Blazers turned themselves into contender for the 12-13th spot while adding multiple picks..... ......another Utah.
I think with normal growth of our younger roster players, we probably end up with a win total in the low 30s (let's call it 32 +/- a game). If everything breaks right, we might get to 37-40 wins(probably not a play in team though) if we are smarter in our late game execution. Having vets to close out tight games will help there so we aren't trotting out 5 inexperienced guys trying to hold a lead late. I think there is probably a fair amount of parity in the league right now(particularly in the West - Denver is the only unbeatable team at full strength) - most teams have some clear flaws which means there are probably more 50/50 games out there than in year's past but you have to be able to execute well to pick up those games and that's something none of our young players have shown they can do for very long so whether Houston hits the high side of my total is largely going to depend on how well they buy into Ime's coaching, the vet's mentorship, or if Ime isn't trying to throw games for Stone(let's hope not)...or if Ime's coaching or the vet's mentorship are as good as we hoped. If Ime was fools gold and FVV and Brooks prove to be a minus on the court(or injured) - its possible we finish with wins totalling in the mid 20s because if we are looking like we are going to finish under 30 wins and another bottom feeder team then Stone might opt to lose more games to increase odds that we can get into the top 4 and keep our pick similar to how Dallas adjusted their strategy late in the season to try to keep their pick. Under 32 wins and there becomes an incentive to lose more.
That is what I am curious about. If the team stands at 30 wins and there are only 6-7 games left, what will they do.
Final teams to make Western Conference Playoff - (record) - win % '21 Grizz (26-24): .520 win % '22 Pels (36-45): .444 win % '23 Thunder (40-42): .488 win % ["Play-In" started] Just an FYI (or our information)
If your best player is Jerami Grant you have no business reaching 35 wins. Portland is a bottom 3 team in the west and might as well embrace the tank to build around Scoot.
