Swaps do not add a pick . 2029 is a second pick that year. Two first round players added, even if we are good that year !

Hey Mike, how interested are you in taking over for Sprague on Jacked Ramsays? I think you have the knowledge, the chemistry with Danny, and probably the free time to do it. Hope you're seriously considering it!

I get the losing you only get so many chances to snag top teir talent before your considered the kangs. Thats why i really hope we capture the flag!

You don't think the Coach want to slow the team ? why didn't he pushed for paste in former season ?

We would love to have a conversation about Donovan with us having a different opinion..

Good episode, thanks, Mike.

Deni might not be an elite player, but damn is he an elite fit for the Blazers

I hate these ideas of Rob Will for a 2nd, stop it with that. You send out Rob for a unprotected 1st, and attach 2 2nds to him.

I think the key was how bad they were on defensive rebounding (they ranked 28th). If they can get to more one and done defensive possessions,they will improve exponentially.

Thank you for the consistent content Mike!

Keep ant 🐜

If they were 23rd I believe they get up to 15th right in the middle

Absolutely agreed on this one. I certainly can't wait to see the Toumani episode haha. I am proud to keep echoing that I'm bias to him. He's my guy on this team.

Grants contract isn't that bad, I'll pick him over OG any day.

draft pick's are overrated

If we are that high on Clingan then we should add William's to the Grant trade with LA and we will probably get the 2 first plus assets

I can't remember a year where i've known so little about a rookie class going into a season

Of the current blazer roster, what does your starters and bench line-up look like?

I think clinging will be a future NBA star.

I just don't see Clingan getting that many minutes, at least early. This is Billups we are talking about. If Robert Williams the 3rd is even close to being ready...he is going to play over Clingan. After the trade deadline I can see Clingan gettng big minutes. But sfter 3 yesrs I think we hsve seen Billups enough to know thst he will plsy a vet over a rookie most of the time if the vet is even slightly viable. Before the trade desdline: 4.5 ppg 5.5reb 1.4 blk 2 ast. After after the trade desdline: 8.0 ppg 8.1 reb 2.4blk 3.0 ast on poor shootng numbers.

What is your dream line-up for starters and bench? (Mailbag question)

I just hear excuses for Clingen’s undeveloped skills. I hoped they drafted Edey with his dominating skillset and mindset. What’s more likely? Lightening up 20lbs. to gain more defensive mobility and perhaps developing a 3-point shot, or acquiring the offensive skills that Edey already has, showing adequate defensive mobility and developing a 3-point shot?

Mail Bag: What data supports Billups being a bad coach, other than the record- which is intentional to get a high draft pick?

If Edey( player of the year) dominated clingon, why didn’t we take Edey?

Let's hope he stays healthy. Given the Blazers medical history, I remain concerned.

ngl I would love to see an ayton & clingan lineup.

ngl I would love to see an ayton & clingan lineup.

ngl I would love to see an ayton & clingan lineup.

ngl I would love to see an ayton & clingan lineup.

ngl I would love to see an ayton & clingan lineup.

Clingan is going to look bad him he plays. He's not ready for the NBA. He's slow, has bad conditioning, can't shoot, and even though he's big he's not strong enough to handle the centers in the league.

Edey ate Clingan's lunch while playing the full game. Clingan's ceiling is a rotational backup in the league. He has bad conditioning, can't shoot and, won't get away with sitting in the paint like he did in college. Teams are going to bring him out of the paint and put him in pick and roll actions anytime he's on the court.

Clingan won’t be an unstoppable force as a rookie, but he’ll definitely have significant impact as far as making opposing guards second guess going into the paint. My concern is that it will lead to a lot of open 3’s if we can’t clamp down on the perimeter.

Maybe not R.O.Y. but I think he could be on the all NBA rookie team

THE BLOCK LOBSTER COMETH!!!

I love this man so much. We got really lucky

Probably not.

There was no loss in efficiency with increasing usage. Totally. At all. If you look per month data. Both the best efficiency and highest usage were in February - 22.0% usg, 66.3% ts%, and the lowest usage (not counting 3 games in October) and worst efficiency were in December: 17.1% usg, 52.2% ts%. While those numbers are in big part just because Deni takes more shots when his scoring is better (now we can discuss that it could be wrong mentality for someone who wants to be top-2, and maybe even top-3 offensive option), but generally for Deni (even if he doesn't stop himself like describe above) - if usage is higher, efficiency is better. Short explanation about Avdija's game transformation over his NBA career and especially last year: Year by year part of 3PA among all FGA was decreasing: 53.8% -> 44.7% -> 40.1% -> 29.3% -Part of FGA at rim (less than 3ft) went in opposite direction: 14.4% -> 22.1% -> 27.8% -> 33.6% -More unassisted FGM every year FGM %UAST: 17.7% -> 29.6% -> 35.2% -> 36.9% -Drew more fouls each year - FTr (FTA per FGA) : .144 -> .235 -> .285 -> .340 -USG% increased between 1nd & 2nd, and then 3rd & 4th seasons: 12.0% -> 16.3% -> 16.7% -> 20.2% -And his TS% went up just as usage went up: 51.5% -> 53.6% -> 53.5% -> 59.7%

Some very good points, the general perception of player's ceiling is questionable, it's down to the players work rate, in between games and during the off-season which really sets Avdija apart.

Like Rumsfelds said. Blazers have: known knowns, unknown knowns, and unknown unknowns.

Hope he bought a snowmobile

Shouldn't teams be stocking up on centers in case hack a Shaq works on Wemby/Chet/etc?

Ben is great. But he’ll have to get better at not hijacking the podcast 😂

STOP NOW!! GOT PLAYERS GOOD PROBABLY WOULD BEEN GREAT BUT OF COURSE NOT LET'S TANK THAT WOULD SUCK GET DRAFTED TO A TEAM DON'T EVEN WANNA WIN BUT LOSE..

Deni worked this summer on pull ups, mid range floters. He is going all in for all star. He doesn't limit himself to a role player.

Change the coach and the assistant, and you'll see its a first round roster.

If you let him run the offense as a second playmaker. play a lot of transition and move the ball around a lot.

All Ayton has to do to improve is to set a solid pick. You never even mentioned it and it's his biggest weakness.

Avidja is one of the fastest-dribblers in the league going baseline to baseline. If the Trailblazers allow him to lead the break, he will have a great season. I’m not sure about Portland’s coach though, We will wait and see

Ayton didn't quit his season early. It was a pleasant surprise to see a Blazer starter playing out his entire year. If the Blazers want to move away from tanking, they need to move the players that set a bad example for the younger players. Faking injuries is unprofessional.