Message Boards > Trail Blazers Talk
Dear Nate: Please Stop Playing Crawford At Point
You are not authorized to post a reply.
  1. ClydeFrog
    ClydeFrog
    Posts: 975

    Posted 01/23/2012 1:43 PM

    Nate,

    You're a great coach, but this just isn't working. When has Jamal Crawford ever shown playmaking abilities for others? Can he create his own shot? Yes. Does he have some of the best handles in the game? No doubt. Does he make good decisions with the ball when he's forced to choose between shooting or scoring? Not at all.

    The guy is a pure scorer; that's what he does and that's why we got him. I think he's torn right now about whether to shoot or pass when he has the ball in his hands which is resulting in career shooting lows. If we just let him play off the ball and all he had to worry about was putting the ball in the basket, we would see a new and improved Jamal Crawford. Also, we drafted Nolan Smith for a reason. Let's let him get some run to see what we've got in the young Dukie.
    I am a fan of Watching Elliot Williams Take Flight!
  1. Blazer247
    Blazer247
    Posts: 503

    Posted 01/23/2012 4:45 PM

    AMEN. Couldn't agree more.
    There was a great article I read the other day about when JCross arrived in Atlanta he had the same problem, then after getting encouragement from Smith to just "play as yourself that's why we brought you here" he ended up getting 6th man of the Year. I don't see why we wouldn't be following that working pattern.
    Besides, not only is Jamal a pure scorer like you mentioned, but why does Nate think we need another point guard? Felton and Crawford were both brought here to do their specific jobs, and instead they're both being muddled into the same role. On top of that, Nolan Smith has shown real promise at pg in limited minutes so far. And if Wes and Jamal can get back to focusing on playing the 2 as a shooter instead of backup pointguard, then we can even give them relief with Elliot Williams occasionally, whereas he is fairly useless if expected to come in and fill the shoes of guys who are giving assists as well as shots.

    Role players are valuable! Let them play roles!
    I am a fan of BLAZER BASKETBALL. Not drafts, not business, not trades, not David Stern. Just BLAZER BASKETBALL.
  1. Tobyus Sanchezo
    Tobyus Sanchezo
    Posts: 1600

    Posted 01/23/2012 11:40 PM

    Now, after scoring 26 against the Kings...Jamal should do what now??
    I am a fan of playoffs in two zero one three
  1. Blazer247
    Blazer247
    Posts: 503

    Posted 01/24/2012 1:21 PM

    Keep SCORING Jamal! A few assists a game are good to keep defenders guessing, but you're not a pg!

    "Shoot shoot shoot pass shoot shoot pass shoot shoot shoot pass shoot shoot WIN" is all he should be thinking :)
    I am a fan of BLAZER BASKETBALL. Not drafts, not business, not trades, not David Stern. Just BLAZER BASKETBALL.
  1. Mark
    Mark
    Posts: 77

    Posted 01/25/2012 1:23 PM

    Couldn't agree anymore! He's playing Crawford just like he played BRoy.. which to no offense he is no BRoy.. he is a pure scoring machine. He should not be handling the ball at the point.
    I am a fan of having a completely healthy team for once.
  1. Tobyus Sanchezo
    Tobyus Sanchezo
    Posts: 1600

    Posted 01/28/2012 2:39 AM

    uh oh, uh oh, you get another one after a near 40 point whoopin' on the Suns

    9 points, 10 assists for Crawford tonight!
    I am a fan of playoffs in two zero one three
  1. Blazer247
    Blazer247
    Posts: 503

    Posted 01/29/2012 1:47 PM

    nice one, Jamal. BUT i stand by my belief that we don't want Crawford to consistently be puttin up high assists, we want him to be puttin up high-arc shots with a huuuuge percentage.
    While learning to distribute is a good skill for him, it's like LaMarcus' jumpshot; it's a valuable skill but should mostly be used to keep their opponents guessing, not as the primary tools in their offense. Our guys who need to be masters at consistent distribution as a primary game skill are Ray Felton and Nolan Smith.

    I don't want Jamal the pointguard, I want JCross the lights-out shooting guard.
    I am a fan of BLAZER BASKETBALL. Not drafts, not business, not trades, not David Stern. Just BLAZER BASKETBALL.
  1. The Unholy
    The Unholy
    Posts: 320

    Posted 01/29/2012 6:02 PM

    so when the point guard is out of the game it doesnt make sense to give the ball to the best ballhandler?
    I am a fan of high octane motion offense
  1. Blazer247
    Blazer247
    Posts: 503

    Posted 01/30/2012 1:19 AM

    Unholy, no one said anything about not giving JCross the ball... in fact, I want him to have the ball, and shooooot it. Even better if someone else passes it to him before he breaks some ankles and daggers a longball.

    If you didn't get what I was saying in the last post, it had nothing to do with taking the ball away from Jamal, but instead it was about what EACH player should primarily be concerned with doing when they have that possession. A pointguard shoots, but primarily, he distributes. A shooting guard can notch some assists (or they'd be completely predictable), but primarily, the role of the shooting guard is to score. Team ball means players shouldn't put it all on themselves (pass it off if someone's open, higher % shots are ALWAYS better), but positions are roles, and players need to know where they fit in to really get in the groove. Crawford's primary role in Portland is undoubtedly a shooting one. I'm all for him improving his assist average and becoming a more versatile role player here, but we have point guards to carry the weight of that, and we don't have another shooter like him.
    I am a fan of BLAZER BASKETBALL. Not drafts, not business, not trades, not David Stern. Just BLAZER BASKETBALL.
  1. Curvychloe
    Curvychloe
    Posts: 523

    Posted 01/30/2012 8:19 AM

    Its Better if he Just guns,alittle more showboating would be nice too
    I am a fan of Sexy Blondes at courtside
  1. Curvychloe
    Curvychloe
    Posts: 523

    Posted 01/30/2012 8:21 AM

    I don't know how great a coach Nate Mcmillion is either,I mean we have a more talented roster then Utah or Denver,yet they are ahead of us in the standings and guess what so is !$@%%! Houston
    I am a fan of Sexy Blondes at courtside
  1. shynz0r
    shynz0r
    Posts: 101

    Posted 01/30/2012 7:19 PM

    I can't blame coach for our record when our back court is shooting the ball TERRIBLY this year and our PG is turning the ball over at a disappointing clip.  I love this team and I hope Ray settles in but Nate is not the reason we are where we are in the standings.  

    As to the topic at hand.  Anybody check the photo essays on Oregon Live?  Almost EVERY single pic of Crawford he looks terrified.  I don't think he's getting mixed messages about what to do on the court.  I think his confidence is waning a bit and it's causing him to hesitate. The only thing that kills a jump shot faster than low confidence is hesitation.  There's a reason Matthews is the most effective scoring guard on the team.  The dude never hesitates AND he bleeds confidence.
    I am a fan of Rudy and Patty's off-court bromance.
  1. Curvychloe
    Curvychloe
    Posts: 523

    Posted 01/30/2012 8:38 PM

    Generally when a team underachieves like this it has alittle to do with the coach,they are wayy to talented to be this bad.I mean what exactly is he getting paid for? To get the team to pay well.
    I am a fan of Sexy Blondes at courtside
  1. The Unholy
    The Unholy
    Posts: 320

    Posted 01/31/2012 4:03 PM

    @blazer247 i just meant that people arent liking crawford playing point when felton is out of the game. that seems kind of petty to me because crawford is absolutely capable of handling the ball. is he a playmaker? no, but he can make some plays. and i agree with his role as a shooter, thats just what he does. so im not disagreeing im just saying it makes sense for him to play a little back-up pg.

    @curvychloe you cant really blame the coach, i mean it isnt like they havent been getting good looks out there. it is the teams job to execute. and if the team doesnt execute it really doesnt matter who the coach is.
    I am a fan of high octane motion offense
  1. Blazer247
    Blazer247
    Posts: 503

    Posted 01/31/2012 5:31 PM

    If I had sounded like I was attacking your statement Unholy, I apologize. I hear what you're saying about Crawford being the best hall handler on the floor, but honestly, if a guy plays pg or backup pg, ballhandling will help (less turnovers) BUT it is an absolute necessity as a pg of any kind to be a playmaker and good at dishing assists.

    My suggestion would be that instead of using Jamal as the backup pg and being frustrated when he plays it like a ball-handling sg, let Nolan come in (has already shown the capability to handle the ball, moves quickly with good courtvision and makes assists) as the backup pg, and keep pressure off him by having our ball-handling sg ready to shoot as soon as Nolan sends it his way. This makes our player at the 2 (now JCross) more capable of hitting shots at a high clip, and our player at the 1 (now Nolan) more focused on setting up plays and passing, instead of having a backup pg (JCross) constantly asking himself "should i shoot or pass? Shoot? Pass? Oops bad shot/pass" which, like Shynzor said, seems to be what Jamal keeps thinking when he's at the pointguard position.
    I am a fan of BLAZER BASKETBALL. Not drafts, not business, not trades, not David Stern. Just BLAZER BASKETBALL.
- Hide
   
 
 
 
 
   

    Recent Discussions

  1. Keep Batum!

    Started by special k on 05/21/13 at 3:15 PM

    well when your constantly using your wrist on a consistant basis it''s not gonna heal 

  2. Rebuild Diagram 1B

    Started by billyamick47 on 05/23/13 at 8:25 PM

    If you are icked out by snakes, do not click on these links.

    http://beta.images.theglobeandmail.com/archive/01271/AAA116-Celtics__1271862cl-8.jpg...

  3. Players Portland Need

    Started by billyamick47 on 05/01/13 at 5:01 PM

    You are in China, or you take Chinese as a second language?

  4. Trade/Free Agents Ideas

    Started by DoubleDz on 05/24/13 at 12:33 AM

    Kirk Hinrich is a great defender

  5. Neil Olshey, NO BALLS!!

    Started by DoubleDz on 05/21/13 at 2:56 AM

    Yeah I was one of them *blushes*. I was never a diehard fan of basketball until the 2011-2012 postseason. I could name every team, but I always forgot two. Kings and Blazers. 

    Do we really WANT to get noticed though? What good is it? I...

  6. I dont get it?

    Started by Curvychloe on 05/23/13 at 9:18 AM

    I dont know ripcity we are pretty far,far away, we got 4 starters(now) and no bench,and yeah are starters are good,but a few years of losing and lillard and Aldridge will want out and we got NO bench,i''ve tought long and hard about all the teams i''...

  7. The Official Batum Petition Discussion Thread

    Started by cmeese47 on 05/21/13 at 1:03 PM

    Yeah, he was tripping with that Scottie Pippen reference. Nowhere as good as him, BUUUTTT, I think he can be, if he plays like a man. In Euroleague, you are taught more about finesse, and the fundamentals. He needs to put a little more muscle on, ...

  8. LMA League Leader

    Started by cmeese47 on 05/24/13 at 12:38 PM

    I think what Stotts is doing is superb. His plays are great. I remember the only play he ever called for Meyers Leonard, against the Bobcats. Great movement, got LMA a good mid range look, got Batum a decent three look and the got Meyers way down ...

Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10  ... 
Active Forums 4.1
NOT LICENSED FOR PRODUCTION USE
www.activemodules.com
The latest from
Everybody
BLASER commented on Keep Batum! / jimbany updated their fan statement / cmeese47 created new forum topic LMA League Leader / StacyMike68 joined group Season Ticket Holders / NickPitherUK and DHawes22 are friends now / djogone updated their scrapbook / djogone uploaded new photo / daddy updated their Starting 5 / MJB uploaded new video /