[Live 05]07-08 Blazers- D-Miles Trade Rumours

[Clutch]

the report card is GREAT! you can really see who's pulling their weight and who might be headed for the chopping/trading block

[Its_asdf]

Horford To Miss 2 Games, Loses Out to Oden for R.O.M.



November 30, 2007

Western Conference Player of the Month: Kevin Garnett
Western Conference Rookie of the Month: Greg Oden

Eastern Conference Player of the Month: Joe Johnson
Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month: Kevin Durant

Al Horford may be a little disappointed that he didn't earn the Rookie of the Month honours, but at least he's recieved good news about his recently injured ankle. According to Blazer trainers, Horford's sprained ankle is not very serious and should take about a week to heal. "I'm going to need to rest it, but it's no big deal," Horford spoke of his injury. "I just can't wait to get back at full strength and get back on the court again."

The Blazers will be without Horford for 2 games though. The Blazers play the Utah Jazz on the very first day of December and Horford could be a game-time decision against Memphis on the 4th of December, but most signs indicate that Horford will want to make a full recovery and take the full week rest; especially since the Blazers will want Horford at full strength against Dallas' European superstar Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks on December 7. "What's most important is getting his ankle healthy again," said Nate McMillan. "Horford is a true warrior on the basketball court, but we don't want to rush his recovery, especially since it's still early in the season and we can't risk hurting re-injurying his ankle and then have him play poorly down the stretch."

[Its_asdf]

I read, but the amazing writing makes me forget to reply.

BTW, the Marty Collins had an extra [b] in front of his name in your report card, a minor mistake.

Thanks for the correction and the compliments to the writing.

Great presentation. Where are you ranked in the league

I'm planning on giving an update on news/standings in the NBA, but I'm still brainstorming on how to present the info. I don't remember exactly what the standings are after I beat Washington; I've played a few games in December already but I'm sure that I was in 6th-8th place in the Western conference. Not too bad considering my record isn't overly spectacular.

wow wow we wha!

I love the report card!!

this really fleshes out the dynasty. great job man, i'm loving it

Thanks man, I'm also looking foward to the start of your season in your dynasty as well. I know for sure you'll come up with something better than I have.

the report card is GREAT! you can really see who's pulling their weight and who might be headed for the chopping/trading block

I'm not really shopping any players around, but you can bet that I evaluate the players that I'm willing to shop similarly to this. There are a lot of 'C's in the report card, so you know that I really want a couple of key players to step it up or else they'll be getting the boot soon.

[Mark.]

Whoa Oden is cleaning up, but 10spg!!! Thats outrageous lol. Nice update on Horford too.

Wait I just saw Durant's steal numbers, 8pg?!?! You fiddle with the simeng file or something?

[Its_asdf]

I'm sure the steal inflation was due to the fact that Durant and Oden played only a few games in November. I played a few more games into the season and their steal numbers are back down to around 1-ish per game. Sorry dude, I know the steals look ridiculous but I can't really do anything about it. Next month's ROM should definitely have better stats.

[Mark.]

Haha dont apologise, I was just like Whoa!! but yeha I forget that with a 29 game season the November stats are always a bit funny. Gosh I wish that 29 games was avliable for 07 and hopefully 08

[Its_asdf]

Frye Keeps Portland Blazing Over Jazz


10199
BOXSCORE

Channing Frye continues to pick up the slack for the injured Al Horford as Frye managed to save the day for the Portland Trail Blazers not once... But twice. Frye continues to shine as the team's new starting centre as he followed up his 21 point 12 rebound double-double with another stellar 18 and 11 performance against the Jazz, including two crucial baskets in the dying seconds of the fourth quarter to win the game.

"He was big for our team," said former Jazz guard C.J. Miles. "When we needed a basket, he'd give us one everytime down low." Miles had 6 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists off the bench; both assists were passes that led to Frye baskets.

The game was closely contested for all four quarters. The Jazz's biggest lead of the game was 6 points as they headed into the fourth quarter, but the Blazers easily eliminated the lead and traded leads with the Jazz for most of the final quarter. Frye's heroics came with 15.3 seconds remaining in the game, when the Jazz were up 97-96. Brandon Roy managed to draw a foul off a turnaround leaner in the paint, but failed to give Portland the lead after Roy's final free throw rimmed out. Frye boxed out Memhet Okur and quickly tapped the ball back in to give the Blazers a 99-97 lead. The Jazz responded with a quick timeout and Okur repaid Frye with a fadaway jumper at the elbow of the key after he lost Frye on an off-ball screen set by Carlos Boozer.

"It was a good shot by Okur, but it was too early into the shot clock," said Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan. "We ran the play that we were supposed to run perfectly, but we didn't kill enough time which came back to haunt us in the end."

It was Portland head coach Nate McMillan's turn to call timeout. McMillan put Brandon Roy at the point guard position, which was a move that helped the Blazers win the game. "Frye fantastic ball today, but a lot of the applause needs to go to Roy," praised McMillan. "He missed a big free throw, but he didn't hang his head afterwards. That's what I like about this kid, he has a lot of confidence in himself." McMillan also believes that Portland's 54% shooting was the work of Roy finally grasping the concept of becoming the main distributor for the team. "He's really starting to understand the point and he realizes that the team's scoring comes first, then his own offence will come to him."

With 11.4 seconds left, Roy received an inbounds pass from Quentin Richardson and managed to blow by Jazz point guard Deron Williams, which drew out Memhet Okur from the paint. Roy passed it to a wide open Frye at the free throw line who buried the open jumper with 6.3 seconds remaining. With no timeouts remaining, Derek Fisher was forced to heave a three pointer from half court which did not touch the rim.


Channing Frye's first of two clutch shots

Gordan Giricek with the circus shot
Quentin Richardson ate Matt Harpring alive on offence with his post ups
The Jazz seem to have gotten the shorter end of the bargain when they dealt Kirilenko for Francis
C.J. Miles wanted revenge against his former team
Carlos Boozer welcomes back Darius Miles from his injury

[Its_asdf]

Haha dont apologise, I was just like Whoa!! but yeha I forget that with a 29 game season the November stats are always a bit funny. Gosh I wish that 29 games was avliable for 07 and hopefully 08

Yeah I know what you mean man. I don't have the attention span for 82 games, I think EA really shot themselves in the foot by getting rid of that small but important feature. Its the small things that EA keeps getting rid of that makes the game less and less enjoyable.

[kbryant24]

are u simming these games?

[Its_asdf]

Nope. So far, I've played all 10 games. I might sim some in the future if I become bored with playing the game, but right now I'm content playing the game from the first to the fourth quarter.

[kbryant24]

how many minutes? and which sliders u using?

[Its_asdf]

I'm using Andrew's old Live 2005 sliders that are found on the main page under the Live 2005 section (with minor tweaks for my personal preference, mainly to the CPU's long and medium shooting) and I play 10 minutes a game. The first 8 games I played with 9 minute quarters but I realized that most of the time the scores would wind up in the 80s so I bumped it up a minute and I've gotten scores that are around the high 90s which is characteristic of a team that shoots in the high 40s-low 50 percentile.

Hope that answers your question.

[Clutch]

man i'm diggin' Roy's game: 19 points, 9 assists just 2 turnovers - not too shabby!

hope LaMarcus Aldridge finds his groove soon...

[Mark.]

Good win, Roy, Miles and Frye all played well.
Have you been using Miles to hlep create and set up the offense? Or is he still just playing mainly as a SF?

[Its_asdf]

Making a Good Point
Slumping Jack is Benched While Roy Moves to the 1

December 3, 2007

When Brandon Roy was drafted, he was pegged as a versatile stud; a do-it-all machine that could potentially play three positions on the basketball court. But most people asked what position should he play? Was he most effective as a two-guard, utilizing his untouchable 15 foot jump shot over small defenders? Was he a small foward that could use his slashing skills to knife to the hoop with his solid first step and quickness? Or maybe he is suited at the point guard position, where he can exploit his height and cause nightmares for opposing point guards by taking them into the post?

Roy says he likes to play all three, but with Roy's increasing confidence playing the point guard position and Jarrett Jack's continued struggles as the team's starting point guard, it only seemed natural for Nate McMillan to hand over the reins of the offence to Roy. Although Roy's assist numbers aren't eyepopping, McMillan looked at Roy's improvement throughout the month to justify Roy's move to the point. "He's put together some very good games recently," McMillan said. "A lot of the time Roy is playing the 1 and he's been really seeing the court well. I think Roy has all the tools to become our future point guard."

As stated earlier, Roy's assist numbers don't really show much as they hover at around 4 per game. Although that's very good for a 2 guard, there are questions as to whether or not that is good enough for a full-time point. Roy believes that his stats don't tell the whole story. "Coach just told me that I've had 4 games now which had more than 5 assists," stated Roy. "In both games that we've won (against Washington and Utah), I've had 9 assists in each of those games, so I feel comfortable enough around my teammates to get them the ball at the right time."

Roy played inconsistently earlier on in the season when he was the starting shooting guard and routinely rotated to play point guard. The alternating roles of distributing and scoring the ball might have caused some confusion to Roy, but he now feels as though moving to the point really solidifies his role. "Nate just sort of threw me in there at the point, because most of the plays that he ran he practiced with JJ during training camp," explained Roy. "We also had a lot of new guys on the team which takes some time to get used to, but now I'm starting to get a feel for where players want the ball."

While Jack's subpar play has gave him a demotion, Nate feels that Jack could play well against second string point guards. "Jack has hit a wall, that's for sure," says McMillan. "He was our starter last year and did a very good job for us. I'm not benching him to punish him, I'm just trying to get his confidence up by playing back up point guards because I know for a fact that he can handle starting as our point guard, he just hasn't found his rythm quite yet."

Since Roy has moved to the point guard position, Darius Miles is expected to take the open spot at the 2. The oft-criticized 6'9 swingman played his first game after injuring his arm and did not miss a beat as he played a key role in the Blazers' win against the Jazz, netting 18 points and 5 boards off the bench.


Roy has had a couple Steve Nash moments this season despite being known as more of a fundamental passer.

[Its_asdf]

man i'm diggin' Roy's game: 19 points, 9 assists just 2 turnovers - not too shabby!

hope LaMarcus Aldridge finds his groove soon...

Yeah, Aldridge doesn't really get a lot of looks for some odd reason. Maybe its just the way I play the game and utilize my players, but I'm definitely going to try and get him some more looks.

Good win, Roy, Miles and Frye all played well.
Have you been using Miles to hlep create and set up the offense? Or is he still just playing mainly as a SF?

Miles rotates between SF and SG and when Roy isn't playing he's usually the guy I give the ball to on offence to drive to the basket and create, so he plays sort of that point foward role for my team. Because Miles is so much bigger than most guards, I like to stick him in there and get him in the post if our offence is running dry. He's also leading my team in blocks per game so its very easy to get stops when hes on the floor.

[Mark.]

I like the move, you will have a pretty big starting 5 now which is good. Your heading on the article says "Slumping is jack benched..." Should it not say "Slumping Jack is benched..."?

Keep it up dude

[Its_asdf]

Gay Helps Grizzlies Gradually Pull Away


10699
BOXSCORE

Rudy Gay has onced again proved why he should have been named Rookie of the Year over Brandon Roy. Gay and Roy, both of whom are in the second year in the NBA, were engaged in a tight rivalry to see who was the better rookie last season. Despite Brandon Roy winning many of the Rookie of the Month awards, Gay's strong play at the end of the season managed to earn him Rookie of the Year honours. Coincidentally, this Blazer loss played out in a very similar fashion .

"We have a lot of repsect for one another," Gay said after he finished the night hitting 8 of 13 shots and scoring 21 points, which was second highest in the game next to teammate Mike Miller's 26. "Roy and are competitive against each other, but we both wish each other well. It was a tight game and I'm glad our team came out on top."

Portland managed to get into a back and forth duel with Miller and Gay. However, Grizzlies' star Pau Gasol struggled mightily against Channing Frye, as Frye's 20 point, 12 rebound effort trumped Gasol's 10 points and 9 rebounds. Despite struggles from their go-to scorer, the Grizzlies got solid production from their high flying big men as Stromile Swift and Hakim Warrick's athleticism was too much to handle. The Blazers simply could not match Memphis' production on the offensive end throughout the game as they were outscored in every quarter by small margins which eventually built up in the fourth quarter, where Gay would score 8 points for the Grizzlies and close out the tightly contested game.


Rudy Gay and Roy both went at each other in the game


Roy played well at the point as he was able to get into the paint against the smaller Stoudamire
Mike Miller's hot shooting allowed him to fake past his defenders
The dunk of the night belonged to Hakim Warrick's ridiculous put back slam

[Its_asdf]

I like the move, you will have a pretty big starting 5 now which is good. Your heading on the article says "Slumping is jack benched..." Should it not say "Slumping Jack is benched..."?

Keep it up dude

Thanks for pointing that out, I was in a rush while writing it so I didn't really have time to flesh out the article or fix any errors.

I also liked the size that Roy and Miles give me at the backcourt. Too bad Gay is 6'10 (he grew an inch) and Miller is 6'8 so I had trouble all game with their shooting because they'd just shoot over everyone except Miles. If you're a few inches shorter than a guy, then normally he can bury shots no problem over him. That's probably the only thing I don't really like about '05.

[Jing]

Look at the definition on Gay's arm.....nice. Tough loss though.

[Clutch]

tough loss man! and even with Gasol having an off night too

surprising to see MEM going into the game 0-3; must've been a tough opening west coast schedule... lemme guess - SAS, DAL, PHO?

[Gundy]

Nice screen of Miller faking past Webster. I know what you mean about taller defenders being able to block nearly everything a shorter player shoots. That annoyed me quite a lot in '05. Ironic how you have Miles, who I remember used to get like 10 blocks whenever I played against him.

[Mark.]

Tough loss, individually most of your main guys played pretty well.

[Devin112]

loved the game recap man. Mine were always too long and really didn't captivate, I like urs a lot

[Its_asdf]

Miles Nets 31 Along With the Go-Ahead Layup


9799
BOXSCORE

The more that Dallas cooled off, the hotter Darius Miles got. The Mavericks started off the first quarter reeling off 33 points while shooting 66% to give them an 11 point lead, but missed 6 consecutive shots in the following quarter which allowed the Blazers back into the game. Miles, on the other hand, began the game in early foul trouble and hit only 1 of 4 attempts to start, but ended the game with a game and season-high 31 pointsm including the game winning shot. Miles also stuffed the stat sheet, grabbing 7 boards, dishing out 5 dimes and blocking 2 shots.

"I'm just trying to be a leader for my team," spoke the often quiet Miles. "A lot of people would say things about me last year and I don't think that was fair. I'm just working hard this season and letting my play speak for itself this season."

Dallas got most of their offensive production off of Josh Howard, Dirk Nowitzki and Devin Harris, who scored a combined 64 points. They also dominated the ball, scoring 25 of Dallas' 38 field goals. These three players however, where no where to be seen in the final minute of the game when the score was tied 95. Harris and Howard each attemped to win the game, but each attempt was heavily contested by the Blazer defence and Darius Miles blew past the Maverick defence for an easy floater over Diop to give Portland a 2 point advantage. Harris missed another jump shot and Dallas had to foul Miles, who hit both free throws for his 30th and 31st point. Miles hit 4 of his 5 free throws this game despite being known for being a poor free throw shooter throughout his career.

"He's very versatile out there; he really caused our defence problems with his height," said Mavericks head coach Avery Johnson. "We tried putting everyone on him but he was feeling it today." Johnson then went from praising Miles to bashing his own team. "It still doesn't change the fact that as a team we let them shoot 51%. The way that we played defence today was inacceptable."


Horford's ankle didn't bother him when he was throwing down one handed tomahawks

Dirk Nowitzki showed people that he wasn't "soft" all game long
Josh Howard finishing in transition
Miles floats one up for the win over Diop
Dorell Wright's first point as a Blazer came at the line


Blazers Beat Raptors in a Battle of Depth


108104
BOXSCORE

The Portland Trail Blazers seem to show up when playing against the NBA's best teams. After beating Dallas a few days ago, the Trail Blazers beat one of the league's hottest teams at the moment, the Toronto Raptors in their home court. Both teams displayed their depth on the offensive end as Channing Frye, Al Horford, Quentin Richardson and Brandon Roy each scored more than 15 points for Portland, while Chris Bosh, Andrea Bargnani, T.J. Ford and Anthony Parker did the same for Toronto.

Portland got off to a good start, leading 52-44 by halftime. The Raptors managed to turn up the defensive pressure on the Blazers, forcing them to commit 11 turnovers in the second half which was a sharp contrast to the 2 turnovers that the Blazers had in the first two quarters. This allowed Toronto to fuel a run to close the gap between the two teams and Toronto eventually took their first lead of the game in the fourth quarter when they led 84-80.

Although the Raptors maintained a balanced attack similar to that of Portland's, the Raptors rallied heavily Chris Bosh's play from the post, which opened up the defence for the Raptors' perimeter players. When Bosh was wearing down by the fourth quarter from excessive double teams from Frye and Horford all game long, the Raptor offence grew stagnant in the final minutes of the game. The Blazers would go on a 9-0 run in the final 2 and a half minutes to give the Blazers the lead for good once again.


Chris Bosh had a Kevin Garnett-esque stat line with 19-12-4

Al Horford is showing Portland what he can do as a starter
Q-Rich once again led Portland in scoring
Bargnani with the nasty rejection on Horford
T.J. Ford shows off his leaping ability
Double teams failed to hold Brandon Roy