One issue which has emerged this season with Jarrett Jack is...surprisingly...defense.

He's made quite a few mediocre-to-middling point guards this season look like All-Stars. Guys like Tinsley, TJ Ford, and his former backcourt-mate Steve Blake have had huge games against Jack.

As Sergio at this point is no better on D (and far worse, in fact), I won't discuss Espresso as an alternative--nor mention him again in this diary (other than a brief mention in the poll).

I say "surprisingly" because Jack had a reputation as an excellent defender in college. He's big and strong, tough, and a hard worker.

Reasons why he may be struggling in the NBA:

Lack of experience. Much of playing D at the professional level is experience--knowing how to (and when to) deal with screens; knowing the habits of the players you will face, etc. Of course, this applies to other rooks and sophomores as well; guys like CP3, Deron, Rondo, etc. don't seem to be getting lit up quite as frequently. The good news is, lack of experience is curable.

Lack of speed and quickness. It may be that Jack simply doesn't have the quickness to guard NBA point guards. Unlike lack of experience, this probably isn't curable--he has the reflexes he has. This can be compensated for somewhat by help from teammates and with court intelligence--there are numerous other slow PGs in the NBA--but it's an issue.

Lack of size or strength. This doesn't appear to be an issue with Jack.

Lack of effort. Nor this.

Lack of respect from officials. This has affected Brandon Roy this season--mainly on offense, where he seems to get fouled with impunity. Not sure how much it affects Jack on defense--he isn't fouling out of games.

Lack of help from teammates. This may be the big issue. With Prz out especially, the Blazers' interior defense also has issues. Aldridge is developing into a good NBA defender. Zach remains a weak defender; and Udoka is a good on-ball defender but not someone who is good at guarding the basket from off the ball. The Blazer bigs are also not terribly efficient and defending pick-and-rolls. It's almost impossible to stop quick NBA perimeter players one-on-one, under the current rules--so help from teammates is an issue.

The poll question:

How should the Blazers address defensive issues at the PG position?