Portland Trailblazers TV - MyGM - NBA2k14 PS4

[MasonTK]

11/15/2013
BLAZERS 90 : CELTICS 103

The Boston Celtics pulled away late in the 4th quarter, en route to a 103-90 win over the Blazers. The loss kicks off a four game road trip, and snapped a four game winning-streak for Portland.

Kris Humphries caused trouble for the Trailblazers big men, posting 23 points. Jeff Green contributed 17 points and had a +18 during his 39 minutes. Rajon Rondo was held to 10 points, but dished out 10 assists to help his teammates.

Once again, the Blazers front court accounted for most of the team's offense--with Lamarcus Aldridge and Thomas Robinson netting 21 and 18 points, respectively.

Portland was out-rebounded 44-33, and Point Guard Damian Lillard lead the team with 6 boards.

"We are now ranked dead last in rebounding," said head coach Terry Stotts, noting the teams 38.3 rebounds per game. "We have to step it up on the glass. I'll likely let Robin (Lopez) see a few more minutes in the next couple games."

The Blazers are shooting a league-leading 51.3% from the floor, but they also attempt less shots than most teams.

"We're very efficient, but we probably are way too conservative at times," said Lillard. "It's my job to push the pace a little more. We have the talent to run the floor, and need more scoring from guys like me, Wesley (Matthews), Nic (Batum), and C.J. (McCollum)."

Portland will travel to Toronto (6-4) to face the Raptors in an afternoon game on Sunday.

[MasonTK]

League Notes
11/19/2013

The NBA is just over two weeks young, and stories are already popping up all over the league.

- Kobe Bryant has been day-to-day most of the season with a sore hamstring, but has put up 21.3 pp/g in limited action.

- Carmelo Anthony is planning to test the free agent market at the end of the season, and he hasn't been quiet about it. He has mentioned his interest in multiple post-game interviews, and his teammates are starting to respond. Chemistry doesn't seem to be much of an issue on the court, however, as the Knicks are off to a 6-3 start, including a 5-1 record at home.

- Mike Conley is expected to be out for 10 months after an ugly injury in the first week of the season, resulting in a torn MCL. Surgery was "successful", but whether or not he will retain the same range of motion won't be evident for at least a few months.

- The Utah Jazz are bad. Really bad. They have lost the first 11 games this season, and are allowing a whopping 115.1 points-per-game. On the bright side, they still have to lose the next 7 games to tie the 09-10 Nets for the the worst start in NBA history.

- The Cleveland Cavaliers are surprising people with their 7-4 start. Kyrie Irving is scoring 19.7 p/g and dishing out 9.1 a/g, but most of their success has been spread out among all players. They have six players with double-digit scoring, and all 12 players are contributing each night.

- The Spurs, Pelicans, and Rockets are wrecking the Western Conference, touting a combined 19-1 record vs. their conference (3-0 within division). The three power-houses have yet to face each other, however, and the new alignment could mean they rough each other up quite a bit this season. With Conley's injury, the Grizzlies are going to struggle to be relevant in the Southwest Division.

[MasonTK]

Have been getting complaints about the live stream not having any audio. I found out that 2K is silencing all PS4 streams because of licensing (unclear if it is the music, interviews, or what).

This is unfortunate, and will likely apply to all sports games in the future. I apologize for my live games being silent, but for now, it's better than nothing.

[MasonTK]

Portland Lands Gibson In Deal With Bulls
Mo Williams sent to Chicago in multi-player deal
11/17/2013

Toronto, ON -- Mason Tyler's refusal to entertain offers came to a screeching halt Saturday as the Trailblazers' GM pulled off a multi-player deal with Chicago.

Mo Williams was dealt, along with veteran point guard, Earl Watson and 7'1" center, Meyers Leonard. In exchange, the Blazers received Taj Gibson and prospect, Marquis Teague.

"We are sad to see Mo go, but we desperately needed to improve on our interior defense," said Tyler. "Taj now adds an element of depth and physicality to the defensive side of the court that we were really lacking."

Coach Terry Stotts was quick to praise Williams and Watson in an impromptu press conference, noting their experience and rapport with the other players.

"That's definitely the biggest blow with this deal," said Stotts. "We are really going to miss their locker room presence, but I'm sure Taj will fit in just fine."

The addition of Taj Gibson will stir up the rotation quite a bit. Minutes will be sparse for anyone over 6'9" not named Lamarcus Aldridge.

"Robinson's minutes will likely go down, and he knows that, and he's okay with it," said Stotts. "(Lopez) will likely be on the floor even more, actually; the same goes for (Freeland). We like the idea of all of these guys keeping each other fresh and it gives me the freedom to create favorable matchups and situational substitutions."

Teague was brought into the deal to balance out the roster, since the Blazers were giving up two point guards.

"C.J. (McCollum) was getting more and more minutes and is clearly emerging as a guy who can make things happen," stated Tyler. "I talked to Stotts and we agreed that we had enough depth in the backcourt to pull the trigger on this one."

Gibson and Teague will both dress for tomorrow night's 7:30pm EST game against the Nets. They are scheduled to arrive in the early afternoon, giving them just enough time to exchange pleasantries with their new teammates before tip-off.


Details of the deal

To Portland :
- Taj Gibson, 6'9", F, 28.
- Marquis Teague, 6'2", G, 20.

To Chicago :
- Mo Williams, 6'1", G, 30.
- Earl Watson, 6'1", G, 34.
- Meyers Leonard, 7'1", C, 21.

[MasonTK]

BLAZERBLOG
Q&A with BlazerBob and RipCityRandy

11/17/13

News is pouring into Portland regarding the deal that likely took place on the plane ride to Toronto earlier today.

The deal itself is slightly surprising, but most of the shock comes from the fact that a deal was made, in general. GM Mason Tyler has been adamant about letting this team gel a little before deciding on how to proceed, if at all.

Nevertheless, Taj Gibson will be joining the squad for Sunday night's game against the Nets, and already my twitter feed is piling up with complaints and praise.

Fellow Blazers blogger, Rip City Randy, and I have decided to give you our arguments for each side; in response to questions from our twitter geeks :

@PTB4451 asks, "thoughts on a locker room without mo and earl?"

BB - The Blazers were a young team before this deal. Now, they are substantially younger. Gibson is no baby, at 28, but sending their two oldest players away means that the team now is without a single player 29 or older. Gibson brings playoff experience, yes; but we are talking about a team with a first year General Manager, a second-year Head Coach, and a slew of new talent on the floor. Losing two veterans in the locker room is not good for chemistry, and frankly, I don't see why Earl Watson had to be part of this deal.

RCR - No one wants to see players like those guys leave from a personal standpoint, but I think people underestimate the value in letting Aldridge and Wesley step up as the leaders of this team. They are the authority, along with Taj, in this locker room now. I think they both have the ability to work with coach Stotts and drive this team forward.

@BBall4LinPRTLD asks, "Can Gibson play enough to be relevant?"

BB - Gibson's minutes went up a little bit last season, but before that he was declining every year. He went from 2,204 minutes in 2009 to 1,284 minutes in 2011. Last year they got a slight bump to 1,459. I don't argue his defensive presence, but I can't see him matching up against the likes of Dwight Howard for an entire game. The issue for the Blazers wasn't stopping the average power-forward, it was locking down elite big men. If Taj can't (and likely won't) do that, then why bother?

RCR - He doesn't have to play 30+ minutes to make a difference. The issue was when we had LMA and Robinson in at the same time with a big-time post scorer in the paint. Look at what Humphries did to us earlier this week. If Taj can jump out there for 20-25 minutes, and Robin another 15-20, then LMA and Robinson can do what they do best. Some games he may see 30 minutes, and others only 15-18, but he will certainly make his presence known.

@BigDaddyRip12 asks, "what about the afterthoughts of the deal, Leonard and Teague?"

BB - Leonard hasn't had a chance to do...well, anything. No one expected him to be a big-time player, but he hasn't stepped foot on the floor all season. He's a 7'1" center with a long reach and the ability to, at the very least, give opposing teams someone to shoot over. I don't like the idea that we shipped him off without letting him try to prove something, first.

Marquis Teague can't score. Like, at all. I understand that he's a mature kid with solid man-up defensive skills, but our biggest issue when our starters were on the bench was putting points on the board. Mo could do that, and this is a step backwards.

RCR - Wrong. So wrong. Sure, Marquis for Mo straight up wouldn't be a great deal, but we now have scoring depth on the inside. Teague is a great defender with the ability to run the point. This allows C.J. to move between the 1 and 2, which also opens things up for us. He will dish the ball to him and Wright, and I think it will help our bench points tremendously. Of course, don't expect him to see many minutes for a while.

And Meyers Leonard is exactly what you said: an afterthought. I hope he proves me wrong, but he would have been lucky to occupy a seat on the bench next season, anyway. A nice kid, but completely dispensable.



*NOTE: I would love to hear your input and questions for future blog posts. Please feel free to ask them with a fake (or real) twitter handle. Input always welcome!

[megarover]

@Youcantstopme says, Nooooo not my buddy Mo.

[MasonTK]

11/17/2013
BLAZERS 113 : RAPTORS 108

The Blazers had to suit up against Toronto with only 10 men, as they awaited the arrival of their two new players, Taj Gibson and Marquis Teague; both of whom were acquired in a deal earlier in the day that sent Mo Williams, Meyers Leonard and Earl Watson to Chicago.

The extra minutes allowed multiple players to showcase themselves for an expected rotation revamp.

Thomas Robinson fouled out with 7 minutes to play, but still managed to post an impressive 20 points, 11 rebounds and 3 blocks. He was incredibly effective on both ends of the floor, and may have bought himself some extra time after Gibson comes to town.

"He continues to 'wow' me," said head coach, Terry Stotts. "Another double-double; what is that, six for him so far? He's a beast right now."

C.J. McCollum, the man expected to take over the 6th-man spot in the rotation with Williams' departure, came out firing on all cylinders. His 14 points and 4 assists sparked a team that normally struggles to score when Lillard is on the bench. He also played a minute at power forward, making him the first Trailblazer to play four positions in one game in quite some time.

"Rudy (Gay) was at the 4 (PF) when they were trying to get out and run, so we wanted C.J. to guard him to cool him down a bit," stated Stotts. "It worked, too."

Rudy Gay scored 18 points in the first half, but managed only a handful in the 3rd and early 4th quarters. He finished with 33, 8 of which were in the last few moments of the game.

Portland certainly showed that they were capable of scoring points without Williams, but the reason they picked up Gibson--to improve their interior defense--was a glaring problem. The Blazers allowed a massive 62 points in the paint.

"That will change," said Lamarcus Aldridge. "Not that I'm okay with it: I'm not. I just know that we were tired, and, we will work out those kinks and limit those chances. A lot of those points were on drives to the net, so it's not like we were playing poor D on the post."

The Blazers will welcome their new teammates tomorrow night when they host the Nets (5-4) in Brooklyn.

[MasonTK]

Last game didn't save, for some reason. Simmed through until a similar score.

Disregard previously posted box score.