# Game recap from scrimmage yesterday



## NateBishop3 (Jul 22, 2003)

Guys,

I basically just wrote this as fast as I could seeing as I have to be somewhere in about 20 minutes. I left out some stuff I wanted to put in, so I'll try to answer whatever questions you might have when I get back in a bit. 

Here's the link 

http://www.hoopsworld.com/article_14504.shtml


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## CatchNRelease (Jan 2, 2003)

Thanks, Nate. You da man!

We really appreciate you keeping us 'in the know.'

Go Blazers


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## stupendous (Feb 17, 2003)

Great recap Nate! Thanks for giving us the scoop!


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## Reep (Jun 4, 2003)

My favorite part:



> Dixon was also cold from the field, he especially had trouble getting his shot off when guarded by Martell Webster. The rookie essentially held both Dixon and Smith in check for the entire first half.
> 
> ...
> 
> Losing Miles proved to be too a huge loss for the white team. Immediately black started making a comeback behind Telfair and the play of Webster. Moving Martell over to Bassy's team seemed to be what the kid needed. He started hitting three's, running the floor, and stealing passes. Webster was all over the place. Between the two young guards, the black team was able to take a 54-50 lead at the end of the third quarter.


I would love to see Martell in the starting lineup.


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## Samuel (Jan 1, 2003)

Great stuff, Nate. Your writing continues to improve, and I like the elements of introduction/reincorporation you're starting to use.


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## furball (Jul 25, 2004)

Great job as usual. I am really curious about Ha. Do you think he will be sent to the D-league. I hope so. He needs a lot of minutes. I'm also very leery on Monya. He did not play very well for CSKA this season and he also didn't play well for Russia in the Worlds. I've heard people compare him to Dan Marjle as far as his body, his defense and his tenacity. I'm wondering if you seen any of that.


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## GrandpaBlaze (Jul 11, 2004)

Great recap. Thanks Nate.

Gramps...


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## Utherhimo (Feb 20, 2005)

HA is improving thats great heck he is a center who dont normal get ready till 25 see joel, I hope he improves as much as he did last year that would be awesome with Lucas he should. HA looks heavier but stronger too 7'4 and 325? you cant beat a heavy big like that! HA Martel, Telfair Outlaw zbo with jack viktor wow nice and exciting!  MIles with a groin injury? oh great even before the season geez


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## Storyteller (Dec 31, 2002)

Once again, *Nate*, you rock! :clap:

I just got back in town from a leadership conference, so I'm still trying to catch up on the week's news on the team, but a few things seem to stand out to me:

1) For good or bad, I think this will be Telfair's team. He's going to run the team. Whether he plays well or not will be a big factor in the team's performance.

2) Reading the reports would leave me to believe that Webster is moving much better without the ball than he did when I saw him early in the summer.

3) I agree with Nate that Outlaw not playing muchlast night doesn't definitively communicate anything huge - but it might communicate something. Patterson started instead of him. Is that an indication that, at least at this point, Ruben is ahead of Travis in the rotation? I'm just speculating here...

4) Nice to hear that Zach is active... :yes:

5) Dixon's game last night is, IMO, a probably preview of what the Blazers will get with him this year - hot spells and cold spells and not much in between.

6) Sounds like my initial projection of the Blazers being an entertaining team to watch if nothing else doesn't have to change yet....


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## SheedSoNasty (Dec 31, 2002)

I'm getting really excited about Martell Webster...

Thanks Nate!


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## Chalupa (Jul 20, 2005)

> The black squad just didn't have the scorers. Sam Clancy was playing very solid basketball. He was a rebounding machine, he was playing great defense, but his offense was virtually non-existent. Dixon was also cold from the field, he especially had trouble getting his shot off when guarded by Martell Webster. The rookie essentially held both Dixon and Smith in check for the entire first half.


Wow it sounds like Martell might be the best SG on the team. If he continues to outplay Smith and Dixon consistently though pre-season he might be the starter on opening night. 

I hope Coach Nate sticks to his word and lets the best/hardest working player start regardless of age.

Thanks for recap, 

How did Webster look athletically?


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## Utherhimo (Feb 20, 2005)

ha is too big for the NBDL he is better off training with the blazers.

blake dixon smith could be used as filler in a trade but miles getting hurt just kinda figures


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## Backboard Cam (Apr 29, 2003)

Utherhimo said:


> ha is too big for the NBDL he is better off training with the blazers.


I agree that he's better off staying in Portland, but IMO the language barrier is a bigger problem than being too big. The Blazers will be more patient with him than the coaches in Fort Worth, and he'll learn better.

*Nate*, thanks for the great recap. :greatjob:


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## Storyteller (Dec 31, 2002)

Utherhimo said:


> blake dixon smith could be used as filler in a trade


But not until after December 15th.


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## NateBishop3 (Jul 22, 2003)

furball said:


> Great job as usual. I am really curious about Ha. Do you think he will be sent to the D-league. I hope so. He needs a lot of minutes. I'm also very leery on Monya. He did not play very well for CSKA this season and he also didn't play well for Russia in the Worlds. I've heard people compare him to Dan Marjle as far as his body, his defense and his tenacity. I'm wondering if you seen any of that.


I honestly don't think Ha will be sent to the D league. We are too short on big men... No pun intended. 

He seems to be improving while working with the blazers, and it probably doesn't hurt that he's working with Theo and Joel. Interesting enough, it's Ha's defense that was so impressive last night. He must have blocked at least five shots. 

As far as Monia goes, I get the feeling he'll be riding the pine all year. Either that, or he'll be sent to the D-League. He needs a lot of work. I think it's his confidence. He missed an easy layup that really pointed towards a lack of confidence, at least to me. But is that really so bad? We don't have enough minutes for everybody. It's probably for the best if he needs another year of development. 

I didn't really see this great defense from him last night, but he didn't play very much. At times he would be in and out so fast you almost wouldn't notice him. 

Martell looked much more athletic than I had originally thought. He's not super quick, but he's not slow either. I think he needs to work on his conditioning, just like the rest of the team. When he gets in better shape I think he'll be a real force. 

I really do think he'll be starting before the year is over. He is hands down the best shooting guard on the team.


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## chromekilla (Aug 21, 2005)

how did pryzy and ha look.


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## mgb (Jun 26, 2004)

I agree with everyone else, keep Ha here. We can use him and he needs the playing time. He probably won't get many mins, but just having him at practice will help him a lot.


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## furball (Jul 25, 2004)

I have to disagree with all of you. I think Ha is the best option to send down to the D-League as I believe this is the only year he could go. He looks to me to have a lot of potential but nobody learns sitting on the bench. Where are his minutes going to come from if Theo and Joel stay healthy. We are not going to pay Theo 10 million to play behind Ha, and I think Khryapa, Darius, and Ruben are going to get the bulk of the minutes at the back up 4. Jermaine didn't come of age until he got to play some minutes. Ha needs to play, and play in a system that has referee's that call fouls. He is not going to get better just practicing.

P.S.

MGB, I dont' know what it is, but that Avatar is just disturbing. I think it's that porn star mustache.


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## Dan (Dec 30, 2002)

furball said:


> MGB, I dont' know what it is, but that Avatar is just disturbing. I think it's that porn star mustache.


thats MGB.


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## Chalupa (Jul 20, 2005)

furball said:


> I have to disagree with all of you. I think Ha is the best option to send down to the D-League as I believe this is the only year he could go. He looks to me to have a lot of potential but nobody learns sitting on the bench. Where are his minutes going to come from if Theo and Joel stay healthy. We are not going to pay Theo 10 million to play behind Ha, and I think Khryapa, Darius, and Ruben are going to get the bulk of the minutes at the back up 4. Jermaine didn't come of age until he got to play some minutes. Ha needs to play, and play in a system that has referee's that call fouls. He is not going to get better just practicing.
> 
> P.S.
> 
> MGB, I dont' know what it is, but that Avatar is just disturbing. I think it's that porn star mustache.


Ha is not a good a candidate because 
1) There is no one Ha's size to match up against
2) Due to the lack of real centers the speed of the game would be too fast for Ha
3) Ha is very young and there is a language/culture barrier (so the team would be uncomfortable leaving him alone down there)
4) The NBDL team is shared by 4 different NBA teams so playing time may be a problem there
5) Blazer coaching staff is much better than the NBDL team’s
6) Ha can learn and be mentored by to legit NBA centers in Ratliff and Pryzbilla if he stays with the team

Due to these reasons there is pretty much zero chance Ha ends up in the D-league.
Yes it is unlikely that Ha will get much in game experience the next couple years but he did learn and improve tagging along with the team last season.
The language/culture barrier also makes it a bad idea to send Monia down.
The only viable possibility for the NBDL is Jack and only if Nates rotation is leaves him with little playing time.


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## riehldeal (May 11, 2003)

ditto on everything that CHALUPA just said

keep HA in portland learning from Joel and Theo

Theo, if serious about his new leadership role, should take it as a personal mission of his to move HA along in his development (why the **** not)....gotta get our 10 mil worth somewhere....right???


and might i add

i am soooooooooooooooooo excited about this season and am soooooooooooooo pissed that i am out of the country till early december ....i am sooooo jealous of you guys for getting to see the first month and a half without me.....hopefully i will jump right into a surprising blazer season and martell just entering the starters role (i know he will probably need more than a month and a half but one can hope right??)

anyways

GO BLAZERS! and Nate McMillan rocks


when i read about how darius miles started runnin that lap even before nate said anything, i huge smile came over my face.....FINALLY some discipline and a true coach....first one since Ricky boy

RIP CITY is gettin closer by the day guys!


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## Utherhimo (Feb 20, 2005)

HA had 5 blocks? wow! I always thought HA would be more of an offensive center rather than defensivehe must be learning from Joel and Theo thats great for MT HA.

Not bad for a #46 pick that seems to be improving rather fast compared to Nedzad if he keeps improving like this thats pretty awesome! 

Jack martell outlaw viktor ha sounds like a good squad to me!


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## STOMP (Jan 1, 2003)

Utherhimo said:


> Not bad for a #46 pick that seems to be improving rather fast compared to Nedzad if he keeps improving like this thats pretty awesome!


Reports were that Big Ned decidedly outplayed Ha during this past summer league... reports were also that both still look like they've a ways to go yet. Just guessing on why the organization has chosen to go with the different development routes for each that they have, I'd venture that the European league that Ned is playing in is much better competition then the Korean league that Ha could be. 

With Joel's contract situation and the Blazers capped out through Theo's deal eliminating adding anything more then an MLE FA center, one or both of those two may be backing up Theo starting next year. I know that Ned just signed a 4 year deal overseas, but I'd imagine that there is an exit clause built in for him to join the Blazers. I'm going to email Nash about this guess of mine...

STOMP


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## ebott (Jan 7, 2003)

Looks like a lot of us have been way off base saying that Dixon is the most likely starter at the two. The guy didn't even start on a scrimmage team. Looks like Nate has him pegged as a spark plug off the bench.

So now are we thinking that Smith is gonna be the starter because he started on the other team? The big worry with Webster has been that his defense is going to be piss poor for a couple seasons. Kind of sounds like he was the best defensive option out there. If he's the best defensive shooting guard and he's the best shooter on the team it's gonna be really hard for the coaching staff to start Smith ahead of him.

The only guys we might send down to the developmental league are Jack and Monia. Nash has repeatedly said that he doesn't want to send Ha down due to the lack of size in the D-league. Even if he hadn't, Chalupa has a mountain of evidence that he won't go down. Jack and Monia are generally thought of as tough guys so a season or two in the D-league isn't gonna hurt. But they might be able to score some major minutes that could really help.


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## STOMP (Jan 1, 2003)

STOMP said:


> I know that Ned just signed a 4 year deal overseas, but I'd imagine that there is an exit clause built in for him to join the Blazers. I'm going to email Nash about this guess of mine...


Nash got back to me pretty quick on this... just over an hour. Here's his short and sweet response.

_"Yes it does."_

STOMP


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## keebs3 (Feb 19, 2004)

Great recap, i love coming on here and finding the real news!

JMK


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## Utherhimo (Feb 20, 2005)

STOMP said:


> Nash got back to me pretty quick on this... just over an hour. Here's his short and sweet response.
> 
> _"Yes it does."_
> 
> STOMP



i ment HA is improving faster than Nedzad but I wonder what type of clause is it, a buyout like monia or something else?


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## Masbee (Dec 31, 2002)

STOMP said:


> Nash got back to me pretty quick on this... just over an hour. Here's his short and sweet response.
> 
> _"Yes it does."_
> 
> STOMP


Thanks for finding that out for us. I am happy to hear that if we badly need front line help or Nedzad blows up in Europe we can extract him without to much trouble.


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## Redbeard (Sep 11, 2005)

If we are focusing on signing Joel, then seeing seeing Theo on the trading block wouldn't be a surprise. In that case, having Ha around as much as possible is a good thing.

I can't see Smith, Blake, or Dixon going to the DL so Jack and Monya look like the only candidates. Unless Blake starts showing something at the point then there isn't much reason to send Jack. Monya would probably benefit the most. Although the culture and scenery changes he is experiencing are probably easier to deal with here rather than Fort Worth, he will actually get playing time in the DL. It sounded like he sat on the bench on the Russian team this year since they knew he was leaving. He needs some PT to get confidence.

I am not worried about Outlaw. He will get his in due time. We don't want to showcase him too much and draw attention to him until we can use that to spread the floor and be sure that other players can hit the open shots.

Miles going down is now biggie. He will be back shortly. It just gives more time for others.

Hearing the Clancy is playing good D is great news. Zach has never been the best defender and knowing that there is another big behind him is comforting.

Thanks for your effort Nate. This site is really a great resource for Portland fans and I hope the Blazers players and staff would join in the threads. There is little bashing and hatred on this forum and a lot of great well placed criticism. Keep up the great work.


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## STOMP (Jan 1, 2003)

Utherhimo said:


> i ment HA is improving faster than Nedzad but I wonder what type of clause is it, a buyout like monia or something else?


I'd imagine a reasonable buyout or strait opt-out. Going off of other comments JN has made regarding Ned, he is very high on his upside and views Europe as the best place for him to develope his raw game. 

I don't know what you're basing your impression that Ha is improving faster then Sinanovic though... As opposed to Ha who was raised up on hoops, Big Ned has only played for a couple of years, yet (according to reports) he thoroughly outplayed him in this last summer league. Seems to me that just the opposite is probably true. 

Regardless, I'm sure we're on the same page hoping for the best from both of these guys somewhere down the line. I'm more intrigued by NS as he's supposively more defensive minded and the superior athlete... but it sure would be great if both developed and Portland could feature a 7'3 tag-team.

STOMP


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## Utherhimo (Feb 20, 2005)

nedzad has been in 3 summer leagues and has more pro level experience and is older than HA he should be showing more but HA has 1 summer league and a partial year of pro level play while being younger than Nedzad! The euro experience of Nedzad is pro and wehile his korean experience was in high school. 

That being said I hope we can bring Nezad over sooner rather than later as there is a chance nedzad might forever stay in europe. We might need him next season with the trouble at C we have, wonder if nedzad can play the 4/5.


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