# Skinner bashes Portland



## keebs3 (Feb 19, 2004)

Sorry if its been posted... I didn't see it. 

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2542681

JMK


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

It's an interesting read, though there's not much there we didn't already know and I don't question Skinner's truthfulness. That said, morale's going to be low on _any_ team in _any_ sport that had a season like the Blazers did last year, particularly with all the blowouts. Hopefully this year they're at least in more games and, in time, Portland's a place players are trying to get to, rather than away from.


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## Reep (Jun 4, 2003)

Kind of surprising that he makes it sound like Theo was one of the ones trying to win at the end of the season, when others clearly felt Theo was one of the biggest slackers. My guess is that it was a conflict between the vets and the young guns. It sounds like it's a good thing that Skinner is gone.


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

Ouch. Thanks for the post, but I didn't enjoy that read.

I wonder what "kids" he was talking about?


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## crowTrobot (Jun 24, 2005)

wasn't much of a bash - stating the obvious.


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## tradetheo (Feb 24, 2005)

skinner sounds like a punk. How did he put them in place, by scoring like 3 points a night and pulling down a board or 2. maybe show them on the court since you're such a great player. check the career stats for proof.


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## ChadWick (Jun 26, 2006)

What an idiot. I'm glad we traded that B***ARD!!!







Blazers8


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## abwowang (Mar 7, 2006)

really? i dont think skinner sounds like a punk. 
This guy works hard and accepts his backup role whereever he was at. When given the PT he always thrived and put up numbers. Sacramento and milwaukee he put up a string of double double games when the starter was out with an injury. 

I presume he was talkin about zbo and dmiles...


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

abwowang said:


> really? i dont think skinner sounds like a punk.
> This guy works hard and accepts his backup role whereever he was at. When given the PT he always thrived and put up numbers. Sacramento and milwaukee he put up a string of double double games when the starter was out with an injury.
> 
> I presume he was talkin about zbo and dmiles...


As much as I didn't like what he had to say, I agree he didn't sound like a punk.

I don't think Zbo and Miles were the players he was referring to because he reffered to them as kids and putting them in their place . . . doesn't sound like Zbo or Miles. I'm guessing Telfair and maybe Webster???

Now the contagious apathy can probably be attributed to Miles and Zbo.


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## mediocre man (Feb 24, 2004)

tradetheo said:


> skinner sounds like a punk. How did he put them in place, by scoring like 3 points a night and pulling down a board or 2. maybe show them on the court since you're such a great player. check the career stats for proof.




You know just because his views are different from your that doesn't mean he's a punk. Miles quit during the year, everyone's precious Joel quit with his injury, Theo quit.....etc. I'm sure Telfair was one of the young players with ego's. The guy is the leading scorer in NY high school basketball history for crying out loud. 

Sounds to me like Skinner was just being honest, and judging by some comments a few people on this board get when others don't agree with them, some of you have a problem with that.


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## barfo (Jan 2, 2003)

Punk? No. Whiny? Yeah.

He's complaining about the 'kids' having big egos - well, Brian, they have big egos because they get paid more than you, they play more than you, they aren't over the hill like you... why shouldn't they think they are better than you?

So much for the theory that Skinner was a good lockerroom guy. He sounds like a crabby old man like me.

barfo


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## Redbeard (Sep 11, 2005)

These are great comments and very well placed. They give an insight to the way thigns were last year. I agree that Telfair was probably one of the 'Kids', given that he portrayed an attitude that he was better than the team. I don't believe Webster on the other hand was one he was speaking about, just doesn't seem to fit. Kryapa also could have been vocal and gotten on Skinner's nerves.

Either way, Skinner didn't fit our game plan. I am appreciative of his professionality as a Blazer and I wish him luck as a Buck. The Blazers obviously have some problems and, with a season like last year, no one will be happy. Hopefully management has shown that they are not afraid of trading people away even if they have potential. If you don't fit the system or the locker room you are on the next available Ark out of here.

Obviously, Skinner can't say much bad about Blake considering he has to get feeds from him all year. :biggrin:


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## Talkhard (May 13, 2003)

> Skinner said he respected veteran teammates such as Voshon Lenard and Theo Ratliff, but didn't care for some of the team's younger players. Skinner didn't single out any specific players by name for criticism.


Uh-huh. "Younger" in this context refers to Darius Miles and Zach Randolph for sure. He may have also been thinking of Outlaw as well. I doubt it was Telfair, since every game I saw Telfair was playing hard.


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## dudleysghost (Mar 24, 2006)

I'm glad Skinner was willing to make those remarks, and I'm guessing he was probably right about there being bad air around the team last year. We'll probably never know for sure, but I'd be very curious to know which guys he thought were being apathetic. Zach and Miles are both young enough that they could easily have been one of the "kids". Who else could it have been? It's tough to say, but reportedly Blake, Webster and Viktor were the ones putting in outstanding effort in practices. At the start of last year, Nate noted how badly Dixon practiced, so he could be one of the apathetic ones. Outlaw and Ha may have been discouraged and lax. Telfair and Jack seemed to always play hard, but who knows how hard they practice.


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## Public Defender (May 5, 2003)

The last few weeks of the season were certainly evidence that something was wrong. Hopefully, the Blazers recognized this trend, and at least some of the problem players are gone. I have the feeling at least one of the "egos" is still in the house, though, expecting a trade, or else the starting job at small forward.


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

We will never know, but I don't think he was talking about Miles when it came to "coming in with that ego"and "putting him back in his place"


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## blakeback (Jun 29, 2006)

> I wonder what "kids" he was talking about?


Skinner said it wasn't these three:

Blake
Lenard
Ratliff 

One guy don't seem to fit his description:

Joel

My _guess_ is these players aren't likely suspects:

Jack
Webster
Ha
Khryapa

Leaving the short list:

*Telfair
Zach
Miles
Dixon* (complained a lot to the media)
*Outlaw *(following the other guys' lead)

... my guess.


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## The Sebastian Express (Mar 3, 2005)

Considering that Telfair always played hard, never quit, and always tried to get his teammates to play just as hard, I find a hard time believing it was him. 

Although I am humored that he lists Theo as a veteran he respects. Theo was repeatedly cleared by the Blazers doctors and other doctors that said it was okay for him to play again, but he always wanted to get another opinion. I never recall Joel getting clearance and not returning, unlike Theo.

I imagine he was referring to Zach and Darius, but since he respects Theo and Theo quit, I take his whining with a grain of salt. But the HORRIBLE VICIOUS TOO MUCH RAIN probably washed away that grain of salt, anyways.


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## Oldmangrouch (Feb 11, 2003)

:boohoo: If I want to see a performance by a sour old fart, I will watch myself in the mirror! :wink:


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## Fork (Jan 2, 2003)

keebs3 said:


> Sorry if its been posted... I didn't see it.
> 
> http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2542681
> 
> JMK


Waaah!


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

As I think about it, what Skinner's statements means to me is the lacks leadership on the team. Young kids with egos being out of check . . . the feeling of apathy to win around the lockerroom . . . too much rain . . . OK forget the last part . . . but you get the idea.

(I should note that Skinner is being inconsistent with his statements. He says the apathy was contagious and spread through the "whole" team, even with players that were really dedicated and wanted to be there. But then goes on to say Blake was a leader and had the passion to want to go out there and play hard.)


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## barfo (Jan 2, 2003)

Kiss_My_Darius said:


> (I should note that Skinner is being inconsistent with his statements. He says the apathy was contagious and spread through the "whole" team, even with players that were really dedicated and wanted to be there. But then goes on to say Blake was a leader and had the passion to want to go out there and play hard.)


And, did the apathy affect Skinner? Or is he somehow too pure, too dedicated?

barfo


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## dwood615 (Jul 20, 2004)

hes not bashing


just telling the truth


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## keebs3 (Feb 19, 2004)

dwood615 said:


> hes not bashing
> 
> 
> just telling the truth



Yeah.. I was just quoting the title of the article.

Thought it was an interesting read either way. I hope we don't lose so many games that this happens again next year. Whether or not we all agree with what Skinner had to say (or what type of person he is) we all know some of the players gave up near the end. 

JMK


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## dkap (May 13, 2003)

Read closer guys. He never actually says that Theo isn't one of the ones that quit on the team, just that he respects Theo and Voshon. It's the writer's juxtaposition of quotes and commentary that makes it sound like the young guys are purely the target of Skinner's criticism.



> Skinner said he respected veteran teammates such as Voshon Lenard and Theo Ratliff, but didn't care for some of the team's younger players. Skinner didn't single out any specific players by name for criticism.
> 
> "They come in with that ego, and sometimes you have to put them back in their place," Skinner said.


That's extremely sloppy. The author admits that Skinner would not name names, yet structures it to imply who was to blame. Either he said it or he didn't.

Dan


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## Samuel (Jan 1, 2003)

I think 'bashing' is a strong way to put it.


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## barfo (Jan 2, 2003)

I've no doubt that everything Skinner said is true, from his point of view at least, and I was interested to read it, but the fact that he said it makes him a little less than professional. And since that was what he was complaining about, it's a bit of Mr. Skinner, meet Mr. Kettle.

It's like Miles saying that, hey, if you go out drinking the night before, you are going to smell like booze at practice. On the one hand I appreciate the honesty and the inside information, but at the same time, a smart professional wouldn't say that. 

Ah well. Al Skinner will soon be forgotten...

barfo


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

barfo said:


> It's like Miles saying....
> barfo


Wait... when did he say that, and what's the rest of the context?


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## barfo (Jan 2, 2003)

PorterIn2004 said:


> Wait... when did he say that, and what's the rest of the context?


Hmm, I'll try to dig it up. He gave an interview to Jason Quick (when? trading deadline? last summer? I don't remember) in which he discussed this and many other Darius-type hot-button issues.

barfo


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## barfo (Jan 2, 2003)

Here it is. Scroll down to the April 20th entry:

Darius pontificates 



Darius said:


> A: That's what I’m saying, I’m the fallback guy. Just because I’m not playing, I’m the one taking guys out. Why cant somebody call my room and say want to go get a drink or something? But I’m the one.
> 
> And with alcohol, I can go out with my wife to Ruth Chris the night before. If I sit down, have a bunch of glasses of wine, and I might be a little tipsy and she drives me home, everything be cool. Next day in practice, if you sweat, it’s going to come out of your pores, regardless. We got a lot of players on our team, which I’m not going to name, because this is my situation, but if you ask any coach around the league how many times they have smelled liquor on a player? As long as that player is showing up on time, doing the drills, and he running, that's just a part of it. But I’m not the person who is going to put people’s name out there. But yeah, there have been times.
> 
> ...


barfo


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## STOMP (Jan 1, 2003)

Players go out to clubs and drink alcohol? OMG OMG OMG!

From deadbeat dad Larry Bird to gambling fool MJ himself, the record already shows that players go out... so did Mickey Mantle and Babe Ruth. And?

STOMP


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## barfo (Jan 2, 2003)

STOMP said:


> Players go out to clubs and drink alcohol? OMG OMG OMG!
> 
> From deadbeat dad Larry Bird to gambling fool MJ himself, the record already show that players go out... heck so did Mickey Mantle and Babe Ruth. And?
> 
> STOMP


And nothing, unless the player makes an issue of it by bringing it up in the media.

My point was that it wasn't smart of Miles/Skinner to bring up their particular issues in the press, since they live in very fragile glass houses.

barfo


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## B_&_B (Feb 19, 2004)

Skinner and his comments lose all credibility with me when he says:



> Skinner said he respected veteran teammates such as Voshon Lenard and Theo Ratliff, but didn't care for some of the team's younger players. Skinner didn't single out any specific players by name for criticism.


Theo was without a doubt the biggest quitter on the team. He is from the Derek Anderson school of milking a minor injury.

No doubt that Skinner is talking mainly about Miles.


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## B_&_B (Feb 19, 2004)

mediocre man said:


> , everyone's precious Joel quit with his injury


No. The team doctors didnt want him to play.


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

STOMP said:


> Players go out to clubs and drink alcohol? OMG OMG OMG!
> 
> From deadbeat dad Larry Bird to gambling fool MJ himself, the record already shows that players go out... so did Mickey Mantle and Babe Ruth. And?
> 
> STOMP



Larry Bird is a deadbeat dad?


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## blakeback (Jun 29, 2006)

The Sebastian Express said:


> Considering that Telfair always played hard, never quit, and always tried to get his teammates to play just as hard, I find a hard time believing it was him...
> 
> I imagine he was referring to Zach and Darius...


Even assuming some columnist shenanigans, it sure seems like Skinner was talking about more than two people.


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## wizmentor (Nov 10, 2005)

mediocre man said:


> Sounds to me like Skinner was just being honest, and judging by some comments a few people on this board get when others don't agree with them, some of you have a problem with that.


Quoted for Truth.

It astounds me that many on this board think the Blazers are so terrible - they're not.
Without all of the injuries, we had a good shot at just missing the playoffs, and a
very outside shot of making the playoffs. Hell, even Canzano the pessimist was excited.

However, we were hit with a rash of injuries. Our best player was coming off micro-fracture
surgery. Our second best player was injured. Our starting and backup centers were injured.
These types of injuries would decimate ANY team. So, what was our young team's response
to these injuries?

Miles, when he came back, pouted. Actually, he just started taking outside jumpers (not
his strong suit). Basically, he coasted - he gave up. He knew we had no chance to make
the playoffs. 
We're not going to make the playoffs, Heck with it.

Zach was perturbed. Coming off micro-fracture surgery, he was often being double teamed.
Pass the ball out, clank! Make a damned jump shot, guys! Fact is, Zach was our best shooter
last year. So, he naturally started shooting more outside. 
We're not going to make the playoffs, Heck with it.

Theo was injured. Come back? For what? 
We're not going to make the playoffs, Heck with it.

Winning doesn't cure all ills, but losing can create some. The environment became absolutely 
toxic. _This is when Skinner joined the team_. Skinner is just telling it like it is. Joel did
the same thing. He was very frustrated with some of the other players, too, and
said so publicly.

What was the result? We went on a monumental losing streak, sinking from mediocre
to the worst record in the league. We had a young team, inexperienced, but semi-talented
team with our best player coming of injury. If everything came together, we'd have
an outside shot at the playoffs. Everything didn't come together, everything fell apart.

However, there is good news :banana: 
We now have two talented high picks, who are great guys and hardworking.
Zach is looking better than ever, and seems excited about the upcoming season.
Theo is gone, replaced by a talented Magliore.
The toxic environment is basically gone.

The bad news is that Miles still does not see us as a playoff contender, and will likely
continue to be a source of toxicity. That's why we're doing our best to trade him.


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## Ed O (Dec 30, 2002)

wizmentor said:


> It astounds me that many on this board think the Blazers are so terrible - they're not. Without all of the injuries, we had a good shot at just missing the playoffs, and a very outside shot of making the playoffs. Hell, even Canzano the pessimist was excited.


Well, if CANZANO thought it... he's not a pessimist. He's a moron. The two concepts overlap occasionally, but they're not the same thing.

That team last year was terrible. Expecting their players not to get hurt, or for feelings not to get hurt (when veterans like Ruben and Theo came off the bench, or when the team started to rack up their inevitable losses) would be unrealistic at best.

Ed O.


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## Oldmangrouch (Feb 11, 2003)

Kiss_My_Darius said:


> Larry Bird is a deadbeat dad?



As I understand the story, Bird has a daughter that he has zero contact with. Writing checks was the only thing he *did* do for her.

Sounds like the poor kid was the victim of the extreme bad blood between Bird and his ex. Very sad, for all concerned.


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## wizmentor (Nov 10, 2005)

Ed O said:


> Well, if CANZANO thought it... he's not a pessimist. He's a moron. The two concepts overlap occasionally, but they're not the same thing.
> 
> That team last year was terrible. Expecting their players not to get hurt, or for feelings not to get hurt (when veterans like Ruben and Theo came off the bench, or when the team started to rack up their inevitable losses) would be unrealistic at best.
> 
> Ed O.


No disagreeing on your Canzano assessment.

We had some talent, but everything had to go right for us to win. Basically nothing went right
for us. This, combined with some immaturity on our player's part, created a toxic environment.
This is what Skinner was talking about. He was telling it like it was.

Do you disagree with this? If so, Which part?


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## mediocre man (Feb 24, 2004)

wizmentor said:


> Quoted for Truth.
> 
> It astounds me that many on this board think the Blazers are so terrible - they're not.
> Without all of the injuries, we had a good shot at just missing the playoffs, and a
> ...



Wow, what an optimist. Portland wouldn't have been close to making the playoffs last year even if everyone had stayed healthy. Our second best player isn't a playoff teams second best player. We were starting either a second year PG that didn't fit into the coaches slow down system, a journeyman PG that is very streaky or a rookie who was not 100%. At shooting guard we started either an undersized gunner that has no idea what swinging the ball is, or how to play defense, or a rookie right out of high school. At SF we had either Miles who is like Dr. Jeckl and Mr. Hyde, Outlaw who has never figured out how to be a good player, Viktor who played his *** off, but didn't really have an offensive game to speak of or Ruben who as Viktor couldn't throw it in the ocean fron a ship at sea. PF was Zach, coming off microfracture surgery and deciding to develop a 3 point shot for some reason, he also does not like to pass out of double teams or play defense. Joel and Theo are both injured too much for either of them to ever be counted on for a season, and neither has any offensive game or FT shooting abilities either. Like him or not, McMillan doesn't have the best coaching record either. He really has had one very good year, one playoff year, and a bunch of also ran years


How does any of that say playoff team to you....or even close to it.


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## wizmentor (Nov 10, 2005)

mediocre man said:


> Wow, what an optimist. Portland wouldn't have been close to making the playoffs last year even if everyone had stayed healthy. Our second best player isn't a playoff teams second best player. We were starting either a second year PG that didn't fit into the coaches slow down system, a journeyman PG that is very streaky or a rookie who was not 100%. At shooting guard we started either an undersized gunner that has no idea what swinging the ball is, or how to play defense, or a rookie right out of high school. At SF we had either Miles who is like Dr. Jeckl and Mr. Hyde, Outlaw who has never figured out how to be a good player, Viktor who played his *** off, but didn't really have an offensive game to speak of or Ruben who as Viktor couldn't throw it in the ocean fron a ship at sea. PF was Zach, coming off microfracture surgery and deciding to develop a 3 point shot for some reason, he also does not like to pass out of double teams or play defense. Joel and Theo are both injured too much for either of them to ever be counted on for a season, and neither has any offensive game or FT shooting abilities either. Like him or not, McMillan doesn't have the best coaching record either. He really has had one very good year, one playoff year, and a bunch of also ran years
> 
> 
> How does any of that say playoff team to you....or even close to it.


Maybe, I am an optimist, I don't know.
But, I could very easily make a similar pessimistic description of the Miami Heat (Walker, Payton,
Shaq...), who, incidentally won the NBA championship.


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## Ed O (Dec 30, 2002)

wizmentor said:


> We had some talent, but everything had to go right for us to win. Basically nothing went right for us. This, combined with some immaturity on our player's part, created a toxic environment. This is what Skinner was talking about. He was telling it like it was.
> 
> Do you disagree with this? If so, Which part?


I don't disagree with any of that, really.

But all of that adds up to a terrible team. There's no team in the NBA--and maybe in NBA history--that wouldn't win if everything went right for them. The Blazers were starting from a terrible, terrible position thanks to Nash (few veterans, injury-prone players, almost no players with winning experience, little depth up-front, too many small forwards, etc. etc.) and that things snowballed was not only a not a shock to me, but something that some of us on the board knew was going to happen, since it had happened the year before, too.

Ed O.


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## wizmentor (Nov 10, 2005)

Ed O said:


> I don't disagree with any of that, really.
> 
> But all of that adds up to a terrible team. There's no team in the NBA--and maybe in NBA history--that wouldn't win if everything went right for them. The Blazers were starting from a terrible, terrible position thanks to Nash (few veterans, injury-prone players, almost no players with winning experience, little depth up-front, too many small forwards, etc. etc.) and that things snowballed was not only a not a shock to me, but something that some of us on the board knew was going to happen, since it had happened the year before, too.
> 
> Ed O.


What I was trying to address is this: Skinner was not being mean, he was being realistic.
He said what he saw. This does not make him a bad person. My point disagrees with
many of the previous posts on this thread. It actually sounds like you agree with me,
and disagree with the majority here.


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## ebott (Jan 7, 2003)

Didn't we have a thread last year predicting how many wins we'd get? If I remember correctly the average was 25. And we ended up at 21. Seems to me wizmentor is the one that's out of touch with the reality of how bad our team was last year.


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## Boob-No-More (Apr 24, 2006)

wizmentor said:


> It astounds me that many on this board think the Blazers are so terrible - they're not.
> Without all of the injuries, we had a good shot at just missing the playoffs, and a
> very outside shot of making the playoffs. Hell, even Canzano the pessimist was excited.
> 
> ...


While the injuries certainly made a bad situation worse, last year's team was never in contention for a play-off spot - at least not at anytime after mid-November when the Blazers were 3-3 (their best record all year). On December 2, they were already 5 games under 0.500 (5-10 = 0.333) and well out of the play-off picture - before Darius got hurt. 

Even with Joel and Theo healthy, the losses continued to mount and the losing mentality became ingrained. By the time Darius and Theo came back the team was so far out of it, they just gave up - something I consider very unprofessional. I'm not sure why Skinner spared Theo from criticism, but it wasn't just the "young guys" who stopped putting in an honest effort. In fact, some of the young guys (Jack, Telfair, Martell and Blake) continued to play hard and improve. I used to like Theo, but after last year, I'm glad he's gone. I hope they ship out Miles, too. With him gone, I think Zach is salvageable. Zach's a follower, not a leader. Zach's biggest problem is Darius. Surround him by hard workers and he'll start to play hard like he did three years ago.

BNM


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## mediocre man (Feb 24, 2004)

wizmentor said:


> What I was trying to address is this: Skinner was not being mean, he was being realistic.
> He said what he saw. This does not make him a bad person. My point disagrees with
> many of the previous posts on this thread. It actually sounds like you agree with me,
> and disagree with the majority here.




I agree with you as well, just not that Portland was anything close to a playoff team last year.


As for the Heat, they have one of the true young stars in the league on their team, Their number 2 option was Shaq, and that's a big difference than Miles. Their role players are better than our role players. Their coach is better than our coach, and they were flat out deeper than we were because of experience.


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## Ed O (Dec 30, 2002)

mediocre man said:


> I agree with you as well, just not that Portland was anything close to a playoff team last year.


Yep.

I don't think that Skinner is entirely out of line, but what he said doesn't really matter. Not to say it's not INTERESTING, but it's natural for a player to distance himself from a train wreck like the Blazers once they're gone.

Ed O.


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## Gunner (Sep 16, 2005)

Ed O said:


> Yep.
> 
> I don't think that Skinner is entirely out of line, but what he said doesn't really matter. Not to say it's not INTERESTING, but it's natural for a player to distance himself from a train wreck like the Blazers once they're gone.
> 
> Ed O.


SOP for Skinner (and many other mediocre talents) anyway. IIRC he did much the same thing when he left Milwaukee. Damage control more or less. "They sucked,wasn't my fault,glad I'm here rather than there." Who cares, life goes on.


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## SheedSoNasty (Dec 31, 2002)

Coming from a journey man of his calibur, this doesn't really matter. Although I didn't expect it from him, I'd much rather have Magloire than him.


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

SheedSoNasty said:


> Coming from a journey man of his calibur, this doesn't really matter. Although I didn't expect it from him, I'd much rather have Magloire than him.


 Who's Magloire? :clown:


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## Anonymous Gambler (May 29, 2006)

Kiss_My_Darius said:


> Who's Magloire? :clown:


The guy that could twirl Skinner around by his goatee! The new beef in town.


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

Anonymous Gambler said:


> The guy that could twirl Skinner around by his goatee! The new beef in town.



I like the the twirl part, but I wonder if the new beef will ever be "in town"


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## soonerterp (Nov 13, 2005)

Ed O said:


> Yep.
> 
> I don't think that Skinner is entirely out of line, but what he said doesn't really matter. Not to say it's not INTERESTING, but it's natural for a player to distance himself from a train wreck like the Blazers once they're gone.
> 
> Ed O.


You have a point there Ed and I agree, but somewhat of a night and day difference between Skinner's remarks and Blake's remarks. Blake was SIGNIFICANTLY more diplomatic about his time in Portland (not that spending six or seven years around Washington DC made him learn diplomacy by osmosis). And I'm not saying that Skinner is a bad guy either ... its a matter of he was maybe TOO forthcoming in his criticism. If I could read Blake's mind he's probably roiling too, but he's too classy and, yes, diplomatic, to blurt it out.


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

soonerterp said:


> You have a point there Ed and I agree, but somewhat of a night and day difference between Skinner's remarks and Blake's remarks. Blake was SIGNIFICANTLY more diplomatic about his time in Portland (not that spending six or seven years around Washington DC made him learn diplomacy by osmosis). And I'm not saying that Skinner is a bad guy either ... its a matter of he was maybe TOO forthcoming in his criticism. If I could read Blake's mind he's probably roiling too, but he's too classy and, yes, diplomatic, to blurt it out.


Another possibility, slim though it might be, is that Blake really _does_ like both Portland and the Blazers, and is being more careful than Skinner about burning bridges because he can imagine trying to come back, perhaps even in the not too distant future.

And frankly, if he wants to be here, I'd welcome him back.


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## Boob-No-More (Apr 24, 2006)

PorterIn2004 said:


> Another possibility, slim though it might be, is that Blake really _does_ like both Portland and the Blazers...


The Blazers gave him a chance to start and play major minutes (1781 minutes with 56 starts in 2005-06 vs. 648 minutes with 1 start in 2004-05). While he seemed genuinely disappointed to be traded, he also seems grateful for the opportunity he received in Portland. He left Portland a better, more experienced player than when he arrived. He also seemed to get along well with his coaches and teammates.

I'd welcome him back, too.

BNM


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## Boob-No-More (Apr 24, 2006)

Canzano's take on Skinner's comments.

He basically says Skinner's comments would have helped a lot more if he'd made them during the season rather than waiting until after he was traded ("_Skinner played in 27 games for the Blazers, and the speech he never gave goes down as what could have been his season highlight_.") He then brings up a couple "ugly incidents" that obviously happend years before Skinner ever arrived in Portland as examples of the Blazers disfunctional locker room. Other than pointless Blazer bashing, I'm not sure why he mentions these two specific incidents - one from 2004 and the other from 2002. Jeez Johnnie Boy, you forgot to mention Dave Johnson and those under age girls in Salt Lake City back in '93.

While I agree that someone in that locker room needs to call out Zach and Darius when they are dogging it, the only player currently on the team when both those incidents occurred was Zach (and he was actually the "victim" in one of the examples). There is a point to be made in there somewhere, but in typical Canzano fashion, he brings up all sorts of irrelevant ancient history in his attempt to continue portraying the Blazers in a negative light. Seriously, couldn't he find an example of bad locker room behavior by someome currently on the roster to use as an example? Why keep brining up the bad behavior of guys no longer on the team - unless it's just become force of habit to throw dirt on the organization every chance he gets.

The Blazers haven't had the type of vocal leader he's hoping for since Scottie Pippen. As a veteran with multiple championship rings, he at least got the knuckleheads' attention, even if his message didn't always soak in. Now that the knuckleheads are in a definite minority (Darius is really the only problem guy left on the roster IMHO - Zach will straighten out once Darius is gone), I see this being less and less of an issue. The young guys (Jack, Webster, Roy, Aldridge, etc.) all seem to have their heads on straight. Joel is a hard worker and Magloire doesn't seem like the type to put up with any BS. So, rather than dredge up ancient history involving guys long gone and best forgotten, how about a positive column about what an outstanding group of young citizens the Blazers have assembled through the draft over the last two years. Nah, that wouldn't be any fun.

BNM


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## Blazer Maven (Sep 27, 2005)

tradetheo said:


> skinner sounds like a punk. How did he put them in place, by scoring like 3 points a night and pulling down a board or 2. maybe show them on the court since you're such a great player. check the career stats for proof.


Skinner's far from a punk. He is a vet role player who has some credibility when it comes to team chemistry. I'd like to hear him name names on who was dragging the team down. The usual suspects:

Zach and Darius

I'm sure of. However, two players don't destroy the spirit of a team by themselves. I suspect the youngster with attitude that Skinner mentioned was Telfair.


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## Ed O (Dec 30, 2002)

soonerterp said:


> You have a point there Ed and I agree, but somewhat of a night and day difference between Skinner's remarks and Blake's remarks. Blake was SIGNIFICANTLY more diplomatic about his time in Portland (not that spending six or seven years around Washington DC made him learn diplomacy by osmosis). And I'm not saying that Skinner is a bad guy either ... its a matter of he was maybe TOO forthcoming in his criticism. If I could read Blake's mind he's probably roiling too, but he's too classy and, yes, diplomatic, to blurt it out.


Skinner has played 405 games in a 8 year career for six different franchises. Blake's played 187 games over 3 years with two franchises.

I think that Brian has a different perspective, as a veteran, than Blake does.

You're right that Blake was more diplomatic, but that doesn't really matter much to me. The guys get paid to play basketball and diplomacy isn't their strong suit... and, in any case, reading diplomatic cliches is more boring than hearing a player's honest opinion (even when the opinions are off-putting).

Ed O.


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