Trail Daddy: A Trail Blazers Podcast Hosted by Dave Deckard

We’re back to continue the 2020 NBA Championship bracket to determine a champion in case the NBA doesn’t resume. In this episode we use team uniforms to narrow down the sweet 16 to the elite eight (sorry, NCAA, we’re borrowing your terminology). We also talk games we’ll remember this season, Carmelo Anthony and falling for narratives, questionable logo choices, and what does Cream City mean? Guests: Jannelle Moore (@Jannelle12) and Sasha Ashall, producer of From the Rose Garden 3:00 Ice Breaker: what is one game that will stand out for you? Houston vs Golden State on Christmas Day, first Clippers vs Lakers Game, Memorial Coliseum pre-season, Anthony Tolliver's last game with Portland. 14:45 Bracket Challenge continues with uniforms Listen to Part 1 of the bracket challenge: uniforms Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tara talks to Ian Johnson, author of The Bounce and the Echo: Dying to Love a Game. Johnson is a former Division 1 basketball player at Davidson College and a five year veteran of European Leagues. In the book he talks about his basketball journey, his mental health journey, his effort to move on from basketball to the next phase of his life and how he came to love the game again. All of this is intertwined with anecdotes about the history of basketball. Tara talks to him about why he wrote the book and they share a mutual appreciation of how sports reflects history (and history is reflected in sports). Johnson discusses what it was like playing at Oak Hill Academy with Carmelo Anthony, playing against LeBron in high school, and balancing (or trying to balance) being a student and an athlete in college. Finally, Johnson shares some radical ideas about how to change youth sports that he believes would lead to more well-rounded and healthier players. Highlights 1:00 Intro and pandemic talk. 4:00 Early basketball memories, going from being a soccer player to a basketball player. 7:00 Inspiration behind The Bounce and The Echo. A lot of it was about figuring out how to create his own narrative about his basketball career. 10:30 Why did he weave the history of basketball and historical anecdotes into his own story? 14:30 History is reflected in sport and sport is a reflection of history. 17:30 What was it like to be in such a competitive situation when he was very young? 23:00 Trying to describe how good it feels to play the game of basketball. 27:00 What was it like playing on a team with Carmelo Anthony and all the attention he brought? 29:00 Shout out to school uniforms 30:45 Playing against LeBron’s team in high school. 34:00 What was it like at Davidson and balancing being a player and an athlete. 36:00 Exploring mental health and athletes. 40:00 Playing in the Czeh republic, frequenting a speakeasy 41:00 Suggestions for how the youth game could help lead to better mindset for athletes when they become adults. 52:00 A week on board the cruise ship in Rio with the 2016 Olympic basketball teams. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here at the WHAT Podcast we don’t like to leave things hanging (unless it's taking a few extra weeks off in the middle of a pandemic). So we decided it was time to resolve who would be the 2020 NBA Champion. We brought in two super guests to help us out. Writer Jannelle Moore and podcast producer Sasha Ashall joined us to work through the 2020 Championship bracket so we could figure out, once and for all, which team will walk away with the Larry O’Brian Trophy. We seeded the teams into a 32 team bracket and dove into the first round by pitting the team’s mascots against each other. (The last two NBA Mascots of the Year earned their team a bye in the first round.) Which teams are moving on? We’ll be back next week with round two of the WHAT 2020 NBA Championship Bracket. All this plus recommendations of ways to stay connected to basketball even as we stay apart. Icebreakers: Quarantine impulse purchases--cast iron, meat, Stroopwafels, dirt. 7:00 Where Sasha’s basketball fandom came from watching the worst possible version of the Lakers. 10:30 Declaring a champion of our hearts using a playoff bracket. Today we tackle round one: basketball mascots. Bango the Buck is a heavy favorite after a clean sweep over Moondog of the Cavaliers. 15:00 How do mascot cliques form? 18:30 Is Lucky the Leprechaun a mascot or a logo? 24:00 Why don’t the Knicks have a mascot and can they hire Spike Lee to be their ambassador? 26:30 Mascot Hall of Fame. Shout out to Boomer who is in his first year of eligibility for the Mascot Hall of Fame. 30:00 The mascots are a close community, it is a harrowing job being a mascot. 40:00 Neither Warriors or Lakers have mascots, what will we do? 42:50 Why is Chuck the Condor so creepy? 48:30 Slamson the Lion has too many back stories, we’re suspicious. 51:10 Pierre the Pelican’s glow-up. 54:00 Blaze, obviously, moves on. He has never been Mascot of the Year, now is his time. 58:00 Come back for the next episode when we complete the bracket with more fun and fabulous NBA Brackets. 1:00 How are we staying connected to basketball? Old games, The Last Dance, Home and Hallelujah with the Currys, The Wine Down with Dwyane Wade, players getting new puppies, Weird Sports Rules YouTube Channel, and All the Smoke Podcast. Get social Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Danny Marang and Tara Bowen- Biggs are joined by Keith Parish of Fastbreak Breakfast (and Grits & Grind) to talk who would have actually taken the 8th seed, biggest regrets with the season on hold, how salsa is great but dangerous, try to name the 22 players who have played for both the Blazers and Grizzlies, which Gasol brother is better, what the Blazers might look to do at the draft, the greatness of Andre Miller and more! Intro Opening Comments "Point Break" and Serial Killers 3:00 Snacks of choice during Quarantine 5:00 The origins of "Fastbreak Breakfast" 10:00 Andre Miller the Gawd 14:00 What's your biggest regret of this season? 16:30 Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson 18:00 The return of Jusuf Nurkic 23:00 Carmelo Anthony and how he's viewed now 24:30 How would things have turned out for the 8th seed? 29:00 How good were the Grizzlies really? Would the Pelicans with Zion Williamson been enough? 31:00 Is there a world where the Blazers make the playoffs? 36:00 Game time! Name off NBA players who were both Grizzlies AND Blazers- winner gets the 8th seed! 39:00 Listener Questions! Will the Blazers use their pick or look to move it in a bigger deal? 54:00 Is it fair or unfair that some teams might open practice facilities ahead of others? 58:00 Which Gasol brother is better? 1:04:00 If you had to quarantine with two super team players and a podcaster, who would they be? 1:10:00 Closing Comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by former Trail Blazer's radio play-by-play voice, Brian "Wheels" Wheeler! Together they run down some great stories like, the time Stevie Wonder attended a Blazer's game and told Wheels how much he loved how he called the game, or when Chick Hearn said he'd give him pointers on his demo reel and vouched for him at job interviews, or the time the Golden State Warrior's PR team asked Wheels to apologize (in writing) to then coach Mark Jackson for saying saying on the broadcast that upset him (in a game the Warriors blew a huge lead in), and his thoughts on calling Michael Jordan's games in light of "The Last Dance" premiere. Fantastic stories, the genesis of how he got into play-by-play, potential nicknames for players (including Gary Trent Jr) and more on this week's episode!! Intro Opening Comments Brian Wheeler joins the pod! 2:00 Syncing up the radio with live game-play 3:00 Painting a picture with words for Stevie Wonder 4:30 Calling play-by-play anywhere and everywhere 7:00 The birth of the alliteration 10:00 “So angry he could bite through a rope” 13:00 Walking the line of being a homer 15:00 Nicknames you’re proud of and coming up with one for Gary Trent Jr 18:00 The Last Dance and Michael Jordan 25:00 Wheels having Chick Hearn as a reference 28:00 Chick Hearn stories 31:00 Listener Questions! Joe Simons of Blazer’s Outsiders - devilishly handsome 33:00 Relationships with other broadcasters 34:00 The time Wheels upset Mark Jackson so much he asked for a letter of apology from 35:30 Why Doug Collins was actually fired by the Bulls 41:00 Would you take the offer Joe Buck received? 43:30 Of the young players, who are you most excited to watch next season 49:00 How would you feel to call a new I-5 rivalry if it came back? 51:00 Which player from a different generation would you have liked to call? 55:30 John Wooden and Bill Walton story! 58:30 What is Wheels doing in the future? A book in the works? 1:00:00 Closing Comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by Adam Ryan of "In All Airness" to talk throwbacks, Clyde Drexler vs Micahel Jordan, how things would be viewed if luck had been on the Blazer's side, life on the other side of the world, chasing the Holy Grail of throwback basketball footage, reflecting back with former players, Adam's trip to All Star weekend in Chicago, his love for Terry Porter, the Mt Rushmore of Goggle Wearers and more! Intro Opening Comments Adam Ryan - In All Airness Life on the other side of the world right now 3:00 Is there a Holy Grail of throwback basketball footage/game? 6:00 Tracking down old game tapes 8:30 Sidetrack- Paul Allen’s obsession with the Blazers 10:00 How did “In All Airness” start? 12:00 Talking with different players from different eras; such as Fat Lever and Danny Schayes 16:30 What it’s like sitting down with players well passed their playing careers 19:30 The genesis of basketball in Australia 23:00 Talking about shooters, Mark Price, Rick Barry and the differences between position groups 25:00 Adam’s experiences at All Star Weekend in Chicago 28:30 Mark Price and the All Star Breakfast 30:00 Legend’s Brunch 31:00 The Mt Rushmore of Goggle Wearer’s 32:30 Sad Blazer’s stories as introductions to the team 34:00 The differences between teams now and then 36:00 Clyde Drexler and the first super team Comparing eras and how throwback players could compete in today’s game 38:30 Adam getting mailed NBA games of the 1992 season sparks a love for Terry Porter 42:30 Adam and his interview with Michael Holton 47:00 Bringing back more torrid memories courtesy of Adam 48:00 Looking back at the Drexler v. Jordan battles and comparisons 51:00 Closing Comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amara Baptist, Digital Content Manager for the Portland Trail Blazers, dropped by the WHAT podcast to talk about what is keeping her entertained, share memories of her time working at Kobe Bryant’s summer basketball camp and give us tips for social media success. Plus we’ve got four more songs to add to the 2020 Feel Good playlist. Highlights 1:30 Icebreaker: What would you put on the English muffin of your dreams (shout out to Brooke Olzendam)? 7:00 Social media stars during the outbreak: Check out Matisse Thybulle on Tik Tok, CJ McCollum’s Instagram captions. Mario Hezonja and Meyers Leonard on Twitch. 9:00 NBA Players who can’t figure out how to use digital collaboration tools are so relatable (Hi, Carmelo Anthony). 11:00 Amara’s memories of Kobe Bryant. Handling social media during the Lakers first game back after his death. 19:00 Social Media school: what are some of the keys for successful social media presences, both for individuals and for brands? 35:00 Logistics of how you have a social media team. 38:00 Thoughts about how fragile life is. 39:00 More picks for the uplifting playlist. That's the way that the world goes round by John Prine and The Gambler by Kenny Rogers. (Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay by Ottis Redding, Conversations in the Dark, John Legend. 42:00 The secret to a good Instagram photo is to have Bruce Ely take it for you. Get social Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: @amarabaptist Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by Trail Blazer's guard Anfernee Simons! Together they touch on, managing time with the season up in the air, how Simons works on skills development, what players he looks to take moves/skills from, whether or not he's afraid of ghosts, what coaches expect of him out on the floor, listener questions and a whole lot more! Intro Opening Comments Anfernee Simons! Do you still access to a basketball hoop? 1:30 How are you and the family doing? 3:00 How are you staying busy? 4:30 There are BEARS in Florida 7:00 Is Ant afraid of ghosts? 8:30 How much do you love social media? 9:00 When you’re working on a skill- what’s the process you go through? 10:30 When you want to add something to your game, who are the guys you watch? What have you take from Lillard and McCollum? 12:00 When you work on something new, how long do you work on it before you take it to live game action? 15:00 What have been your Top 3 favorite moments you’ve been a part of this season? 16:00 How have your parents helped/influenced you on your way to the NBA? 20:30 Has your fashion sense changed since you got in the league? 22:30 What was your one splurge buy that you just had to have? 23:30 What advice that you received really stuck with you coming off your rookie season? 25:00 Listener Questions! What is the coaches want you to work on when you get out on the floor? 27:30 What would you rather have- Pick & roll or DHO? 28:30 What is your day like during the season? How is it different now? 29:30 How are staying connected with people/teammates? 31:30 What is your biggest takeaway from the season? 32:30 Why haven’t you worn Dame’s? What’s the process of deciding on what shoes your’e going to wear? 36:30 How is your family doing during all of this? 38:00 What’s the best meal you can cook? 39:20 Do you know all of Gary Trent Jr’s brother’s names? 40:00 Watching old games/footage 43:00 Closing Comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trail Blazers sideline reporter Brooke Olzendam dropped by the Hoops and Talks podcast to talk to Cassidy and Tara about how she is passing the time while the league is suspended. Learn more about the English Muffin Challenge, “Olzengrams”, and what sports stories everyone is enjoying while we wait for NBA basketball to return. Highlights 1:00 Brooke’s English Muffin challenge 2:51 What is a favorite random sports fact? Invention of basketball, the invention of the High Five, and did Rocky Marciano really invent the fax machine? 9:15 What is fun about her job? Telling player stories. For example, talking to CJ McCollum’s high school coach to find out if he imagined McCollum would have such a successful NBA career. 11:30 We enjoyed McCollum tweeting the replay of the Denver Nuggets playoff game. 12:00 How has Brooke been spending her time? With family, keeping track of her mom, doing puzzles with her son. 20:00 Olzengram Live with Damian Lillard and Damian Lillard Jr. It is fun to see the players at home. 21:00 What it was like for Brooke to get to know Carmelo Anthony. 23:00 Favorite sports movies? 28:00 Favorite TV shows? 32:00 We’re going to miss watching the Olympics. 36:00 We are loving the rise of Jamie Hudson in the local media. We want to hear Jamie and Brooke call a game! 38:00 Favorite sports books? 45:00 Upbeat songs that make us feel good. Here are our picks, what are yours? Favorite Sports movie Tara: Miracle Cassidy: Cool Runnings Brooke: Karate Kid, Varsity Blues, Hoosiers Favorite Sports Book Tara: Loose Balls, The Secret Game, Boomtown, The Bounce and The Echo Cassidy: Game Changers: The Unsung Heroines of Sports History by Molly Schiot Brooke: Basketball and Other Things Shea Serrano, Little Girls in Pretty Boxes Favorite Sports TV show Tara: Friday Night Lights Cassidy: Sports Night (1998) Brooke: The Jump, The Olympics Favorite Sports Documentary Tara: Battered Bastards of Baseball Cassidy: Women of Troy and Finding Big Country Brooke: The Marinovich Project (30 for 30), The Dream Team (30 for 30) Feel good playlist Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: @brookeolzendam Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bown-Biggs and Danny Marang and joined by two guests; John Sabine of NBC Sports Chicago and Bulls Outsiders, and Cassidy Gemmet of the WHAT podcast. Together, they tackle John's poorly seeded NBA nickname bracket to crown the best nickname in NBA history. What nicknames did John forget? Which ones did we get right and which did we get wrong? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a brief break, the Blazer's Edge podcast with Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang is back! Intro Opening comments Staying safe and sane during social isolation 2:00 Immediate reaction to the shut down of the season 4:00 Players coming together to help 8:00 NBA players not being able to play ball - what are they doing now? 10:00 What will happen if the season resumes? 12:00 Quick detour to talk about the uniqueness of Duncan Robinson 14:00 The delayed return of Jusuf Nurkic 18:00 The "what if" of the season resuming and the improved health of the Blazers 22:00 Missing out on how Nurkic-Hassan Whiteside would work together...or not. 25:00 Portland dealt a bad hand, could it end up okay that it was THIS season? 30:00 Looking to the 2020 NBA season and what the financial impact could be on the Trail Blazers 34:00 How to plan for team building with so many uncertainties 40:00 Things we missed out on- Who was better, the Lakers or the Clippers? 45:00 Doing things outside of basketball, Patty Mills and Jamal Murray 48:00 The reminder, do not Google "Fournier" 49:00 How are you passing the time now? 50:00 Streaming on Twitch with Anfernee Simons 52:00 Dealing and coping with everything that's going on 55:00 If you need help, don't be afraid to ask for help! 57:00 Closing comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jamie Hudson of NBC Sports Northwest joined us to talk about what she will remember about the season (so far), what she misses about basketball, how reporting on the NBA has changed since the suspension of the league and how she is spending her time at home. It was so great to talk to her and hear her cheerful voice. Basketball marathons, games to re-watch, Gary Trent Jr coming into his own, Instagram baby dance parties, covering Carmelo Anthony, finding her voice as a reporter, Below Deck vs 90 Day fiance, we’ve got a smorgasbord of topics for anyone hungry for basketball (and basketball adjacent) talk. 1:00 Icebreaker: What makes the perfect basketball game marathon? 6:00 What stood out about the Trail Blazers’ season so far? 9:30 What is it about basketball that you miss the most right now? 13:15 What were some of the highlights for Jamie as a reporter this season? 18:00 What is Jamie doing with the league suspended? 21:30 Making a pitch for shows to binge: 90 Day Fiance vs Below Deck. 26:30 In what ways has Jamie’s job changed since the league was suspended and everyone is staying home? 28:00 Listener questions from @roselharding What’s Jamie’s picks for most re-watchable Blazers games this season? I have them all on DVR and I def need to start re-watching them soon... for sanity. 31:00 Reflections on being in LA for the Laker game after Kobe died. It was incredible how such a big crowd was also so silent. 35:30 From listener Rachael: I'd love to know how she has made the space for herself to develop as a reporter where she is, especially with really big personalities like Dwight Jaynes dominating the same space. 39:00 @Burlacious_M What is likely the most interesting Blazer subplot to cover for this coming off-season? 41:00 What will the basketball be like after the players have not been allowed to play in groups? 44:00 How are teams keeping up with each other and staying connected? 45:00 We hope Jusuf Nuckic heard us chanting his name at 12:30 on March 15 which would have been his return. Get social Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: @JamieHudsonNBCS Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang look back at the past week with horrible losses to the Phoenix Suns and the Sacramento Kings, the upcoming return of Jusuf Nurkic and all the listener questions we can handle! Intro Opening comments What team were we watching? 2:00 Aron Baynes and the 3-point murder bus 4:00 Back and forth with Trevor Ariza and Hassan Whiteside 7:00 Why do this losses feel so bad? 10:00 Alex Len v CJ McCollum and the Tale of the Tape 12:00 LISTENER QUESTIONS Who has replaced Skal on Team Mom's photo? 14:00 Are the Blazers going into load management for the vets AKA selectively tank? 16:00 Do Moses or Jaylen. have a chance to make the roster next year? Wenyen? 19:00 The return of Jusuf Nurkic 22:00 Do you think POR targets a big move (sign & trade) or moving CJ, Simons or Collins this summer? 25:00 MORE NURKIC! 28:00 The Blazer's defensive issues aren't easily solvable 30:00 How will the season be effected if crowds aren't allowed in arenas? 37:00 What are the most important things we've learned this season? 39:00 Top 3 candidates for a MLE signing that could contribute right away 44:00 Have you seen Paddington and Paddington 2 - if not why do you hate joy? 46:00 MARIO! 48:00 If Blazers land a top 3 pick who should they take? 50:00 Could the Blazers make a run at Karl Anthony Towns? 53:00 If you had to choose one, Simons or Trent Jr who do you take? 57:00 Looking forward to the next 2 games, Memphis Grizzlies and Houston Rockets 1:00:00 More NURKIC! 1:03:00 Closing comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s Hoops and Talks podcast, Cassidy and Tara choose celebrity ambassadors, discuss the playoff race, comment on the outstanding play of CJ McCollum and Gary Trent Jr, and give Mario Hezonja some love for taking one for the team. Then it is time to choose our players for the 2010s All Decade team. Listen in and tell us which team would win! Highlights 1:00 Who would be your choice for celebrity ambassador for the Trail Blazers? 5:30 Blazers are not that far out of the playoff race. 6:30 How much does it matter if the Blazers make the playoff? 8:30 What is the value of Playoff experience? 10:05 Mario Hezonja is having an impact, getting fined. 13:30 Despite the mounting losses, the games are still pretty fun to watch. 14:30 What have we learned about the team while Lillard was out? 18:00 Gary Trent Jr has been playing like a seasoned vet but he needs a nickname. 19:00 Listener mail asks us, what about moving CJ to the bench? 23:30 All 2010s decade draft. Cassidy’s team: Damian Lillard, Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum, Marcus Camby, Jusuf Nurkic, Evan Turner. Tara’s team: Brandon Roy, CJ McCollum, Maurice Harkless, LaMarcus Aldridge, Ed Davis, Al-Farouq Aminu. Which team wins? 34:00 Knicks just cannot seem to Do the Right Thing 35:00 CARIS. COLEMAN. LEVERT. 37:00 Stephan Curry returns from the G-league 39:00 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang take a look at where the Blazers are and how to rationalize the season, the unwritten rules of basketball, the growth of the deep bench, early looks at draft prospects, how safe is Coach Stotts, the return of Jusuf Nurkic and more! Intro Opening comments Trae Young, Trevor Ariza & the unwritten rules 3:00 How has Ariza looked in a Portland uniform? 8:00 Competence is not a bad word! 10:00 Taking a look at the young guys and their defensive issues/growth 13:00 Nassir Little and Wenyen Gabriel and what could they turn into? 18:00 Listener questions! 21:00 Who are some players the Blazers could look at between 9-12 in the Draft? Obi Toppin, Onyeka Okungwu, Deni Avdija 22:00 Why a pick matters more than just drafting a young player 23:40 Looking ahead to Zach Collins and his return- are we maybe building up too many expectations? 32:00 Deciding between Gabriel and Swanigan for a deep roster spot next year 36:00 Load management is happening whether we want it to or not. 39:00 Is Terry Stotts untouchable? 41:00 Do you think that the way the Blazers have handled the timeline for Nurkic’s return has anything to do with being aware of how things went with Kawhi and the Spurs? 44:30 Looking at the possible returns of Carmelo Anthony, Trevor Ariza and Hassan Whiteside 49:00 Closing Comments 52:00 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the latest episode of the WHAT podcast, Tara and Cassidy name their All 2000 Decade team and they are nothing like you would expect. Tune in to find out who they chose, catch up on the Blazers since the All Star Break and ask if we should let go of our anger about the Blazers’ loss on March 6, 2001? 1:00 Icebreaker: Red Vines or Twizzlers? Also black licorice stories. 2:30 Thoughts on the Blazers without Lillard? CJ McCollum has limited options. There is a big difference between the guys in suits and the guys suited up. 6:45 Nassir Little has changed his shoes. No more pink. When are the guys in street clothes going to form a suit rainbow? 9:00 2000s All Decade team. What were you doing in 2000? Did you have a favorite player? How about 2010? 17:30 Cassidy’s picks: she agrees with the fan vote for the Trail Blazers all decade team. Adds picks for her favorite players from the Portland Fire: Jackie Stiles, DeMya Walker, Kristin Folkl, Sophia Witherspoon and Sylvia Crawley. 20:40 For Tara’s all-decade team she refused to select anyone who was on the team on March 6, 2001, when the Blazers blew the lead against the Vancouver Grizzlies to lose the game on the night that Clyde Drexler’s jersey was retired. This made it very hard to choose an all decade team. 27:30 Cassidy was at that game, so she weighs in on if we should forgive the team for that loss. 28:30 Tara has a superstitious dislike of special nights. 30:30 Smooth Jazz no more, things are getting rocky in Utah 33:00 Will He or Won’t He? The return of Steph Curry. Steve Kerr doesn’t seem very flexible. 35:20 New podcast hosted by Sonya and Del Curry, Raising Fame, the latest episode features Gina Johnson, Damian Lillard’s mom. 36:30 Can You Fix a Broken Heart? The Story of Andre Iguodala 39:30 Zion meet Lebron, Lebron meet Zion. On the first meeting of the two stars. 43:30 Outro Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn more about the Indiana Pacers with Caitlin Cooper from Indy Cornrows. Who to watch, what their style of play is like, and how they have adjusted to their own injury bad luck. 00:45 Main story lines, reintegrating Victor Oladipo into the lineup and trying to get some continuity with lots of injuries 1:45 More on Oladipo: He’s not as explosive as he was before the injuries. He’s not getting as many on-target shots as he used to, he seems like he’s still a little off balance.He’s still able to get back and cover on defense. 4:15 Who are the main playmakers? Malcolm Brogdon, one of the highest possession players in the league. He doesn’t have as much space as he did when he was playing alongside Giannis. Struggling with open threes as well. 7:00 More about the Pacer’s bench, they are solid. Sabonis is a starter but he’s important to making the bench successful. Lots of free flowing movement, lots of fluidity. They lack in size. 9:00 Other strengths of the team. PnR with Brogdon and Sabonis can be good. Their mid-range game is good, esp Brogdon. TJ Warren is fun to watch along the baseline. 10:15 All the TJs. 11:15 Sabonis is still solidly averaging a double double. He’s the through line between the starters and the bench. Screen assists! He’s good at it. 14:15 What does the basketball look like when everyone is clicking? Lots of movement, they don’t turn the ball over, their half court offense is strong. They are not as tough defensively as they have been, they are even dabbling in the zone. 16:30 Impressions about Damian Lillard, how has he been able to adjust to the blizting this season? It's an impressive improvement. 19:45 Who is the leader in the locker room? It could be anybody's guess. They have a “reset” button at their practice facility. It reflects their one-day-at-a-time approach. 21:00 Fan favorites: TJ McConnell, Doug McDermott, Justin Holiday. Holiday is a 3 and D pro, he’s basically playing out of position, takes a beating, guards the guys who post up (like Carmelo Anthony), finishes games, stays out when they are playing small. 25:00 No more injuries! Find Caitlin’s work on indycornrows.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by guest Brian Noe to take a look back at games since the All Star break, CJ McCollum running the show and how it differs from Damian Lillard, what limitations are impacting the game, listener questions, why Brian Noe still has a Christmas tree up and more! Intro Opening comments 2:00 Brian Noe on the show! 4:30 CJ McCollum running the show 6:00 Taking a look at..ugh… the Piston’s game 8:00 Gary Trent Jr and a decade long career 10:00 Looking at CJ McCollum through the year 12:00 The differences between how Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum run the show 14:30 Why isn’t there a lot of movement in the offense 19:00 What’s contributing to these horrendous quarters? 23:00 It’s all Wenyen Gabriel all the the time! 29:00 Listener Questions! Is there any hope for ‘Rio being a serviceable NBA player? 34:00 It seems less and less likely that the team will make the playoffs, what are you looking for if that happens? 42:00 Addressing Dan’s (my) thoughts on not trading Whiteside 48:00 Is CJ a top-15 all time Blazer? 54:30 Can you be the DPOY if your team has a bottom 5 defensive rating in the league? 57:30 Announcements Closing comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tara and Cassidy welcome friend of the podcast, the original FANalyst, Jo Wulffenstein (and her dog Seymoure) back onto the show. We talk about what she has been up to, how she stays connected to her beloved Blazers, and what is the most unique Blazers paraphernalia she has come across in her world travels. We recap the best All Star Weekend in recent memory, debate the ending of the dunk contest, and have an idea how to improve the Elam Ending even more. Plus, we share what we think the Blazers will focus on down the stretch. All this and more on the latest WHAT podcast. Icebreaker 2:01 Icebreaker: Inspired by the scarves in Toronto, what do you think is the most important accessory for the NBA walk up? 6:30 Catching up with Jo--where have you been the last few years? Living in Alaska, traveling around the world and chasing down every Trail Blazers fan she sees. 10:30 The tiniest Ed Davis doll and other Blazers paraphernalia. 17:00 All Star Talk from the biggest All Star fan, Cassidy who watched the Legends Brunch and the Jr NBA games. 20:00 Jo thought it was a really nice tribute not only to Kobe Bryant but to David Stern’s vision to bring people together. She liked the 24 seconds of loud cheering, after so many 24 seconds of silence tributes. 21:30 The NBA Celebrity game is for learning about new people, WNBA players should not be added as an afterthought. 24:00 Who are Jose Andres and Anthony “Spice” Adams (aka Creamebiggums)? Andres is a 50 year old humanitarian (same age as Tara) and Spice Adams is hilarious. 34:28 We give the final final word on the Dunk Contest. We liked Pat Connaughton, Dwight had one dunk that was nice. 39:00 Tara attempts to explain Tik Tok. 42:00 It seems like the Elam Ending worked, it made the end of the game more competitive and fun, as well as it had a playground style feel to it which also made it fun. Kyle Lowry spent a lot of the 4th quarter on the ground. 48:00 We suggest that with the Elam Ending, you should have to get the target score exactly, and if you go over it you get 5 points taken off. 52:50 Will Victor Oladipo be the next player to perform at the All Star Game? 53:00 Final thoughts about the rest of the Blazers’ season. Need the best from Hassan Whiteside and a great closing run from CJ McCollum. And how will Damian Lillard respond with their backs against the walls. Go for the playoffs and then let the younger players get a lot of playing time for experience. Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s edition of the Blazer’s Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang take a look at the final games leading up to the All Star Break (begrudgingly), discuss the future in the NBA with Zion Williamson and Ja Morant, the curious case of CJ McCollum, looking at the final 26 games of the season, discussing whether or not the Blazers will end up making the playoffs and more... on this week’s episode! CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD Intro Opening comments The ups and downs of the season 2:00 How absolutely ridiculous is Zion? 4:00 What happened in New Orleans? 7:00 How about in Memphis? 11:00 Ja Morant, Zion and the future of the league 11:30 How likely are the Blazers to make the playoffs? 13:30 There was some good out of the last 2 games- Anfernee Simons time! 16:00 How about we calm down with hating/blaming Caleb Swanigan 19:00 **UPDATE** Evaluating Tara’s “season of CJ” 22:00 Taking a look at where CJ ranks and what his expectations are the as the number two option 26:00 How should CJ be viewed and where does he fit in the pecking order of the top scorers/shooters 30:00 All Star weekend round up - Aaron Gordon was robbed! 43:40 Thoughts on the final 26 games 50:00 Closing comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alex Haigh returns to the Hoops and Talks podcast to catch up with Tara and discuss what Gary Trent Jr said to Donovan Mitchell, how does she feel about the season so far, which Blazer has the most fashion sense, and what difference has Carmelo Anthony made to the team? Then we talk about the newest basketball, culture and art magazine, Flagrant, for which she is the designer. Issue #1 is about to debut. She talks about what it is like to make a print publication when so much has gone digital and gives us a teaser about what to expect in the first issue. Highlights 1:45 What did Gary Trent Jr say to Donovan Mitchell? 4:00 Are the Jazz the Trail Blazers’ newest rivals? 7:15 Overall impressions of the seasons so far. 8:00 Memories of Tolliver and Bazemore. They really seemed to embrace the city. 11:30 What are some of the ways that Carmelo Anthony has impacted the team? He gave a little hope and a little energy at a time when they really needed it. 14:20 Walk-in outfit analysis. Which Blazers are bringing high fashion to the pre-game walk up? We lost a lot in that department when Evan Turner was traded. 19:20 Flagrant Magazine is coming soon, its a new magazine about basketball, culture and art. 22:30 Teasers for what will be in the magazine. There will be something for astrology fans! 26:00 Differences between digital and traditional media, and putting together something traditional after we’ve changed our habits and the way we consume media. Get social Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: @owlhix Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by Trail Blazers Beat Reporter Casey Holdahl to talk about the insanity in Salt Lake City, how ridiculous Damian Lillard has been, how has it been covering Carmelo Anthony, the emergence of Gary Trent Jr. and more! Intro Opening comments Casey Holdahl! Reactions from at the game following the blown goaltending call 2:00 Guys were definitely irritated 3:00 Gary Trent Jr needs to speed up his post game dressing 4:20 When was the last time a Blazer was as mad as Damian Lillard was 5:30 Royce O’Neale getting under the skin, and feet, of the Blazers 9:00 Relationships between players and officials falling apart 11:30 How do you miss that call? 15:00 The NBA got one thing right- they didn’t fine anyone. 17:00 Will that game be a galvanizing point? 18:00 The Blazers finding that magic in January again 19:00 Why are we shocked that this happens every year? 23:00 What is happening on the floor that’s got the Blazers in a better place? 26:30 Trevor Ariza, and how he’s fit into Portland 30:00 Portland’s defense isn’t necessarily better 31:30 The bar for success at the forward position is low- Ariza is clearing it 32:30 What has it been like to get to know Ariza and Carmelo? 37:30 Give Gary Trent Jr. his love 43:00 Gary’s gonna be around the league for 10 years or more 43:30 Just draft kids that had NBA fathers 48:00 Worried about Trent Jr getting game planned out? 50:00 Closing comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cassidy and Tara talk on the eve of the NBA trade deadline. They discuss the huge four team trade that occurred on Wednesday, remark on how many former Blazers are scattered throughout teams in the Northwest Division and wonder how their friends in Memphis are dealing with Andre Iguodala leaving for Miami? LeBron was chosen as Player of the Month over Damian Lillard, can we let this stand? Anfernee Simons was passed up for the dunk contest but Pat Connaughton got the nod. How do we feel? Finally, to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day, Cassidy tells us about the first U.S. Women’s National Team and the 1976 Olympics. Highlights 00:30 Facts about the new players! Swanigan graduated from Purdue this summer. Trevor Ariza’s brother died very young and he is his inspiration because he’s been trying to live out the dreams that his brother had. 3:00 Trevor Ariza looks really good in his uniform. 3:30 Imagine being Wenyen Gabriel and getting your first start against LeBron James and blocking Javale McGee. 4:45 Pretending that the game against Denver never happened. 6:00 Trade Deadline catch-up. Woj is just messing with us at this point. But we would do the same thing. 7:45 The Big Trade between Denver, Houston, Atlanta, and Minnesota. Significant for us because two of the four teams are in the Northwest Division. 8:45 What does “Houston is going to play small-ball” really mean? 10:30 This was the biggest trade in 20 years and featured a few former Blazers. There are former Blazers all up and down the Northwest Division. 12:45 Last time a trade this complicated happened was in 2000 when the Knicks traded Patrick Ewing to Seattle. 14:00 A brief interlude about Stacey Augman, Plastic Man (and why are the names in Basketball reference so weird). 15:15 How did Andre Iguodala do it? 17:45 Has anyone ever actually accurately predicted what the Blazers were going to do at the trade deadline? Just because you can plug someone into the trade machine doesn’t mean you should. 19:00 Pat Connaughton is going to the Dunk Contest. We lodge our complaint about Anfernee not making it but we are very excited for Pat Connaughton. Actually, the way things are going, we don’t want any Blazers jumping at all. Just wrap them in bubble wrap between games. Cassidy wants less props, more dunks. Anfernee Simons has 11 dunks this season, Pat Connaughton has 20. 23:00 LeBron over Damian Lillard for Western Conference player of the month. We’re sad about that but learned that the Blazers went 8-7 in January. A winning record in January! 26:10 Okay, we’ll talk about the ten point quarter in Denver. 27:15 The Knicks part ways with their president and no one is surprised. 29:15 Olympics update! In honor of Girls and Women in Sports day: 1976 Debut of Women’s Basketball at the Olympics. The team only had about 4-6 weeks to practice together. There was no national women’s league so they had not played together. Other countries like Russia had teams where the women had played together for 10 years. The team went in with an attitude that they were going to make history. Oral History of the 1976 Women’s Olympic Team. The Russian team that they played in the semi finals had a woman on their team who was 7ft tall. Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain attended their games. Help send 2000 kids to a Blazer game, purchase tickets to donate to Blazers Edge Night Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang marvel and discuss Damian Lillard's absolutely epic week, running out of superlatives along the way. Then it's the emergence of the "pink show crew"; Anfernee Simons, Gary Trent Jr and Nassir Little, ranking Dame as an MVP candidate, all the listener questions about the upcoming trade deadline and what Portland would/could/should do, even more Damian Lillard praise and so much more! Intro Opening comments Damian Lillard having the best run ever for a Trail Blazer What’s your favorite part of what Dame is doing 3:00 He’s so good that the defense that defined him years ago is now obsolete 4:30 What’s one of the greatest things about having him on the team? 6:00 Appreciating Lillard for what he’s done 7:00 Where does Dame sit in the MVP ladder now? Is he up there with Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James and Luka Doncic? 10:00 What about the guys not named Lillard - Hassan Whiteside, Gary Trent Jr, Anfernee Simons and Nassir Little 12:00 How has Trevor Ariza looked/fit? 17:30 It’s amazing what competent experience can accomplish 19:30 “Tara he has 100 points and 2 turnovers!” 21:30 “A week ago he couldn’t throw a lob pass and now he’s freaking Andre Miller!” 22:45 Not really worried about the defense right now when you’re dropping 120 26:00 Listener questions! If Whiteside isn’t traded, will a different trade happen? 29:00 Should this recent run cause Portland to change their direction? 33:00 Assuming Nurk comes back this year and is playing at a high level, do you see him playing as a starter and Whiteside coming off the bench? 36:30 What is the max you think the Blazers would offer for RoCo (Robert Covington)? Have the young guys become untouchable? 38:00 The rise of Gary Trent and Ariza’s fit appear to be better than Baze? 43:00 “Do you watch the Bachelor?(Tara) I do not. (Dan) Well, here’s my Bachelor reference anyways…” 44:00 Barring a collapse by OKC or an insane run by the Blazers, it looks like the 8th spot is the highest attainable seed- which team is the biggest threat to the Blazers? 48:00 Was ready for Whiteside trade before, but the way things are going is it wise to keep him? 51:00 Who do you see being valuable role players going forward? 57:00 Hassan Whiteside being more impactful 1:00:00 Closing comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jasmine D. Brown, production assistant for ESPN and former beat writer for Washington Mystics and Capital City Go-Go (the Wizard’s G-League affiliate) joined the Hoops And Talks Podcast to talk about her journey to working full-time in sports.She talked about Trevor Ariza’s time with the Wizards, Maryland alumni who have played for the Trail Blazers and the trajectory of the Washington Mystics leading to their 2019 WNBA Championship. We had a great time learning that there was a Twitter account for Jake Layman’s hair (@jakelaymanshair), how a mechanical engineering major pivoted to sports, and what are some of the highlights of the new WNBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. All of this and more on the latest podcast. Highlights 1:00 Icebreaker: Favorite kind of cookies these days? 3:00 How did you get into basketball? Never played but loves to shoot. Enjoys the “something to prove” aspect of college hoops. 6:15 As someone dialed in to the Washington DC sports scene, what can you tell us about the newest Trail Blazer Trevor Ariza? 10:45 What is it like working at ESPN? Do you get tired of watching sports? She is always going to watch Maryland and DC area sports. 13:00 Three popular Fan Favorites went to her alma mater, University of Maryland, Jake Layman, Steve Blake and Buck Williams. Thoughts or memories about these guys? She knew who Buck Williams was, remembered Steve Blake most from his time with the Lakers, and she was at Maryland when Jake Layman played there. His hair had its own twitter account! 18:30 What was it like covering the Washington Mystics in their championship run last season? It was great to see them progress because they went from losing in the Semi Finals, to losing in the Finals to finally winning the whole thing. Highlights were a Natasha Cloud buzzer-beater, Game 5 of the finals. 22:00 The WNBA has been in the news lately because of the new CBA. What do you think is most significant about the new agreement? The pay was very significant because people really don’t know how much the players were making. And so many have to play year round to support themselves. The Mystics couldn’t have a championship parade because too many of the players had to leave right away to go overseas. 24:15 What do you think will be the most significant impact this season? The players will probably have a good mindset coming in, feeling like they are being cared for. 28:30 Could this lead to possible expansion of the WNBA? 30:30 Any reflection on Alana Beard as she announces her retirement? You can be a defensive player and still get recognition. 33:30 What is it like working somewhere that famous athletes are either working or visiting all the time? 35:00 How did she get into production? She always wanted to be an anchor person, was an early fan of George Stephanopoulos, but studied engineering in college before deciding she wanted to get into sports. She did a lot of writing for years before she moved to ESPN. Get social Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: @jasmined_brown Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s episode we remember Kobe Bryant, our own memories of him, stories that we’ll never forget and what a perfect villain he was for Portland fans. We talk about what he must have meant to players in the league, how his active retirement showed us a different side of him, and wonder who in the league plays with the same passion that Kobe did? Then we talk about the amazing week Damian Lillard just had, how the ball seems to be moving around more, what we saw from Trevor Ariza and how Gary Trent Jr has made the most of extended minutes. 5:30 We thought Kobe Bryant would live forever. 16:00 He was such a good foil, such a good villain. 22:15 Post retirement Kobe and the muse cage. 26:45 How players are reacting to his death. There are two different generations who had different relationships with Kobe. There are the guys who came in the league shortly after he did, and then there are the players who watched him play when they were young. 32:15 Kobe stories: Kobe taking away his teammates’ Kobe shoes because they didn’t deserve to wear them and also Kobe walking out on practice after calling his teammates soft “like Charmin”. 35:00 Who are the players who hate their opponents as much as Bryant ever did? 37:00 Blazers go to Staples Center for the Lakers first game back. 38:45 Damian Lillard’s incredible week. 42:25 Why does it seem like there has been more ball movement when you look up the stats and they are not passing it more. Damian is driving and getting people to collapse on him and then making precision passes back out. Two behind the back passes! Two! 47:00 Hassan Whiteside has been contributing lately and is clicking with Damian. He was the most physical he has been all year in the Indiana game. He was dunking all over guys which we’ve really been waiting for. 54:30 How is Ariza fitting in? He’s a pros pro. Like Carmelo Anthony, he just knows what to do. He seems like he’s going to be able to make quick decisions because he’s been doing it for so long. Ariza doesn’t overthink. 57:00 Comparing Ariza to Aminu. 59:00 Are the Blazers going to play defense again? 62:00 Gary Trent Jr has been really useful and is taking advantage of the opportunity he’s been given to play. He’s been given tons of space to catch and shoot and he’s finishing. He’s also been making some plays. 1:06 :00 Anfernee Simons can slow down time when he’s gliding to the rim. 1:08:00 Listener Questions: @IllKrill What if Whiteside is not traded? How will the Blazers get better around Dame for the coming years? 1:11:00 @williamsstan14 How do you think Whiteside handles it if he doesn't get traded and Nurk starts taking over his spot little by little. Late game situations etc.. Clearly Nurk is a better all around player especially with this team. He is also beloved by his teammates and his influence is missed 1:17:30 @C_Blake05 If Dame were to hypothetically approach 81 points at staples in a few nights, would you expect him to stop short of 81, or would he try to pass Kobe? ( Of course assuming the game is out of hand) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kristen Kerbaugh has a front row seat to all the Trail Blazers’ home games as the Stage Manager for the broadcast team. We talked to her about how she got started in television and found out what she is doing up at the front table during the games. She’s got some fun memories and funny stories about what it is like to be so close to the action. Game 5 against the Thunder? We got chills just hearing her talk about it! We also discuss how we’re feeling about Trevor Ariza joining the Trail Blazers, wonder how Caleb Swanigan will fit back in and, of course, we can’t stop talking about Damian Lillard. We’ve got some great listener feedback to share, and speculation about what kind of suit Skal Labissiere might wear when he makes it back to the bench. All this and more on the latest Women’s Hoops And Talks Podcast. 3:30 Kristen comes from a family that works in television so she started by holding mics on the side of the field. Worked as a runner or production assistant until she got the job as stage manager. Has always been a Trail Blazer fan, RipCiy is in her veins. 7:45 How stressful it this job? It is pretty repetitive so once the routine is down its not too stressful. 8:15 Favorite part of he job is getting to sit up close and watch the sport and team that she loves. 12:00 What are people sitting up at the front table doing? Broadcast crews on either end, there are people supporting the broadcasts with stats, public relations folks.. Her job is safer than the sideline cameras. She did get showered with LeBron’s chalk. Nurkic likes to interact. 18:20 What is it like being so close to the bench? Do you pick up the Blazers vibes? During games the bench players are really engaged, with each other and the coaches. 19:30 Memories of Lillard’s game winner against Oklahoma City Thunder. The end of the game felt like it was in slow motion. When Nurkic entered the arena she was excited to see how the crowd would react. 24:30 Keeping it together during the four overtimes against Denver. 25:30 Feelings about the trade the Blazers just made? Interested to see what growth Swanigan may show. Will we be able to get past the Trevor Ariza/Rudy Fernandez incident. 32:00 Sitting up close you can really feel the players emotions. 33:45 What is it like getting to have a front row seat to Damian Lillard’s excellence? He is everything that we read or hear about. He makes a point of signing autographs and getting to know everyone that he can. 41:00 Listener feedback! Ideas for new tagline, thoughts on Whiteside’s rebounds, icebreaker suggestion, what is going on with Rodney Hood? Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. @KristenKerbaugh Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1:00 Initial reaction to trade: Does this trade make more clear the plan for the rest of year 2:15 Is it possible to make a move that makes everyone happy? Blazers usually work with a small group of teams. 9:00 Remembering the Anthony Tolliver game. 15:00 Kent Bazemore had a nice game against Houston. 17:00 Things basketball wise seem like they are starting to fall into place. 22:00 Carmelo Anthony has been having a good week, here’s why. Not taking too many shots, getting guys in the post and backing them down in the post. He’s not a black hole on offense because if he gets in trouble he can pass out. 25:30 @Burlacious_M Is Ariza going to surprise everyone with a Melo like revival in Portland where he’s playing major minutes and can really help us win? 30:00 @ReverendRomulus Is this the upgrade at SF, in the team's mind, that we've been looking for or is this just a way to save money and kick the can down the road a bit? And is there any chance Ariza doesn't stay past the deadline? 34:00 @emilyvkarr Would love to know more backstory on Gabriel. 37:20 Jaylen Hoard interlude and the Pink Shoe Shift. 38:40 @SteveDHoops Following the trade, do you feel like it is more or less likely that another move featuring Whiteside takes place before the deadline? 41:00 Get ready for some Caleb Swanigan at center between the trade deadline and All Star Break. 42:00 @CourtSideMike How do you grade this trade? 45:00 @Tom_krieg_ Will Swanigan see meaningful minutes right away? 47:50 @LaytonTPorter I can easily see how Ariza could be an upgrade over Baze but what about AT? AT makes very few mistakes and has been solid on D, as silly as it sounds who's going to fill his shoes adequately? 51:00 @chris_nordby Ask @DannyMarang, “what blazer will he jinx and cause to have an injury next?”. Followed by “what is the main color on the blazers tank that he prefers?”. 55:00 @PaulSwardstrom What kind of player is Gabriel? Portland probably has an idea what we’re getting with Ariza and Swanigan, but he’s more of an unknown here. 57:30 Shout out Gary Trent Jr for the “flu game” on his birthday. 1:01:00 @kevin_parks Is Caleb now a “Portland local” OG? Will we buy out Ariza? Who is Gabriel? #InquiringMinds 1:02:00 @Dirtysturdy15 Is this a sign of giving up on the season? Do they know more about CJ’s injury then they are letting on? Is it possible there are more moves on the horizon that they could still possibly pivot to depending on what is happening? Also has swanigan gotten in shape/lost weight? 1:07:00 @chrisst90094291 At what point do you think the organization considers sitting Dame and CJ this year? 1:08:00 @burban192 What happens if there's no deal for Whiteside? How does this team reload for next year? 1:09:00 @cj_anderson On an optimistic (or delusional) front, what is the minimum bar this team would need to reach for Terry Stotts to contend (or win) coach of the year? Follow us on Twitter @blazersedge @DMarang @tcbbiggs Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Expectations have changed dramatically for the Golden State Warriors this season, so we checked in with our friend Jannelle Moore of goldenstateofmind.com to compare notes about surviving a down season. We learn about how the Warriors are juggling 45-day contracts and how being hard capped lead to letting Marquese Chriss go. (Since we recorded, Chriss himself was signed to a 45-day contract.) Talking to her was illuminating because even though the Trail Blazers are having a tough year, at least they are not hard-capped, and they have some flexibility. We are also thankful that the coaching staff has always had a strong focus on development. Listen to the latest episode of the WHAT podcast to hear all of this plus our favorite NBA family dynasties, NBA All Star votes, and more Olympic basketball history! Highlights 3:00 Which NBA family dynasty is your favorite? Some of our favorites are the Millers, the McGees, the Currys and the Grants. 7:30 How has watching the Warriors changed for Jannelle? 13:00 Is there a particular position where they are thin? They have enough guards, at least, they are not looking to replace the guards because Stephan Curry and Klay Thompson will be back.They are really suffering at center. Jannelle is not a fan of Willie Cauley-Stein. 15:15 How are Golden State fans doing? Mostly they are treating this season as a gap year. A lot of people have embraced the tank. Jannelle is not there yet and is disappointed that they don’t seem like they are fighting at the end of games. Tanking doesn’t seem like a good strategy because they need a wing or a big but most of the upcoming draft seems to be guards. 18:00 How does she watch the teams knowing that it might be so different from next year? 20:50 We make a solid plea for Jannelle to be a Blazer fan for this season while she’s waiting for Curry to recover. 24:15 Players to watch? Omari Spellman. He’s fought a lot to become a good player. He is earning playing time after really hard work. Eric Paschal has been good but lately Kerr hasn’t been playing him much. Warriors don’t seem to be doing great with development this year. They haven’t needed to be so much recently. Development is not something they have had to focus on in the past several years, at least they didn’t seem to. 30:00 All Star votes. Who are we voting for this year? Cassidy goes in hard on “stupid fan voting”. 36:00 How about a 1v1 competition at All Star? Think of the rivalries that would ensue! 42:00 Olympic Basketball Moments: 1936 Olympics, the first year Basketball was officially a sport. It was a pretty big disaster. Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: @jannelle12 Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang take a look the impending return of Jusuf Nurkic in the coming weeks and want to expect, what Jody Allen's motivations at the deadline could be, Tara's desire to have Ed Davis back, the development of Anfernee Simons, and more! Intro Opening Comments Tara really wants Ed Davis back 2:40 How much longer can the team go without making a move? 6:00 What are Jody Allen’s motivations? 7:00 Are the Blazers being prudent? 8:00 How messaging has changed from the beginning of the season until now? 9:00 Blazers dealing with an outbreak: 11:00 The return of Jusuf Nurkic 12:30 Expectations for his play 13:30 Will the basketball change when Nurk returns? 17:00 Why haven’t we seen Nassir Little or Gary Trent Jr. as much? 21:00 What do you hope and/or expect from Little, Trent and Jaylen Hoard? 22:00 What do you see as best case scenario for the young guys? 30:00 How do you think the Blazers are looking at developing Anfernee Simons and how is that going? 33:00 When things aren’t going well in a season (like this year) what do you watch? 44:30 Closing Comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are fired up about a few things this week: why aren't the Utah Jazz playing Ed Davis? Can we see Anfernee Simons in the NBA All Star Dunk Contest already? And why shouldn't we just enjoy Carmelo Anthony while he is with the Blazers? Highlights 1:15 What past NBA players would have done better in today’s NBA rather than their own time? 7:00 Blazers highlights from the game in Toronto. 10:45 Skal Update: 4 more weeks before he is evaluated. Former Blazer Al-Farouq Aminu is out for the season (Orlando applied for a disabled player exception). 11:45 Could the Trail Blazers bring back Ed Davis? He’s not fitting in with the Jazz. 19:15 Anfernee Simons should be in the dunk contest. He has the hops, skills, and charm, plus he is the future of the NBA 22:30 The NBA should update the All Star voting so the players vote for each other (East players vote for the Western Conference and vice versa) and fans should vote for who gets to be in the contests. 24:55 The historical significance of Carmelo Anthony’s game-winning shot in Toronto 28:00 Get to know Olympic Melo. An overview of the teams he was on, a list of the records he holds, and how he was truly proud to be a part of Team USA. 38:15 Around the league: Jimmy Butler vs TJ Warren: Kisses Fly in Indiana, Draaaaaaaaaama! In Cleveland. Steph Curry Tampering: PUBG *Wink Wink* 44:45 Also, why does everyone have to weigh in on what Giannis Antetonkoumno is going to do? Why assume he’s gone? Why not think that he would stay? 46:25 Wrap up Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Portland Trail Blazers haven’t found a rhythm and it seems like their roster is getting thinner all the time. Erik Garcia Gundersen of Associated Press and LeBron Wire joined Tara Bowen-Biggs on the podcast to try and make sense of how to watch this team. They are 11th in the league at rebound per game but are they a good rebounding team? How long can they play undermanned? What kind of improvement should we be looking for with the young players? Gundersen watched the Cavaliers for a full season while working for the LeBron Wire and he thinks that Kevin Love would be a good addition to the Trail Blazers. He is a willing and respected shooter and a smarter defender than people think. Gundersen is confident the Blazers can make the playoffs but time is of the essence. They can’t wait until the buyout market and Love is available (as he is letting it be well known) now. With Dan out sick it is up to Tara to push back. All of this and more on the latest podcast. 1:00 If it makes anyone feel better, the Knicks have been playing pretty well under Mike Miller. 4:00 Covering the team is odd because Hassan Whiteside dominates the stat line so frequently but that doesn’t necessarily tell the story. We know that this team as currently constructed isn’t actually the team. 6:00 They are a better rebounding team when Whiteside is on the floor but is that what they need to win? 7:00 Can we retire the idea of the rebound as a top-line stat (via @Elgee35)? 10:00 A deeper dive into Whiteside’s rebounding. Whiteside is a good rebounder, but the team is not a good rebounding team. The team doesn’t really know where the best place is to position themselves when Whiteside gets blocks. 15:00 There are some rebounds that are better quality than other rebounds. And sometimes boxing out is more important because it allows your teammate to get an easier rebound. 18:00 Whiteside can’t be expected to cover all of the defensive deficiencies that have been caused by injuries. 20:30 How long do they hang on? When do they get more people in to help? Erik says he would have thought they would have found someone to fill in by now. Doesn’t seem they can wait until the buyout market. 25:00 There is always something new to talk about with this team. Some role player seems like he’s always having a career high. Carmelo Anthony seems like the only player who is not weighed down by expectations. 28:00 How did Erik think the Carmelo Anthony experiment was going to work? He knew the team needed someone on the floor who other teams had to respect. 32:00 The Blazers have been incredibly fortunate for years and the fans have been incredibly lucky. They are holding the locker room together. Nurkic is coming back soon. 36:00 Melo has taken some of the pressure off of Damian Lillard without trying to take over. 37:30 Development. How do we know that Anfernee Simons is getting better and helping the team? 40:00 Right now the Blazers need Anfernee to score. Assists will get easier. 46:25 Erik’s take on Kevin Love to Portland. You get a guy who is known to be productive in his role. Counterpoint: how do the Blazer’s afford it? Love gives them a chance to be a contender next year. Counterpoint: Do the Blazers ask Collins to come off the bench again when they are trying to build a team with him as a key piece? 56:05 LaMarcus and Nurkic would be trying to play in the same spots. Drummond won’t want to be a backup. 1:02 Erik loves Cedi Osman from the Cavaliers, thinks he would be a great addition. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Blazer’s Edge Night is coming in March. Buy tickets now to help kids see a Blazer game! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tara talked to Nekias Duncan (@nekaisNBA) about the upcoming matchup between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Miami Heat. Who are the main characters? How is Meyers Leonard doing? What does he expect Hassan Whiteside’s return will be like? All this and more. Highlights: 1:00 Main characters in Miami are Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. Butler has been great even though he is having a shooting slump. This has really been a coming-out year for Adebayo. 2:30 The rest of the starting lineup is Kendrick Nunn, Meyers Leonard and Duncan Robinson. 3:00 Meyers Leonard is a fan favorite. At the beginning of the season he was hesitating on his shots but now he is playing with more confidence. He is still a pretty low-volume shooter but more in rhythm and quite effective. 6:00 Going into the season, shooting was a big question for this team. They really didn’t know how effective anyone was going to be at shooting although they knew that Jimmy Butler would be an important playmaker. 7:00 When Portland comes to Miami, they are likely going to try lots of defensive strategies on Damian Lillard, Nunn and Butler will take turns on him, they will likely trap him, and might even try zone defense (they are one of the most frequent zone defense users this season). 8:15 The biggest weakness of the Heat is that they give up a lot of 3 pointers. If Blazers are making their 3-pointers they have a good chance to win. 10:45 What will Whiteside’s first game back in Miami be like? Nekias thinks it will either be a big game or he will really struggle. Likely there won’t be any in between. 14:00 Both rookies, Tyler Hero and Kendrick Nunn, are playing better than expected. This has been a fun year in Miami because they have been outperforming expectations. Even with Jimmy Butler shooting poorly and Justise Winslow not playing 15:30 Jimmy Butler came in and took on the leadership role. His chemistry and friendship with Bam Adebayo is really apparent. Butler is also friends with Dwyane Wade and that is probably how he was able to transition right in as the leader. Follow Nekias on twitter @NekaisNBA Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy New Year from the WHAT podcast. Tara and Cassidy are back to catch up (very quickly) on how the Trail Blazers are doing before rating some of the more memorable events of 2019 and of the 2010s. How important were Evan Turner’s back-to-back triple doubles? Did the elevator escapade leave any lasting impressions? How important was the drafting of CJ McCollum compared to drafting Lillard or signing Jusuf Nurkic? All this plus talk about taglines, ninja headbands (of course) and the 2020 Olympics and more Highlights 2:00 We need your ideas for a new tagline for Women’s Hoops And Talks. Send us your ideas to [email protected], or tweet at us @hoopsandtalks or @tcbbiggs or @cassidygemmet. 5:00 Catching up on the Blazers, no Skal Labissiere, they are on a tough road trip. They are bringing in Jalen Hoard from Texas Legend. 8:00 We’re watching more of the rest of the NBA. The Golden State vs Rockets on Christmas was exciting, Houston under-estimated Golden State. 12:00 Rating interesting things that happened this season: Western Conference Finals run. 14:30 Elevator escapade 16:30 Addition of Rodney Hood 17:30 Addition of Enes Kanter 18:45 Evan Turner gets two triple doubles in a row 20:00 NBA Players snub Team USA and come in 7th 22:00 Ninja-style headband band 22:30 Events of the decade, in-arena blimp crash, drafting Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, acquiring Jusuf Nurkic, LaMarcus Aldridge leaving, 35:00 Losing Jerome Kersey and Paul Allen 38:00 The day Greg Oden had a set back, Brandon Roy retired, and LaMarcus Aldridge had to have heart surgery 41:00 2020 is an Olympic Year! We’re learning fun Olympic basketball facts leading up to the 2020 Summer Olympics. Cassidy starts off by telling us about 1904 Olympics where basketball first appeared as a demonstration sport. Hiram College were the first winners in the exhibition year. Get social Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tara talks to China (@chiniqua) from Posting and Toasting about the Trail Blazers' upcoming game vs the New York Knicks. The two teams who commit the most fouls, have the lowest number of assists, in New York City on New Years day. Oh boy! As China says, “Someone has to win this game”. 00:15 Remembering the Enes Kanter experience. And sharing notes on the Melo experience. 4:30 What happened when David Fizdale left. It seems like he wasn’t able to make it work with the roster that he had and Mike Miller seems to be making it work. Miller came from the G-League and was used to having to deal with a constantly changing roster and he’s very adaptable. 7:30 Miller takes good timeouts. Things seem to be trending upwards. 8:00 Guess is that he will finish out the season as the coach. 10:00 Who are the key players? Julius Randall has been very divisive this season, under Miller he is doing really well and scoring lots of points. 12:00 Elfrid Payton is back from injury, coming off the bench playing well. Frank Ntilikina is another person who Knicks fans argue about a lot. He’s great at defense but on offense “is not as bold as he could be”. Marcus Morris Sr. and Mitchell Robinson are also important. Morris has been solid and Mitchell is good for highlights, he just gets into foul trouble. 15:00 And speaking of foul trouble, the Blazers and the Knicks are the top (or bottom, depending on how you look at it) in fouling. They commit the most fouls. Both teams also have the fewest assists. 16:00 When they are playing well, they have Robinson and Ntilikina playing good defense and Randall and Morris and anyone else scoring. 17:30 Rookie RJ Barrett is not great, but the biggest struggle is that they give up on rookies too soon. People are already out on Kevin Knocks even though he’s only in his second year. 19:15 Taj Gibson and Wayne Ellington are the elder statesmen. Gibson has been playing regularly but Ellington has been hurt for much of the season. 20:00 New York really struggles from the free throw line and good point guards feast on them. 21:00 This game is really going to be all about Melo’s return to the Garden. 22:30 Hire JR Smith! (I promised China I’d put this in the show notes.) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s episode of the Blazer’s Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale to take a look at the defining moments of the decade for the Blazers, the impact of Damian Lillard, the spark points for NBA growth, Dan’s thoughts on Coach Stotts and expectations, looks at Anfernee Simons and Hassan Whiteside, listener questions and more! Intro Opening Comments Putting a piece together with so many contributors and so many points of view 4:00 The defining moment of the decade for the Blazers 7:00 Non-Damian Lillard defining moments of the decade 9:00 Brandon Roy, Rodney Hood and LaMarcus Aldridge 12:00 Deciding between "0.9" and "The Bad Shot" 14:00 Picking the NBA moment of the decade and what sparked so much growth and change 19:00 The shift of covering games vs covering memes 21:00 Asking Dan Favale how he views Coach Stotts 24:00 The correlation between ball movement and offensive success 27:00 Understanding the position the Blazers are in right now 33:00 What will the Blazers do at the deadline? 36:00 Evaluating Hassan Whiteside 38:00 Looking at how Carmelo Anthony has fit with Portland this year 41:00 Getting the national view on how Anfernee Simons looks so far 44:00 Listener Questions! What to Expect from Moses Brown 50:00 Worst case for Skal Labissiere 55:00 Why trading Hassan Whiteside needs to happen 1:02:00 Danny isn't actually negative... seriously 1:06:00 Injury luck, or lack thereof 1:09:00 Looking at different trade scenarios for Whiteside 1:14:00 Closing Comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dillon Sage, co-host of Holy Backboard podcast, joined Tara to talk about the New Orleans Pelicans. 00:30 How have expectations changed for the Pelicans? High expectations were quickly adjusted when Zion Williamson went down, but he’s not the only one who has been injured. Basically Pelicans fans have already had their hearts broke a number of ways this season. 2:45 What is the plan moving forward for this season? Will Zion play at all? The front office is adamant that he will play, although they are asking for patience. 4:00 Brandon Ingram has been fantastic. He has really blossomed since he got out from under LeBron James and shown that he can be the featured player. Its been a very long time since the Pelicans (or Hornets) have had a good small forward. Ingram has great chemistry with all the players on the team. 5:45 Lonzo Ball has been tough to watch. He’s not flourishing in a system that you would think would be good for point guards. He just keeps taking 3s, he is not penetrating. As a result he is coming off of the bench and Jrue Holiday continues to handle playmaking responsibilities. 7:00 What do the Pelicans look like when they are playing their best? When Derrick Favors plays they are a really good defense. They look good when they play the fast paced offense. 8:30 Is coach Alvin Gentry on the hot seat for losing 13 games in a row? Fans seem to be mad at him but it also seems like the front office likes him. 9:15 Six months ago, David Griffin was a genius. Do people still feel that way? No matter how things are going this season, they are set up well for the future. 10:30 Who is the leader in the locker room? Probably the three vets, Jrue Holiday, JJ Reddick, and Derrick Favors. They need to have veterans to help these very young players become professionals. 12:00 There are rumors that the Pelicans may trade Jrue Holiday. Why would they want to do that? Sage thinks they are most likely listening to offers and would be willing to agree to a deal that will make them better, but they are most likely not actively looking for someone to trade with. 14:00 JJ Reddick is playing well, continues to make difficult shots and he is one of their only shooters on the team, he provides spacing. 15:30 What do the Blazers need to do to lock in this win? They need to stop the pick-and-roll. It has always been effective, especially against the Blazers. Last time they met, Hassan Whiteside figured out in the second half how to stop them. In the first game, the Blazers didn’t have Damian Lillard, it was Carmelo Anthony’s first game. The Pelicans played CJ McCollum very tight. 17:45 How does Carmelo Anthony contribute to a Blazers win against the Pelicans? Anthony makes it a lot harder to double Lillard and McCollum, which has been the Pelicans plan against the Blazers for a long time. 18:45 Are there any other storylines or players Blazer fans should watch for? Jackson Hayes has gotten a lot better. He has stopped jumping and been much more effective contesting shots. Find Sage at @dasage, follow the Holy Backboard podcast @holybackboard. Find Blazers' Edge @Blazersedge and Tara @tcbbiggs Subscribe: Apple: apple.co/2Mu8YX9 Google: http://bit.ly/2KMRa7l Stitcher: http://bit.ly/33OEBA3 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by Blazer's Edge editor Steve Dewald to take a look at fringe moves, making the first trade, the never ending links to Kevin Love, understanding GM speak, the improvement of Hassan Whiteside, buyers vs. sellers market, the next 5 games and how it could set the tone - and a lot more! Intro Opening Comments 2:00 Changing Expectations Using the DPE 4:00 Making fringe moves 5:00 Steve Dewald talks smaller moves 6:00 Torrey Craig, Justin Jackson & DJ Wilson Risks of waiting to address the bench 11:30 Has the outside view of POR possibly changed with Free Agents? 12:30 Could POR moving expiring deals hurt how they’re viewed? 18:00 Were things as busy Dec 15th last year? 21:00 How often do the Blazers do the thing that they telegraph? 22:00 Likelihood of getting Kevin Love Reading between the lines and GM speak 24:00 The appearance of desperation 26:00 Taking a look at Kevin Love 28:00 When could POR look to make a move? 30:30 Seller vs Buyer market 33:00 The improvement of Hassan Whiteside 38:00 Whiteside-Labissiere lineup thoughts 46:30 Looking at Bazemore’s integration into the starting lineup 50:30 Looking at the next 5 games and setting the tone? 54:00 Signaling intent for the rest of the season 1:00:00 Closing Comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just in time for the holidays Tara and Cassidy have ideas for gifts to give the Trail Blazers this season. What gift might help channel Hezonja’s intensity or help Whiteside focus? What could we possibly give to Damian Lillard, the man who has it all, that would adequately express our appreciation for everything he does? What experience would Anfernee Simons remember forever? Highlights 2:45 Rodney Hood goes down. 5:30 What do the Blazers do next? They will still fight. 10:15 Holiday gifts: For Lillard we picked out a gift for his son that we think someone should actually sell in the store, a game of Trail Blazers Guess Who! 14:00 How do we make sure we don’t take Damian Lillard for granted? 16:00 It has taken a while for Kent Bazemore to find his groove. Hope he can score more and get a couple more shots per game. We would give him a mountain bike because we think he’d like shredding downhill. But only in the off season. We think he needs more time in the starting lineup to have any opinion on how that is going. 18:15 Carmelo and Portland were both looking for missing pieces. Carmelo found a team and Portland found some much needed offense and excitement. We give him a City of Portland Skyline Puzzle. It feels like he just got here but he’s played almost a dozen games. 24:30 Cassidy would give Whiteside some LEGO to play with. The attention to detail and focus it takes to build a massive LEGO set could just be what he needs. Also, she thinks she set unrealistic expectations for him so as a bonus gift she’s just going to enjoy the double doubles. Hassan, your team needs you, not just with stats but with stops. 28:15 For Jusuf Nurkic as he continues his recovery we think he could use a companion so we would give him a tiny dog with outfits that match his. What are our expectations when he comes back? We have none, we just want him back on the court. Just his presence will boost the team. 32:00 Tolliver might just need a better night sleep. So far this season he has the lowest effective field goal percentage on the team. He’s getting some good looks but things just don’t seem to be dropping. So this holiday season we would get Anthony a weighted blanket, like a giant hug while you sleep. 34:45 For Mario Hezonja we suggest a weekend at Brightenbush Hotsprings so he can get some fresh air and relax and let the game come to him instead of forcing things. 38:45 Nassir Little gets a warm hat because after cutting off all his hair he’s going to need it in Minnesota and Toronto in January. 40:15 Skal can have whatever he wants. Has the best +/- of the bench players, still negative but better than anyone else. 42:00 Gary Trent Jr: we want more pictures of him. A gift for him would be a 80’S sweatsuit collection. 43:00 CJ McCollum world's best teammate t-shirt. While Lillard leads the team so well, McCollum is the teammate that will do the dirty work like trash talk, foul hard, and get mad. 44:45 Collins disco ball and dance floor at his house. 46:00 Anfernee needs to hear his name chanted at the Moda center, so we need to come up with an “Ant chant” for him. 49:00 The next WHAT meetup is January 5, come watch the Blazers take on Meyers Leonard and the Miami Heat with other women and supporters who love basketball. Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. The WHAT podcast is taking a break until the New Year, in the meantime, subscribe to the Blazer’s Edge podcast so you don’t miss an episode and mark your calendar for the next WHAT Meetup on January 5. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by Dave DuFour of The Athletic podcast network to discuss all things Portland; the Carmelo Anthony Experiment results are in, Rodney Hood's season ending injury, what the Blazers should/would/could do going forward, tank vs chase, asset management, expectations and goals for the season, the problem with Portland's defense, developing young players, tribute videos and more! Intro Dave DuFour! The most surprising thing about being closer to the Blazers 2:00 Why do the Blazers foul so much? 4:00 Defensive schemes and personnel 7:20 Who has been the best defender for Portland recently? 12:30 The loss of Rodney Hood for the season 15:00 Next man up 18:30 Rodney Hood and Jusuf Nurkic parallels 20:30 Identities and injuries 22:30 LaMarcus Aldridge and the Blazers 24:00 Signaling a change for the season 25:00 What kind of help is out there right now? 32:00 Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford! 33:00 Andre Iguodala and Jae Crowder 35:00 Portland can’t afford to hold onto the expiring deals? 37:00 Using assets on Gallinari vs Giannis 38:30 Tara forces a trade storm 40:00 Taking the “chance” to tank 41:00 Tank vs Chase 44:30 What is Neil Olshey likely to do? 50:00 How has Carmelo Anthony looked after a few weeks now? 55:00 Mentality of the team and Damian Lillard? 59:00 Portland and Tribute videos 1:04:00 Closing comments Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Blazers Edge editor Steve DeWald and special guest Scott Hatley of Incight join Tara to discuss our choices for the all-decade team for 2010’s. But there was a twist: we couldn’t select a current Blazer. Who did we chose for point guard? Which other players from the 2010s made the list? Listen or read the highlights below and let us know who would be on your All-Decade team for the 2010s? Whose team would win? Incight, an organization dedicated to unlocking the potential of people with disabilities and other barriers, is raffling off a basketball signed by all of the Portland Trail Blazers. Enter for a chance to win for $15 per ticket. Drawing to be held on December 16 at 4pm. All proceeds from the raffle go to Incight. Highlights 1:00 Introducing Scott Hatley of Incight.org. 2:00 Born in 1979 and started attending games with his family very young. Remembers crying when the team lost and loving the players. Remembers sneaking peanuts and soda into games with his dad. 3:00 Incight is an organization that focuses on education, employment and independence for people with disabilities and other barriers. Scott uses an electric wheelchair. 7:45 In his experience the Trail Blazers and the Moda center are doing a good job of making the venue accessible. 11:30 Pick out your all-decade team from the 2010s, but it can’t include anyone from the current roster. That made it really hard to pick out a point guard! 13:30 Point Guards. Steve picks Andre Miller, he’s tied for number 10 in the number of total assists in Portland. Tara also chose Andre Miller. His 52 points game was on January 30, 2010, so even if it was barely in the decade, Tara counts it. She wants to know how many of his assists were alley-oops? Scott chose Steve Blake because Blake was consistent. Tara would have also said Mo Williams because of how he stood up to Andrew Bogut in a fight. 16:55 Shooting guard. For Steve it was Wesley Matthews. A good three-point shooter, a leader in the locker room until Damian was ready to take it up. Who knows what would have happened with that team if he had stayed healthy? Scott also chose the Iron Man, that was one of the hardest departures, when Matthews left the team. Tara chose Brandon Roy because even though he played more in the previous decade he technically did play in the 2010s. We remember the Brandon Roy come back game 4 vs Dallas. 19:50 Small forward choices: Steve chose Nic Batum. Even though he didn’t put up huge numbers he did a little bit of everything and we got to watch him grow up. Scott thought about putting Brandon Roy in at the 3, but ultimately decided to go with Batum as well. Tara chooses Gerald Wallace who wasn’t here for a long time but it was fun to watch him. He also had a great voice and it was fun to remember the Ger-ald Wal-lace chants. 23:50 Power Forward. Steve and Scott both choose LaMarcus Aldridge. Aldridge has the numbers to back up the case. Tara had a hard time choosing but ultimately went with Aldridge as well. 25:45 Did you all boo LaMarcus Aldridge when he came back? Steve wasn’t at the game but he says he probably would have boo’d him. Scott doesn’t think that he did. Tara did that first game but not after that. 28:30 Centers: Steve chose Robin Lopez, not only because of his play and how good the team was in 2013-14, but because the defense that the team uses to this day was built around Robin Lopez. Scott choses Joel Pryzbilla, he still has the Tom Petty song “Won’t Back Down” in his head. Tara chose Ed Davis. 33:00 Sixth man, Steve chose Ed Davis, Chris Kaman or Allen Crabbe. Scott’s choice for sixth man was Patty Mills, and Tara chose Al-Farouq Aminu. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Queen of Rip City Brooke Olzendam and her mom, Alison, took a break from holiday festivities to chat with us. We learned that Crab Louie was invented in Spokane, that Alison was Brooke’s first AAU Coach and how close Brooke came to becoming a pharmaceutical rep (a boon for us, a bummer for the pharmaceutical industry). We also hear the story of Brooke’s 7th grade citizenship award and get a picture of her dancing around with a hairbrush.Then we turn to Blazers talk. What was it like for Alison to meet the Blazers? What is Carmelo Anthony like? Brooke explains how Melo has helped on the floor as well as bringing a breath of fresh air to the team. 1:00 Signature Holiday Dish: Crab Louie which was invented in Spokane. Also, do pretzels belong in Jello? 5:00 Introducing Alison Olzendam, Brooke’s mom, teacher and coach. She was Brooke’s AAU coach. Her coaching mantra: “You just gotta shoot”. Sports are a great place for kids to test themselves. 8:00 Brooke’s mom supported her by always being there for her. She played all the sports and did tons of activities and her mom was always in the stands. From her mom she learned that it is important to take care of yourself, and be yourself. 11:00 Her mom also helped her when she was at a crossroads in her career. Helping her keep focused on her dream. 13:00 Alison is most proud of who Brooke is as a person, how she treats people. Was she always outgoing and comfortable around people? Yes, she was always kind to everyone. 14:00 One of her proudest moments was when Brooke won a 7th grade Citizenship Award. 16:15 NBA players Alison has met. She recently finally met Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum although she feels like she knows them through Brooke. Never got to meet Evan Turner. 19:15 Thoughts on Carmelo Anthony. If is good to see him get a second chance. He has been a pleasure to work with and fun to watch the reception with the other players and other fan bases. 24:15 Melo is just a star on a whole different level. 27:00 Follow Alison on twitter because she might start tweeting #BrookesMomsHotTakes @aolzendam. And of course, follow @bolzendam for all kinds of Trail Blazers fun. Our friends at Incight.org are unlocking the potential of people and you can help by purchasing a raffle ticket for a chance to win a signed Trail Blazers basketball from the 2019-20 season. Use this link to purchase a ticket before the drawing on December 16 at 4pm https://incight.ejoinme.org/BlazerRaffleTickets Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, Dan @dannymarang, this week’s guest is @bolzendam and @aolzendam Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1:30 A week ago the Blazers were coming off of four losses and now they are coming off of three wins and Carmelo Anthony is Western Conference Player of the Week. Is there anything less worth getting mad about than Anthony returning to the league and getting this award? We can’t think of anything. 4:45 Will there be tribute videos this season? Or will Anthony refuse because he’s not retiring yet? 6:30 Is Melo the most famous player who ever played on the Trail Blazers? 9:15 Anthony in Portland makes them much more interesting from a national level. 14:45 Carmelo is legitimately an upgrade at power forward compared to what the other options were when Zach Collins went down. 16:00 Why do you think he was out of the league so long? He was not good in Houston but he wasn’t the reason Houston struggled so much at the beginning of the season. 20:00 What has the locker room been like since Melo joined the team? Things seem good of course winning helps, so it is hard to tell if any of that positive energy (or how much of it) comes from having Anthony on the team. 23:00 Negative perception probably comes from the times he forced a trade from Denver and a trade from New York so he could make more money. And the second thing is that people believed in Olympic Melo but couldn’t understand why he didn’t play like that on NBA teams. 26:00 As far as basketball goes, he has been about as good as we could realistically expect him to be. 27:00 Who is losing out on possessions because of Anthony’s 16 shots per game. 30:00 The Blazers always exceed expectations because they lay good foundations and do things right which allows them to take advantage of every break that they get even if they do not have the same raw talent as their opponents. 34:15 With Damian Lillard and Terry Stotts, the floor is very high. 36:15 Western Conference Player of the week is both not the worst thing to happen 37:45 The lesson that Tara is taking away is to pay more attention to the players. 38:45 Will a good run by Melo change the Blazers trade deadline plans? Sean thinks they will probably continue with whatever plans they had all along, but the interesting thing will be how will Melo react? Especially if the bring in someone like LaMarcus Aldridge or Kevin Love who play the same position. 43:00 How are Blazers going to manage to beat better teams who they will be facing this week? 46:00 Teams have to guard Anthony. That could be enough of a difference maker to give the Blazers a chance against tough teams. 48:15 What are Sean’s thoughts on Hassan Whiteside? What does good Hassan Whiteside looks like and how can the Blazers best unlock him? Our friends at Incight.org are unlocking the potential of people and you can help by purchasing a raffle ticket for a chance to win a signed Trail Blazers basketball from the 2019-20 season. Use this link to purchase a ticket before the drawing on December 16 at 4pm https://incight.ejoinme.org/BlazerRaffleTickets Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, Dan @dannymarang, this week’s guest is Sean Highkin @highkin Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Preview LA Clipper and Los Angeles Lakers with Sabreena Merchant (@sabreenajm) 1:00 How are the dynamic duos doing in Los Angeles? Clippers: Kawhi Leonard isn’t exactly the player he was in the playoffs. He is being load managed and getting up to speed, and fans are getting used to that. Kawhi and Paul George haven’t had much time together. They are extremely imposing defensively. 4:15 LeBron James has exceeded expectations because he’s playing defense all year and that is contagious. Anthony Davis is playing at DOPY level. 6:00 How are other teams trying to beat them? You have to hope that the Clippers have an off shooting night. Moe Harkless has been great on defense for them, willing to guard point guards. Lakers can be beat from the three point line, make LeBron be a jump shooter. 8:30 Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell have been so important to the clippers because there were here last season, Harkless has made a difference and has been promoted to the a starting spot. 11:00 On the Lakers its been Alex Caruso and Danny Green who are probably the 3rd and 4th most important players. 12:00 LeBron really leads the Lakers locker room, while it is more by committee on the Clippers side. Harrell and Williams are the heart of that locker room. 12:30 How has the coaching situation developed on the Lakers side? There was a lot of talk in the pre season that Jason Kidd was after Frank Vogel's job. Vogel seems to be in a good place. He’s been flexible, willing to admit when things are not working, can get Davis to play the five even if he doesn’t really want to because he has a lot of buy-in from the players. 16:15 Lou Williams has been really good. He seems like he keeps getting better. Even though they have Kawhi and Paul George, so much of the offense is created by Williams. He’s the sixth man but at times he might be the most important person on offense. 18:00 It is really hard to identify an under-the-radar story for the Lakers. The difference between the media surrounding the teams is huge, you wouldn’t think they have the same championship aspirations. Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Former co-host Kendyl Bennett joins the podcast to talk all things Carmelo Anthony--how do we think he is settling in? Will he continue to average 16 shots a night? How will that impact Rodney Hood’s shot opportunities? We wonder why Hassan Whiteside is so up and down and what will it take for him to reach his potential. We talk about being thankful for balance in the league and we share our thoughts about the Golden State Warriors new reality and if the San Antonio Spurs are really, truly, having a bad year. 00:45 Icebreaker from @paulnavarre “In the spirit of Melo, who against all odds has made me cheer for him and really start to like him: the player who made you change your opinion about him the most.” We talk Patrick Beverly, Carmelo Anthony, Jamal Crawford and Jusuf Nurkic. 6:15 What does everyone think of the Carmelo Anthony Experience? Kendyl: When he first came, we thought “why not?” the team needed some new life. He’s improving, he seems to have put the work in. Lillard and McCollum are going to hold him to high standards. 8:45 Cassidy has come around after initially being pretty upset about it. At first didn’t buy that he would take a step back from demanding attention. It looks like he just really loves playing the game. 10:45 How do people feel about the fact that he is averaging 16 shots per game? Hard to know, was he taking shots away from Lillard and McCollum or were they going with the flow because he was open and he had open shots? Possibly he had lots of shots to help him acclimate. 14:30 What if Carmelo can’t adjust to taking fewer shots? In any case, the arrival of Anthony has given the whole team something bigger than themselves. 17:00 Tara compares the Carmelo Experience to the Kanter Experience 21:30 Anthony is out there learning the Portland system, but he’s not learning the NBA at the same time like many of the younger players, so that is one thing you don’t have to worry about when he is in. 22:30 How does the addition of Carmelo Anthony affect Rodney Hood? Is he taking away too many shots? 23:55 Portland has options, not just Melo, but Hood, Simons, even Skal are finding their scoring rhythm giving Lillard more options. 25:10 Could carrying a lesser scoring load help save Lillard’s energy at all? Does anyone know? Anyone? 28:15 What are we thankful for? 28:35 Cassidy is thankful for Lillard’s leadership and also articles about Hassan Whiteside’s fish because she is struggling to enjoy his role on the Blazers. She really wants him to live up to his potential. Kendyl is puzzled why he is not having a bigger impact on the team when he is in a contract year. It is frustrating to watch. 35:00 Tara is thankful for Jusuf Nurkic because he is recovering and because he taught her patience. Kendyl compares Whiteside to Mason Plumlee when he was a Blazer in that he avoided contact. The flow offense might be taking longer to learn for Whiteside. 41:00 Kendyl is very happy for more balance in the league (and the downfall of the Warriors). 45:00 Are the San Antonio Spurs truly down and out? Or will they rise again (like they always do)? 47:00 Headlines from around the league. “He said, they said” -Richard Jefferson and the New York Knicks. Why do the Knicks always come out and say the wrong thing? Get social Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: @kendylbennett16 Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang take a look at where the Blazers are and where they need to be in the coming weeks. Along the way, they discuss the development of the young guys, whether or not Coach Stotts should be on the hot seat, expectations for the team until the New Year, salvaging the season, and more! Intro Opening comments Changing Expectations 2:00 How long can you hold on? 4:00 Can they save this season? 7:30 How has Carmelo Anthony looked? 9:30 Melo and the “Little” things 11:30 Frustrations with lineups young vs old 14:00 Front office dynamics in the NBA 19:00 Is Coach Stotts on the hot seat? 22:00 Chasing wins vs Development 25:00 Can we call Skal a young player? 31:00 What is Skal’s ceiling and/or likely scenario? 34:00 Do Skal or Anfernee Simons need to play w/more attitude? 35:30 How Collins and Skal unlock things on both sides of the floor 37:30 Why are we seeing Tolliver on the floor over Skal? 40:00 Playing Simons and Skal together 42:00 Tolliver and consistency 44:00 Nassir Little ripping the ball from Giannis Antetokounmpo 46:00 Little reminds us of Gerald Wallace 47:00 What can Little do to get on the floor now and going forward? 52:00 Gary Trent Jr getting minutes 56:00 Changing perception on where this team is right now 1:00:00 Did saying the word “championship” alter expectations too much? 1:05:00 At what point are you looking at the Blazers to make a pivot? 1:14:00 Closing comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Maggie Hendricks of 670 The Score in Chicago joins Tara Bowen-Biggs to preview two Portland vs Chicago matchups coming this week. Highlights: 00:50 Expectations going into the season were set by the front office who said that the Bulls would be aiming for the playoffs. They don’t look like a playoff team and now they are talking about developing players. 2:00 Infighting and strange choices had been plaguing the team lately. Coach Jim Boylen said that Zach Levine made three egregious errors and pulled him. 3:00 What happened to the Player’s Committee? Isn’t Zach Levine the head of the player’s committee? It doesn’t seem to exist anymore and there is no clear plan for how they are going to fix communication. 4:20 Who is the leader of the locker room? Otto Porter Jr is the most likely candidate, even though he is pretty new. He is a respected veteran. They are such a young team and they don’t have many veterans to show them the way. 5:20 Strengths: Coby White and other players are fun to watch when they are on. Most of the players have moments or stretches where they play really well. 7:10 What is the starting lineup? Lauri Markkanen, Zach Levine, Wendell Carter Jr, Tomáš Satoranský have been the most consistent in the starting lineup. 7:50 What are fans talking about? Everything is about is Jim Boylen over his head? There is a lot of excitement over the rookies. However, the front office have not modernized their approach to try to keep up with the rest of the league. 9:00 Is Boylen in the hot seat? The ownership is really reluctant to make changes, coaches get a lot of leeway. 10:05 Does having a big fan base make it easier or harder to hold a front office accountable? Right now everyone is really mad about the Bears. Once their season is over, fans may turn their ire on the Bulls. 12:00 What to watch for: how much do rookies Coby White and Daniel Gafford play? They are trying to figure out who they are on defense. They probably won’t change a lot between the first game on Monday and the second game on Friday. Follow Maggie on Twitter @maggiehendricks Follow us on Twitter @blazersedge @DMarang @tcbbiggs Subscribe to the podcast: Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tara and Cassidy are joined by Nitz from The Daily Ding podcast to discuss the Portland Trail Blazers’ rocky start, how adding Carmelo Anthony to the team can help them out, and what other moves we would try if we were the GMs. Highlights 00:30 Icebreaker: “What’s your ideal time to stay at an event before you leave early without telling anyone” Thanks for the question EvanSowards! 4:00 Busy week! Who is having a worse year, Golden State or the Trail Blazers? 5:45 How Carmelo chose 00. 8:30 On Carmelo Anthony not wearing number 7 and should anyone wear number 7 again? 11:30 How much should we let nostalgia keep us from moving forward? 13:45 Should the Thunder retire Kevin Durant’s number? 16:15 When Cassidy heard the Blazers had traded for Anthony she was initially mad, she has never been a fan of his, but she’s warming to the idea. Generally we’re glad he’s back in the league but mixed on how we feel about Portland being the team that he came to. He’s not going to fix the defensive issues. 20:15 Now that we have seen him, how did it work? He doesn’t fit in that well but it was good to see him playing again because he obviously loves the game. 23:00 Carmelo Anthony may inspire his teammates to up their fashion game which may be contagious and lead to more inspired play on the court. 26:05 It is hard to get back on the court when you are returning from injury or being away for a long time. It was nice to see that even if he couldn’t execute, he had an idea what to do. As he gets back into game shape, maybe he can make more of those plays. 27:00 He had a lot of responsibilities in his first game back due to Lillard not being there. 29:15 We play GM. How would we fix the Trail Blazers? 29:30 Option 1: throw in the towel. Rest Lillard and McCollum. Work with what you’ve got. It might look like tanking but it’s more like enduring. 34:30 Option 2: Sign a center that can set a pick. Possibly Jokim Noah or Greg Monroe. 37:25 Option 3: If we could undo any trades from the past, would we? Nitz would resign LaMarcus, Tara would resign Ed Davis (who Cassidy reminded her is out with a broken leg, get well soon Ed!) Cassidy would undo the Whiteside trade. 42:00 Option 4: Out of the box ideas? Have an all-retirement tour team with Carmelo Anthony, Coach Pau Gasol, and add Vince Carter and Jamal Crawford. 43:00 Trade for Draymond Green (who can’t be traded until February 2). Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Cassidy @CassidyGemmet. This week’s guest: @nitzbluv Join the Women’s Hoops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball. Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. Subscribe to the podcast Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's Blazer's Edge podcast, Tara Bowen-Biggs and Danny Marang are joined by Steve Dewald to take a look back over the last week and discuss: Carmelo Anthony signing, the ups and downs of momentum, what will the rotations look like, trends in wins and losses, the bright spot that is Nassir Little, how bad are things really, and much more! Intro Opening comments Steve Dewald - first reactions to Carmelo Anthony signing Melo and “ring rust” 3:00 Could/Should Melo start? 7:00 How will Nassir Little’s role/rotation shift? 10:00 Can the Blazers take advantage of Melo’s knowledge? 13:00 Why does Melo deserve anything? 17:00 The difference between between chaos and dysfunction 22:00 The Pau Gasol question 26:00 What is the best case scenario for Little right now? 28:30 Nassir Little reminiscent of Gerald Wallace 31:30 What is Little’s ceiling by the end of the year? 33:00 Could we see more lineups with Kent Bazemore and Nassir Little? 35:00 Where is CJ McCollum at right now? 38:30 Was CJ hindered by the points of emphasis fouls? 41:30 What have we seen in Blazers wins and losses? 43:00 Blazers have not been able to control momentum at all this season 47:00 Maybe things aren’t as bad as they seem? 52:00 Were you surprised that Damian Lillard took the 3 for 60? 56:00 Closing comments Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coty Davis of thedreamshake.com joined Tara to preview the Portland Trail Blazers vs Houston Rockets matchup. How has Russell Westbrook’s arrival changed the team? What are the Rockets weaknesses? Who is the leader of the team? Coty is a long-time fan of Carmelo Anthony so he also weighs in on how his arrival might impact the Trail Blazers. 1:00 How the arrival of Westbrook has changed things. The pace has really increased. The offense is now “six seconds or less”. There seems to be a new attitude. 2:00 How do they play together? They start each half together, but then they are staggered. Westbrook is getting longer rests than he ever did in OKC. James Harden is still playing a lot of minutes. He seems to run out of gas every season. 5:00 Has the duo evolved in any way? They both are really sticking to their game, they don’t seem to have evolved together yet. 6:30 What are the biggest weaknesses of the team? They struggle on defense and they are small so they are frequently out-rebounded. Their defense is really up and down this season. 10:30 Who is the leader of the Rockets? Harden on the floor, PJ Tucker in the locker room. He hustles on the court and in practice, he’s a vocal leader, takes the younger players under his wings. Not to say that Harden and Westbrook don’t, but Tucker seems to make an extra effort and when he talks, people listen. 12:30 Players who might be off the radar but Houston fans are enjoying this season. Austin Rivers has stepped up off the bench. 14:30 On Carmelo Anthony. He can still play, he will be extra fire power. It might be that he didn’t fit in with Houston because he liked the midrange. Portland will be able to make the most of Anthony. 18:00 Coty is a big fan of Damian Lillard and believes that the Trail Blazers will be fine. Find Coty @cotydavis_24 Follow us on Twitter @blazersedge @DMarang @tcbbiggs Subscribe to the podcast: Apple Podcasts Google Play Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices