n my mind this is the best story I have ever heard come out of the NBA all year. If you want your child to have roll models, and you are afraid the NBA is not the place to look for those heroes, then you did not look at the Blazers.
This is a must read for old school NBA fans. These guys are the truest definition of what a team is and should be. Other franchises should look at this team as a model. It’s a heart warming story of a pack of brothers in a fraternity like none other.
Does anyone want to know why the Blazers win? It’s not just because of BROY, LA, and Trout are extremely clutch. It’s called chemistry. I read this article the other day by Jason quick, the Blazers beat writer for the Oregonian. I was blown away at how much these guys do together. Its very heart warming.
Teams with chemistry can overcome teams with great players that have no chemistry, and the Blazers are proof. Here are some excerpts from that article.
“It just doesn’t happen that 14 dudes like each other the way we do,” Frye said. “So, hey, I’m rolling with it. I enjoy every day in here, win or lose.”
“I listen to them, and I watch them,” McMillan said. “And I have been in the locker room, and you can feel vibes. As a coach, you can tell if there is an outcast on the team. You can tell when you have cliques. But I can’t even think of a clique on this team. It’s really like a college atmosphere. They are all from different places, and they are all trying to get to know each other, but when it comes down to it, they are about team.”
According to the players, the sense of team and friendship was never more apparent than on New Year’s Eve, when they were 30,000 feet in the air.
“On Dec. 31, as the team prepared to board Blazer One — the luxury jet of owner Paul Allen — the mood was hardly festive. The Blazers had just lost to Utah, ending their 13-game winning streak, and the players could think of a million other places they would rather be than on an airplane.
The flight attendants, as they had in the past when the team had flown on New Year’s Eve, tried to make the best of the situation, laying out tiaras, kazoos and confetti. But unlike past years, when the likes of Rasheed Wallace and Bonzi Wells would ignore the party favors and retreat to the back of the plane, this year’s team ambushed the supply.
Soon, everyone had a kazoo or a tiara and the mood quickly changed.
“It was New Year’s Eve, and we lost, and we were all thinking how bad it was that we had to spend New Year’s on an airplane,” Blake said. “But by the time we were up in the air, we were all in the lounge area, talking, laughing.”
“It was like a celebration of us being a young team and kind of hitting the national spotlight,” Roy said. “We said, ‘Let’s be sure we bound back, but let’s sit back and enjoy what we just did.’ And I can honestly tell you, that was the most fun I have ever had on New Year’s.”
Rodriguez, the gregarious Spaniard who is always trying to make someone laugh, stood in front of the team and led them in the chorus of his unofficial theme song, “Ole, Ole, Ole.” The players danced to the song, and called to the coaches to join them.
“They were back there singing, dancing . . . you know, acting stupid, but having fun doing it,” assistant Bill Bayno said.
“Some teams will have a group of guys over here playing cards, a group over there watching a movie,” said Blake, who has played with Washington, Milwaukee and Denver. “We all get together as one and talk and enjoy each other — it’s much different than you will see on any other plane. I mean, I really liked my time in Denver, but this is the best group of guys I have played with and hung out with in my career.”
“If you don’t like a guy, you don’t pass to a guy — or a guy doesn’t pass to you,” Jones said. “You put that guy out on an island. We are not like that. We care about each other, and we all rely on each other. And that’s rare.”
“I think when you are able to establish a relationship with your teammates off the court, on the court you will go that extra mile. Those relationships off the court translate to the court. So I think (management) did a good job of putting together our nucleus of young guys — who are all good guys — and surrounding them with veterans. Raef, Joel, Blake — we couldn’t ask for better veterans, and the young guys are willing to listen to them, which has helped with the maturation process.”
The blending of youngsters with veterans is seamless. They often travel in groups as large as six to movies, both at home and on the road, with the members of the group varying from city to city. Roy, Frye and Jones are the most frequent moviegoers, with Outlaw, Blake, Webster and Oden consistent attendees. ”
The biggest groups have seen “I Am Legend,” “National Treasure” and “The Kingdom” — the last coming on a frigid mid-December night in Salt Lake City. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision to head to the theater, after Roy had treated the team to an Italian dinner after he won NBA player of the week honors.
Because of the spontaneity of the decision, many of the Blazers weren’t dressed properly for the winter night. When they emerged from the theater, they found themselves walking back to the hotel in sub-freezing temperatures. Blake, in only a dress shirt, and Jones, wearing a thin jacket, became desperate, and started running down the middle of the street trying to hail a fleeting taxi.
They finally caught the attention of the driver, and summoned the rest of the group, who arrived huffing and puffing before cramming into the cab.
The next night, they beat Utah, ending a six-game losing streak in Salt Lake City and continuing a bond that has strengthened their friendships and play.
“I think our chemistry is very unique,” Roy said. “And I think a lot of it, we are good guys. You know, there are a lot of people who say nice guys finish last. But I think we have some nice guys who are playing pretty hard and winning.”
I mean what can you say to that? For die hard Blazer fans it will bring a tear to your eye. When have we ever had this type of Brotherhood? These guys will follow each other into any battle.
I love it! Sorry for the long write up but I thought you all might like it.
Thanks to Jason Quick for writing what was probably the best story all year about these guys. For the full 5 page write-up check it out here.
http://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/sports/1201326906196640.xml&coll=7
How can you not love this team?
My Original Story at the Yard
