Martell Webster - His ballhandling is a disaster, and he missed most of his 3s. But I also saw some good things from Martell. He had a couple of athletic steals, plus a near-steal that he booted out of bounds. He had a tremendous offensive rebound and putback - his rebounding was very good again this game. I've been impressed with Martell's effort so far in summer league. On one play, he ran out for a breakaway layup, then sprinted back defensively to contest a shot at the other end. Martell still needs to figure out his role (he will have to get his points by moving without the ball - and maybe by developing a post-up game?), but at least the effort is there.
Greg Oden - Oden's post game is very effective when he can create a shot on his initial lunge toward the basket. If he has to reverse his pivot or fade away, its just ugly. On defense, he has a lot to learn about position. The offensive player can draw a foul on Oden every time by shielding the ball and leaping into him. Oden needs to establish position early to take a charge, or position his body so that there is no contact and take a swipe at the ball. LaMarcus Aldridge is starting to become very adept at this. Oden seems to be a favorite target of the officials so far - he's been called for a ton of cheap fouls, especially on offense. We saw glimpses of the Oden/Aldridge high-low game. This will be devastating in the future.
LaMarcus Aldridge - I'm afraid he's playing too well and won't be available as a sleeper in my fantasy basketball league. Other than that, there's nothing bad to say about this guy. He's been flat-out terrific at both ends of the court.
Sergio Rodriguez - His lack of outside shooting is crippling his game. If he could shoot like JJ Barea, he'd be fantastic. Barea is smaller, slower, and lacks Sergio's wizardry with the ball. But Barea outplayed Sergio because he plays under control and can light it up from the outside.
Joel Freeland - He scored a couple of times. Seems to have a decent skill set for a young big man. We lose a ton of shotblocking and mobility on defense when he checks in.
Josh McRoberts - Is this guy still on the team? I didn't notice him at all this game.
Taurean Green- an unimpressive outing for a guy fighting to make the roster. He turned the ball over too much and didn't shoot well.
Terrance Green- He actually got on the court near the end of the game. Terrance was my teammate for a week at Rip City Hoop Camp in Portland in 1993 or '94. Our team won the camp championship.
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