout.

"It's something going forward that we think made sense for us given where we are, and it made sense for him," Petrie said this evening by cell phone. "It got done about 25 minutes ago."

***

Drew Gooden's Sacramento stay is over.

The forward acquired Feb. 18 in the six-player trade with Chicago has agreed to a buyout agreement with the Kings and has been waived, according to sources close to Gooden with knowledge of the situation. He has an expiring contract and is owed $7.1 million this season, but Gooden had an interest in joining a playoff team in the season's final months. To do so, he had to be waived before tonight's 9 p.m. Pacific deadline for postseason roster eligibility. The Kings, according to the sources, saved approximately $2 million in the deal.

Gooden - who had been exploring this option in recent days - will likely be on his way to a more competitive team. Cleveland could be a possibility, as could San Antonio.

While Gooden has missed his last two games with a groin injury that kept him out of action from Jan. 19 until his Kings debut on Saturday, he remains committed to playing "until the wheels fall off" this season, as he said recently. While Gooden wasn't fully healthy in his one game with the Kings against Charlotte, he had 12 points and 13 rebounds in 26 minutes before leaving the floor hobbling in the fourth quarter. - Sam Amick 

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Even if the Blazers do come back to win the game, Nate McMillan's strategy against the Spurs (and other teams) is inexcusable.  We are playing a Spurs team without Duncan and Ginobili.  They plan is easy.  Don't let Parker beat you.  McMillan said the right things during his pre-game interview.  The plan was to pressure Parker on defensively and force him to work on the other end.  For the most part Blake and Sergio played sloppy defense.  They either sagged off enough to give him an open shot or let him get by at will.  In addition, Sergio continues to show zero effort in transition defense.

No one could predict that Steve Blake would be 0-8 from the field through 3 quarters.  What people do know is that Blake and Rodriguez do not force PG's to work defensively, nor do they defend the PNR.  Why on Earth did Jerryd Bayless not play 25 minutes tonight.  He would have forced Parker to run in transition.  His physical nature would have been draining on Parker and his perimeter defense is certainly better than either of the other two players.

Bottom line...  If you make it your mission to stop one player.  Don't let him score 35+ in a game.  And if he does, at least put the player most capable of neutralizing him into the game rather than DNP-CD him.

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Irrational immediate reactions: We need to hire Herb Brooks as our coach.  If an aging Ray Allen can consistently out hustle our young team, we should make them stay on the court after the game sprinting baseline to baseline until they are all vomiting.  “While other teams can out muscle us, they should never out hustle us!”

More Moderate Reaction:  We have all played a pickup game where the other team is torching us.  We don’t need to be too hard on a team for losing heart during a 20-0 run… We do, however, need to emphasize aggression.  Whether it is crashing the boards, getting back on defense, or cutting to the basket, we need to utilize our team’s athleticism.

Irrational immediate reaction:  I would have paid $100 to Glen Davis if he had let his emotions get the best of him and sucker punched Kevin Garnett… maybe that will teach him to keep his arrogant mouth shut.

More Moderate Reaction: Jerryd Bayless gets to be in charge of the next practice  The focus… “Everybody needs to perfect their Bayless Face.”  Boston came into the game looking to intimidate Portland… and it worked.  Even our beloved Brandon Roy (who is notoriously calm) let Paul Pierce get too him.  The easiest way to get them to stop the taunting is for them to know it doesn’t phase you.

Irrational Immediate Reaction:  For as much as we pay RLEC he needs to take one for the team and go Tonya Harding on Rajon Rondo’s knee caps during half time.  My guess is that his ensuing ten game suspension won’t hurt the team.

More Moderate Reaction: The Blazers need to watch more film.  If I recall, the only jump shot that Rajon Rondo even attempted was the long 3pt that he hit at the buzzer.  All three of our PG’s were playing tight defense against Rondo 5’ outside the arc.  He promptly torched all three of them all night long.  Know how to defend your man… this means give Rondo a nice cushion, don’t leave Ray Allen alone as a help defender, etc.

I also think the Blazers need to work on their team defense.  They have the ability to be a dominant defensive team, but they don’t understand how to properly approach team defense.  When you have excellent post defenders (which we do) the focus should be to funnel the offensive players to the post defender.  As a defender, your goal should be to funnel your man to the baseline where they are trapped between you and Oden or Przybilla.

If your goal is to shut down your man and you get beat, your post defender has to scramble over to the lane and using get a blocking foul.  If you concede the baseline, your big man already is in position which usually means he gets a block or an offensive foul.  San Antonio has been running their defense this way for a decade.  It has worked well for them even with some very marginal perimeter defenders over the years (obviously not talking about Bowen)

Irrational Immediate Reaction:  We had better beat Boston by 30 points when they come to Portland.  Kevin Garnett will be sitting right next to Big Baby with a towel on his head and tears welling in his eyes.

More Moderate Reaction:  If it ever becomes imperative that we able to beat Boston at home THIS SEASON, than 2008-09 will be more special than I had ever imagined.

            Differences of opinion are most often a product of perceptions and preconceived notions, whether conscious or subconscious, which alter the way individuals interpret facts.  Opinions of Jerryd Bayless are very diverse.  In general, however, we develop these opinions from the same sources of information (summer league games, shot charts, interviews, youtube videos, scouting reports, etc.) which indicates that our conflicting views is not from a difference in evidence, but analysis. I hold the unpopular opinion that Jerryd Bayless should be our starting point guard as the season begins.  Rather than rant and rave about his strengths, however, I would prefer to articulate the manner in which I evaluate his perceived shortcomings and team role.  Maybe after sharing the process, some other Blazer fans will begin to believe, like I do, that Bayless would be an excellent fit as our starting point guard right away; or maybe some knowledgeable fans will illuminate some flaws in my evaluation process, which will cause me to change my opinion on this matter.

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