SB Nation User Blog: ucatchtrout

WIN A JERSEY!!!!

ucatchtrout — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 02:10:43 -0000

WIN A JERSEY!!!!

Win yourself a Blazers Jersey!

The idea for our new contest came from blazabala30, and he will be managing the contest.

Thank you blazabala30!

TO ENTER CLICK ON THIS LINK

TO WIN A JERSEY....YOU WILL MAKE YOUR PREDICTIONS IN THE GAMEDAY THREADS....
Pick The Spread of each blazers game.
For example:
Blazers @ Lakers
Lakers -4.5
The - means that lakers are favored by 4.5, So if you pick lakers to win, they must win by 5,
If you pick Blazers to win, they must lose by 4 or win.

Free tickets to Thunder game on Wednesday

ucatchtrout — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 23:11:17 -0000

Free tickets to Thunder game on Wednesday

http://www.clubblazers.com/blazers-discussion/who-wants-free-tickets-see-the-thunder-t1704.html

I'm giving away two tickets to the Thunder game on Wednesday night to the person who has the best reason why I should give them the tickets.

What is a career ending injury?

ucatchtrout — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 20:20:58 -0000

The answer to this question is the real problem. After the Allan Houston thing the league attempted to define this and modified the rules to what they are today.

Unfortunately they didn't get it quite right, which is why we have the brouhaha going on over Darius Miles today.

The rule is designed to provide relief to teams whose players suffer career ending injuries. Miles injury is so bad his knee can NOT support a professional basketball career. The team doctor, independant doctors, the NBA doctor, and the players assciations own doctor all agreed upon this. There is simply ZERO chance they got this wrong. If you've never seen them I have to tell you that the quality of todays MRI and XRay exams is nothing short of amazing. You can see every single thing inside the knee. (We just had this done on my sons knee Wednesday night. He has an injured MCL.)

Name one credible MEDICAL source that says Miles knee is okay. You can't, because there aren't any. There are agents and team officials and even Miles himself selling stories about his knee. But they are all FLUFF.

It's not a question of IF Miles knee will break if he plays professional basketball, it's a question of WHEN.

Notice nobodys offering Miles a 2 or 3 year deal? If they were so certain his knee was okay they would. SInce we have this arbitrary ten game rule, teams have found a way to use that to gain a competitive and financial advantage against the Trailblazers by exploiting Miles and his desire to resume the rockstar style life of an NBA player. I don't like what these teams are doing, but they aren't breaking any rules.

I also don't like the ten game rule. This situation has illustrated the problem with it. I'm not saying the Blazers should be given a pass on this. The rules are the rules and everybody has to play by them. But I will say the ten game thing should be changed, and the career ending injury status redifined.

If your mechanic says don't drive your car, but you know it will start and go down the road it doesn't mean your car is okay. It means your car is living on borrowed time. IF you choose to drive it, you know eventually it WILL break.

Miles knee is like that. Whether it's a good choice or not to play professional basketball on that knee, it remains HIS choice.

The Blazers didn't try and force him to play on that knee, they paved the way for him to retire while he was still in good enough health to be able to walk on it, and they made sure through their insurance carrier he will get paid the full 48 million dollars that were on his contract. They acted responsibly. They went through the process with the doctors, the league, and the players association to make this all happen.

Competitors are now trying to use that ten game loophole and Darius Miles desire to resume the lifestyle of an NBA player to their advantage against the Blazers. I don't like it, but that's the way it is, and they are within their rights to do so.

The Blazers had this called right. And they knew the Grizzlies were about to resign Miles. The Blazers knew they were screwed. They did what a lot of people in America do. They had their lawyer write a nasty letter threatening litigation. Most likely nothing will ever come of it. But you never know. You CAN sue anybody for anything. Doesn't mean you will ever collect a dime, but you will force the other party to defend themselves. In the courts you defend yourself by spending money. Who has deeper pockets than Paul Allen? Maybe you don't like what the Blazers did here. But just like with Darius Miles and the Memphis Grizzlies, they were well within their rights to do so.

I doubt the league will ever offer Portland any relief for this situation. I do hope however, they take another look at the rules and see what can be done to make them better. Maybe Darius Miles shouldn't even be allowed to play if a doctor says that his knee is so injured it's likely to break if subjected to the rigors of professional basketball. Of course if you go that route you run the risk of somebody claiming you are taking away Darius right to work. Maybe you don't have the ten game rule. If the doctors say they are broken, they are broken and you get the relief. Or maybe you change the ten games to a full season, which is probably a better measure of whether someone is capable of playing competitively on a regular basis.

Courtside Notes 12/29

ucatchtrout — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 00:34:52 -0000

Trail Blazers Courtside
12/29/08, 6-7pm
Note: only hour show due to Duck basketball
Hosts: Mike Barrett, Mike Rice, Brian Wheeler

Summary

    * McMillian – I see areas we still need to improve on. We just go to focus on it and commit to doing it.
    * Mike Rice – last five years in the West the teams with the best win record on the road advance to the playoffs. Portland is 8th and Utah 9th best of the nine teams contending for 8 playoff spots.
    * Predictions for 2009 – Mike Barratt - “Trail Blazers will make a blockbuster deal right before the trade deadline using Raef LaFrenz’s contract to land a former all-star”
    * John Hollinger, ESPN Analyst – 93% chance Portland will make the playoffs and 38% chance Portland will win the division[/QUOTE]

If you wish to read the rest of Courtside Notes click here

How do we fire up the big guy?

ucatchtrout — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 03:41:28 -0000

How do we fire up the big guy?

Let's set aside for a moment the comments made recently by Jason Quick of the Oregonian and just consider what we have all observed. We've seen a young man having a hard time getting used to playing with the big boys. Thats all it is really.

Add to that, that he is coming off an injury and a year away from the game and you have forced upon a 20 year old a learning curve that is steep enough that he is struggling with it. And I think he is also struggling with those who have been anxious to criticize someone who was for a good many reasons unable to be the overnight sensation they expected him to be.

Jason Quick went too far in what he had to say about our starting center. Way too far. If I were a few years younger and had a few beers in me, and I found him sitting across from me in a bar I might even go so far as to invite him outside so he could hear what I really think of him. But I'm not a few years younger. And I won't off in an alley somewhere flying off the handle spewing my pithy sarcasm into Quicks face. I'm just an old man with a laptop. So I'll sack up and be a man here and see if I can organize my thoughts so rational fans out there in Blazerland can understand them.

Do you kick your dog when he is down?

Do you tell your wife she is an incompetant when she is struggling at work?

Do you tell your kids they will never amount to anything if they get a bad grade or get in trouble?

Or do you support them anyway? And let them know you will be there for them and be behind them no matter what? Then do whatever you can do to let them know it and help them feel good enough to take the next brave step forward in facing whatever is challenging them?

In some ways Quicks observations were not that far off the mark. Especially if you look at his followup comments. He just went too far by making it personal.

The kid is down. Our kid is down. And I mean no disrespect to Greg by calling him a kid. In many respects he is a boy playing a mans game and a boy in a mans body. He just isn't completely grown up yet. And quite frankly I'd hate to see either of my kids who are that age be under the kind of pressure that young man is under.

But if they were, I'd help them. I'd rack my brain trying to think of whatever I could do or say to support them.

Greg is our guy. He IS our number one pick. I wouldn't change that, and I doubt the Blazers would either. So what do they do with him? Clearly he is affected by the pressure. He walks out sullenly when introduced at the beginning of the game. When other players are jumping up and down getting ready for the tip off, he just stands there and looks around. And the charming fellow that always had the press laughing is quiet and distant.

If you are the Blazers what do you do with Greg to get the fires going again?

Do you tell him to push back, when other players push him? Or tell him to pretend he is Karl Malone and throw an elbow or two?

Knowing his love for dancing...do you have him pick the opening song and have him lead the Blazers out on the floor? Or have a Dance Dance Revolution contest between him and his teammates and the fans?

Do you tell him to play his rear off, don't worry about the fouls, and then actually start throwing the ball to him while he is moving towards the basket off a pick and roll?

Do you force feed him at the offensive end until he gets over whatever difficulties he is having and let him feel good about scoring some points?

And lastly, as fans, what can we do to let #52 we are behind him no matter what?

Cheer every time he touches the ball?

Chant his name when he is introduced? and when he enters the game?

Cancel our Oregonian subscriptions?

Have our own Dance Dance Revolution contest and make him the judge?

12/8 Courtside Notes

ucatchtrout — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 17:13:36 -0000

courtesy of Discovery 69

12/8 - Trail Blazer Courtside - Monday

by discovery69 on Wed Dec 10, 2008 6:41 pm

Trial Blazer Courtside
Monday, December 8, 2008, 6-8pm PST
Hosts: Jay Allen & Michael Holton

Summary

Nate McMillan – he is having Greg focus on defense first and worry about offense later.
Brian Wheeler – since Brandon Roy has been a Blazer they are 25 wins, 9 losses in games decided by 3pts or less
Terry Porter – he had his H.S. jersey, college jersey and now the pinnacle of his playing career the retirement of his pro jersey.
Bill Schonley:
- Without Bobby Gross (similar to Rudy) there would not be any championship.
- Terry Porter the third most popular blazer only behind Bill Walton and Clyde Drexler in his opinion.
- The current Blazers remind him of the great championship team of the 70’s and the finals teams of the 90’s.
Michael Holton
- The great Coach John Wooden once said that it’s amazing what a team can accomplish when no one is concerned on who gets the credit.
- The Blazers have good team quickness in getting out of area rebounds, making plays down the stretch and having key defensive stops.
- Roy, Fernandez, Aldridge, Blake and Outlaw are goto shooters. Most teams only have one or two, but the Blazers have at least 4 to 5 key players to take the shot.

To read the rest of Courtside Notes visit this link

Outlaw takes blame for loss

ucatchtrout — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 02:11:31 -0000

T. Outlaw fessed up to the press and took the blame for the fouled up play at the end of the game which resulted in a shot clock violation. When asked about the play Nate was willing to tell reporters only that it wasn't executed properly. Outlaw threw himself under the bus and accepted responsibility for not cutting to the ball the way he had been instructed to do.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2008/12/blazers_slip_down_stretch_agai.html#more"

I admire Travis for his accountability. He made a mistake. He owned it.

But the loss shouldn't fall completely on his shoulders. The fact we blew an 8 point lead in less than two minutes was not something he alone was responsible for. I'm a fan of our coach, but I do question some of the choices he made during the last minute and fifty seconds of the game.

1. In retrospect from the comfort of my couch its easy to see that pulling the guy who had the hot hand (Sergio) in running the offense and inserting Steve Blake stalled the offense. As did changing the offensive plan to Brandon Roy ISO. Brandon didn't execute at the foul line, and that resulted in a 8 point lead turning into a two point lead with just thirty seconds to go. That of course left us just one more screwed up posession and a Turkoglu 3 pointer away from a loss.

2. When the only plays you run at the end of the game are Brandon Roy ISO's other teams ARE going to figure it out, and they are going to come up with ways to stop it. Time to mix things up a bit, our offensive strategy is becoming predictable and thus vulerable to being shut down.

3. The zone defense Portland had been using to neutralize Dwight Oden was broken down by the Magic. They scored at will at the end of the game and there were no adjustments made. From the comfort of my couch its easy for me to say that a move back to a man to man D would have made a difference.

Losing a game this way bugs me. But the one catchphrase you always hear analysts say about games like this is that the next game is never far away. So tomorrow night we travel to Utah to play Jerry Sloans Jazz. Sloan just this week won his thousandth game as a head coach. Even though it was announced today Carlos Boozer isn't expected to play, Paul Milsap has been playing very well in his absence. Along with the suitcases and the jerseys we better bring our A Game if we expect to beat the Jazz in Salt Lake.

Dec 7 vs Toronto Raptors Game Preview

ucatchtrout — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 06:02:47 -0000

The Blazers wrap up their five game trip with a Sunday morning game against the Raptors in Toronto.

Gametime 10 am Pacific Time

Since this is our first look at the Raptors this season here is a video preview of their team. Video link to this seasons Toronto Raptors

After a day off and a dissapointing loss to Boston the Blazers will be facing a Toronto team with a new coach who is looking for his first victory after losing Friday night in Utah. Jay Triano will be the first Canadian head coach in NBA history. Triano, formerly an assistant coach, will run the team through the end of the season according to Brian Colangelo. Colangelo was upset about the teams 39 point loss in Denver and slow start ( 8-9 ) after making the playoffs the last two seasons. The Toronto coach has been on the hot seat since last year when the team finished the season poorly. Just 13-20 out of its last 33 games. Mitchell, who was hired before Colangelo came in from Phoenix, never really saw eye to eye with Colangelo. The GM wanted the team who is currently last in the NBA in fast break points, to run more. And he put in place a coach who will do his bidding.

Friday nights loss was a tough one for our team, but if they keep their heads together they should find Toronto a much more inviting place than Boston. Toronto has two players that match up well against Portland. AllStar Chris Bosh, and Jose Calderon. Beyond that the Raptors roster hasn't been very effective this season. ExBlazer Jermaine O'Neal isn't the player he once was. He was brought in to be a defensive stopper for the Raptors, but it hasn't really worked out that way. Andrea Bargnani hasn't been playing very well either. He looks like one of those guys management has ordered a coach to play so that their learning curve will hasten and they will reach their potential sooner rather than later. Trouble is, it hasn't worked out that way and Bargnani hasn't been able to successfuly play NBA defense. Pundits around the league have been calling for Toronto to replace him in the starting lineup with Jamario Moon.

Brandon Roy shot just 3-12 against Boston. Does anyone really think he is going to play that way again, especially with Anthony Parker trying to stop him? WIll Solomon or Roko Ukic off the bench aren't going to be able to stop him or Rudy either. If we can keep Bosh under control and be patient offensively our guards can torch this team and we should come home from this road trip with our heads held high and a 4-1 record.

Projected starters
Portland Trailblazers

Steve Blake -PG
Brandon Roy-SG
Nic Batum-SF
LaMarcus Aldridge-PF
Greg Oden-Center

Projected starters
Toronto Raptors

Jose Calderon-PG
Anthony Parker-SG
Andrea Bargnani-PF
Chris Bosh-PF
Jermaine O'Neal-Center

As always there will be pregame, gametime, and postgame discussion of the game in the gameday forum.

Be sure to catch the video recap and hdtv highlights of the game by clicking here.

Courtside Notes from 12/1

ucatchtrout — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 11:18:56 -0000

courtesy of Discovery 69
Trail Blazers Courtside
Monday, December 1, 2008, 6-8pm
Hosts: Jay Allen and Michael Holton

Don’t forget to vote for Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge or Greg Oden on the all-star ballot at NBA.com.

Summary
- Dean Demopoulos interviews:
--- Martell still a maybe on this road trip
--- Roy is the best all around player he has ever coached in his 30 years as a coach.
--- He still says “wow” ever so often with what these players do on the court
--- The coaches are just scratching the surface in what they want these players to do.
--- They spend about 65% on offense and 35% on defense.
--- A good defense starts with a good offense.
--- Your offense is either running and gunning or laying and praying. He prefers the Blazers be able to do both.
- Bobby Gross interview
--- Bill Walton was like Roy, it was always team first. Walton enjoyed passing more than him scoring.
- Mike Barratt interview
--- Martell will back-up Batum in about 12 MPG to start out with.
--- Blazer coaches are very high on Nicolas Batum in all the things he does on the court..

click here to read the rest of courtside notes

Blazers AT Detroit game preview

ucatchtrout — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 02:30:06 -0000

11/30 Portland at Detroit, Game Preview

For the first game of another five game road trip the Blazers stop in the Motor City to take on the Pistons and ex-Blazer Mr. CTC himself, Rasheed Wallace.

There is still enough experience and fight in this Pistons team to put a whuppin on any team in this league. The question remains night in and night out which Pistons team will show up. The one that cares or the one that doesn’t. That in and of itself often starts with Rasheed. Throw in AI to the mix and I’d say we have a bit of a mystery on our hands. Neither of these two players are likely to wear a Pistons jersey next year, so they do have some incentive to perform this season that might not otherwise be there. However it didnt keep AI from skipping PRACTICE on turkey day.

Here is look at their current roster….

Detroit Pistons Roster - 2008-09
NBA:

Team Roster
NO. NAME POS AGE HT WT COLLEGE 2008 - 2009 SALARY
6 Alex Acker G 25 6-5 185 Pepperdine $711,517
28 Arron Afflalo SG 23 6-5 215 UCLA $1,015,440
38 Kwame Brown C 26 6-11 270 $4,000,000
12 Will Bynum PG 25 6-0 185 Georgia Tech $711,517
32 Richard Hamilton SG 30 6-7 193 Connecticut $10,812,500
5 Walter Herrmann PF 29 6-9 225 $2,000,000
1 Allen Iverson SG 33 6-0 180 Georgetown $20,840,625
25 Amir Johnson PF 21 6-9 210 $3,666,667
54 Jason Maxiell PF 25 6-7 260 Cincinnati $1,877,572
22 Tayshaun Prince SF 28 6-9 215 Kentucky $9,500,000
42 Walter Sharpe PF 22 6-9 245 UAB $442,114
3 Rodney Stuckey PG 22 6-5 205 Eastern Washington $1,687,320
30 Rasheed Wallace C 34 6-11 230 North Carolina $13,930,000
Coach: Michael Curry
Average Age: 26.3
Average Height: 6-6
Average Weight: 216
courtesy of espn….http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/teams/roster?team=det

The depth this team once had isn’t there anymore, and McDyess has yet to make his return from Denver. On paper you wonder if they really have a serious title run left in them.

At the point guard spot there is no doubt AI and his capable backup Rodney Stuckey hold an advantage over the Blazers. AI himself has destroyed many a team in the past. However the defense we played on Chris Paul Friday night at the Rose Garden was pretty impressive. And it might be enough to neutralize these guys.

Richard Hamilton witll keep our all star Brandon Roy busy all night long. He never slows down and with Chauncey gone I kind of see him as the heart of this team. Still, Brandons defense seems to get better every game. And at this position I have to give the edge to the Blazers.

Tayshun Prince holds down the fort for the Pistons at SF. Our SF by committee should have an advantage here. Nic Batum has held his own thus far in the season and I don’t look for Prince to overpower anyone offensively. With Outlaw coiming in to spell him and Roy sliding over here for a few minutes I think the Blazers have an advantage at this position.

Don’t know which Wallace will show up to play in Mondays game. If it is the one who doesn’t give a rip we might be on our way to an upset victory on the road. If its angry Rasheed wanting to teach everyone a lesson LA and Channing Frye are in for trouble and will find themselves sorely overmatched.

Kwame Brown is Kwame Brown. He is another guy who probably won’t be playing in Detroit very long. This might be a chance for Greg Oden to have a nice game. One thing I noticed Friday night was that every time the Blazers ran the pick and roll and Greg rollled to the hoop no one ever passed him the ball. Not once. If they run that and actually pass to him he will score 20 on Kwame and Rasheed and there will be some celebratin going on on the flight to New York.

I see this game and the Boston game as the two real tests on this road trip. Earlier in the year I’d have said I’d be pleased if our guys came home from a trip like this 3 and 2.

Despite what I see on paper for this game, Detroit has not only the home court advantage but a huge edge in experience over our young team. It will be a fun game to watch and see if they are able to rise to the challenge. However I am afraid they will fall short. I’m picking Pistons by 9.
For further discussion or more similar articles click here