How are the Trailblazers so good? All they did in the offseason was replace JJ Hickson with Robin Lopez. I get that Hickson wasn’t really a center and that having a true center in his place is better, but still. Maybe it’s because Damian Lillard graduated from being the next Brandon Jennings to being the next Allen Iverson? Who knows.
It’s definitely not a situation of Nicolas Batum’s doing. He’s the same player he was last year. A good player. Does a bit of everything. Basically, if a player is capable of getting a 5×5, they’re a player you want on your team. His passing ability makes everyone look better.
And he can jam. Brush away the dust from your weary eyes and witness him take it baseline-to-baseline for the dunk. Watch as Dirk points helplessly at the onrushing Frenchman. See Ellis come to defend, but way too late as he ducks out of the play. It’s amazing to me that that kind of thing can happen in the NBA, but there it is.