ClutchFans Game Thread: Blazers @ Rockets 12/17/2022

@Os Trigonum
@Verbal Christ
@Bobbythegreat
hey buddies, a SOF detected...need to trade sengun and get rid of the garbage fans

 

This year they might be but normally the Blazers are not known as the embodiment of a smart franchise.

 

What game were you watching? Nurkic had 14 points (many of which were against Bruno, btw) while the Portland guards had 25 and 32 pts respectively. The issue here wasn’t guarding the big man - it was guarding the perimeter where Lillard and Simon got open shot after open shot.

Sengun is not a good defender, but at this stage he is no worse than either of our two starting guards. And in the grand scheme of things, his bad defense is hurting us way less than the bad defense of KPJ and Jalen. We aren’t getting killed by bigs this season generally but multiple opposing guards have had career nights against us.

Last night, KPJ and Green went full Francis and Mobley (with a healthy dose of Moochie as well) and it was unbearable to watch. This loss is way more than being cold from 3 - it’s about 2 guards whose poor court vision and overall selfishness killed any hope for easy baskets and who then couldn’t guard a paper bag for the entire game. Meanwhile, the guy who has shown in game after game the ability to make both easy and creative passes that lead to wide open dunks and 3s gets practically no touches.

All this is also a reflection of a coach who seems to think one of our two starting guards has Luka level court vision and will tolerate all kinds of bad play in hopes they’ll prove him right. The rest of the team has been relegated to the occasional kick out pass, the rare PNR pass and fighting for the offensive rebound off of the multiple misses (something they’re actually doing extremely well). This scheme is not winning basketball, which means Silas has implemented a truly wretched playbook or he’s allowing the guards to ignore whatever playbook he actually intends to be implemented. Either means he should be shown the door.

Last night was not well attended, which made it easier for me to hear the players yelling at one another. There is deep frustration among the other players over KPJ and Green’s ball-hogging and failure to keep the ball moving when it was being swung around the perimeter. We can draft all the talent in the world but with this kind of play, none of them are going to want to stay.

Otherwise, I agree with some of your points - the guards need to stop cheating off the corners and just stay on their men. Double teams should be limited to hard doubles and should occur before a player gets into his shot - the goal should be to force a pass out to someone who isn’t in easy scoring position.

 

Green b****ing about the ball being stagnant is like Jeffrey Dahmer b****ing that the police didn’t take the killing of gay men seriously.

 

I liked this post because of the points which are accurately made but i don't agree with cancer thing. I would definitely like to take another look at kpj in a different role and under better coaching.

 

I meant simply our strategy, which now seemed to be soft doubling, which caused wide open threes or poorly contested ones. I rather we stayed home, but would've understood if we doubled hard given Nurkic abilities and our bigs not looking up to the task. This to me was a sign of Silas afraid to commit to one or the other.

 

I hear you however winning 30+ games does not mean anything if there is nuance to it.

You could be playing bad but catch fire and go on winning streaks.

 

THE WHOLE TEAM PLAYED POORLY!

Starting with our guards, I thought the defensive effort was there BUT they got to be able to hit 3s!!! Plain and simple! No one in today's game can win trading 2's for 3's and it's been like that in the last two losses.

There is NO OFFENSIVE STRUCTURE and I put that on Silas....ITS HORRIBLE! His rotations are bad.

I know he needs basketball right now but I think he needs to take some time off to get himself together.

 

I dont blame Jalen for ball hogging I blame SIlas for that. He's basically being taught that. Jalen learned last year that if he doesnt command the ball he wont get it. He was standing in the corner waiting for a ball that never came. When you tell certain people here that they are all learning bad habits from a coach that doesnt hold them accountable and keep a logical system in place, they say youre overreacting. I understand that Houston hasnt rebuilt a team in a long time and most here dont know what a successful start to a rebuild looks like, because youre supposed to lose, unless ofcourse youve done extremely well. Youre not losing just to lose though you need development and culture in place as you rebuild. If you are just going for a normal rebuild without failure and without being stuck there for a decade, you need to pick the right coach and the GM needs to hold that coach accountable. The way we do things now it seems as the coaching staff is completely in love with KPJ, even though he isnt our high pick and it seems to start with Silas who lets him do whatever he wants. He is a ball demanding ball hog who is turnover prone and would rather take a contested shot over 3 defenders than take an open shot. He has talent but he isnt being steered in the direction that makes him utilize his talent in the right way. You dont just change those bad habits. If they dont rein KPJ in and find a new coach we could be in for a very long rebuild.

 

THIS...

btw i also dont blame silas because he has GM allowing him to do it...

 

exactly. And not only that, there is no other offense. If he does not do that, there is no way he can get the ball in a meaningful way, they would just pass the ball around without having a clue. Kpj will jack something up, or occasional Sengun post-up or some other random play. But there is literally zero chance that he would be set up for a play.

 

Agree with everything in this post minus the part where KPJ has talent. The doofus has no talent - if he had talent, he wouldn't be such a negative, inefficient, trash tier player who has trouble getting separation and being a negative on defense. All of those stupid party tricks he does dribbling leads to nowhere. And if he actually had good, effective handles, he wouldn't be turning over the ball simply by dribbling near the defender. He doesn't have handles and never will. He doesn't have the most important skill/trait - a good work ethic to actually get better, nor does he have the skill of being an effective leader. He's a nobody and shouldn't be in the NBA

 

SIGNED!

 

Bullshit.
You have two pieces of sh!te on court, who hog the ball heave bricks.
You yank your dumb players and let their asses cool off on the pine.
If we're going to shoot 3/29, at least give somebody else a chance.
If they commit turnovers, make Alpi the hub. Let him commit turnovers, or turn the game around.
Just don't get teabagged by your poster boys.
If you have no ideas, why are you even there?

 

The problem starts with Silas and Stone.

The former isn't able to coach young players good fundamental basketball and the latter only knows how to draft but doesn't seem to care about how to make everything work.

Holding onto Silas for his dear life is going to haunt him.

At least Stone is far off where he and everyone want to be.

 

It’s been obvious for some time that KPJ is not a good fit with Jalen. It’s why I also hate when KPJ goes out of his way to tether himself to Jalen in press conferences. It’s like he knows that’s what everyone is questioning and he’s trying to communicate that he doesn’t see himself in another role. And I’m okay with his mindset of wanting to make it work, but he better prepare himself to take on other roles that are best for the team. If his identity is linked to being the rockets starting point guard, he’s gonna have a rude awakening because this is not sustainable and everyone knows it. 6 turnovers again in 30 min last night; and he killed the flow. Silas needs to wake up and start using our players effectively. Ridiculous

 

It seems Stone's main job is to make and save money for the franchise and he seems to be doing a very good job, with all the rookies, undrafted players etc. I think that's why Nix, and even KPJ, get good PT: They need to showcase and prove themselves in order for Stone to appear a genius.