Guest Dillon Sage of @holybackboard (TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dasagehoops) or twitter (@dasage) joined us to talk Donovan Clingan, Deni Avdija, Coach Billups, Scoot Henderson and other actual basketball topics. Get ready for the new season with us!

1:00 Icebreaker: Ice preferences (see Dillon’s recommendation on TikTok) also shout out Sy’s Pizza in Eugene!

6:00 Sage’s thoughts on Donovan Clingan as a Blazer after watching him for 2 years. Concerns: big leap in size, foot injuries. Pro: Great passer, sets good screens, Questions: can he play more than 24 minutes? 

10:40 How can he help the Blazers on defense? Post defense is A+, all around he’s solid. He’s good at using his length. He jumps at too much, at least he did in college. He will have more help too than guys like Nurk did, with better wing defenders. 

14:30 Concern coming from such a good program directly to a tanking team? Not really, sometimes going through hard times makes you better.

20:00 Fan fest takeaway: Blazers got taller.

25:05 What are some of the things Sage will watch for: Donovan Clingan and Scoot Henderson pick and roll. As much as humanly possible. 

29:15 Deni Avdija: why did the Blazers get a floor raiser right now? Good passer, defender, can fit around whoever he is playing with. Could be a better shooter if he’d had better spacing. At this point, Portland doesn’t really have better spacing.

35:00 Blazers potential defensive identity and who is going to play offense? Maybe they will lose a lot but opponents will be miserable because of their defense. 

41:00 Given the current coaching situation, how likely is it that the Blazers will get an identity ?

47:00 Future of Scoot Henderson, Sage still believes he can be a super point guard. 

49:30 Areas the Blazers were the worst in the league - which are they most likely to improve the most in? 

54:45 Tara's take: If someone is ever going to stop Wemby, they need someone very large like Donovan Clingan.

56:15 Sage: Scoot could still be the guy. The top point guard prospect he’s ever watched besides Chris Paul, but he needs to play alongside better players in better schemes.

Top 5 pick and roll operator, hopefully develops a shot, a good defender, conductor of the team. 

1:00:00 More on Scoot’s defense - he wants to do the right thing but the scheme is not good for him. 

1:08:00 What about the two big lineups? 

1:12:30 Rose's take: Sad that Boban Marjanovic is not in the NBA anymore. 

1:15:15 Sage’s take: volunteer! (also, check out highlights of the Greater Medford area Multi Cultural Fair)

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