1. I'm not going to ask if you think the Blazers are for real because you wrote about that the other day and put things pretty concisely: "The Blazers have just announced their intention and ability to not suck."
But you also mentioned something else important, that was also highlighted in a Blazers Edge fanpost comparison between last year's Warriors and this year's Blazers during the offseason: the Blazers entered this season with a ton of questions. Thus far, it seems like a number have been answered positively.
So for you, what is the biggest surprise about the Blazers' start to the season thus far?
2. One thing that's notable is that the Blazers have jumped from 20th in 3-point percentage last season to 4th. Former Warrior Dorell Wright is one contributor to that, shooting over 40% from the 3-point line so far off the bench. Interestingly, his second year with GSW was his worst 3-point shooting season over the last six years and it appeared that he just lost confidence. But he was always a guy that was easy to root for.
What are your thoughts as a Blazers fan on him now as he begins his 10th (!!!) season?
3. As Bay Area basketball fans, a lot of folks around here are obviously excited to see Damian Lillard. Is he making steps forward in his second season or are you seeing any signs of a sophomore slump?
4. So sort of bringing your article together with a point that Zach Lowe made in his recent article at Grantland, are you content to see how things play out this season and live with the results? Or are you thinking the Blazers should make a move to bolster the center spot or the wing?
5. Finishing with some sort of wonky stuff, Lowe highlighted the importance of the Blazers allowing the fewest opponent assists in the league and Kevin Pelton of ESPN followed up on Twitter by noting that they've posted the lowest opponent assisted field goal percentage since the merger as of this weekend. That sort of figures into them allowing the fewest corner threes.
Zach mentioned opponent assists. When I looked over the weekend, their rate per field goal was lowest in post-merger history.
— Kevin Pelton (@kpelton) November 20, 2013
Those things would seem to bode well for the Blazers against the Warriors, a team that thrives on assists and three point shooters. But when you look at this matchup, what scares you most about the Warriors?