SodaPopinski

Didn't know about the McMillan conflict forcing the Blazers to host the press conference early. Maybe that would have called for a change of venue. I may have been able to run over there for a few minutes if it would have been held downtown. Waterfront Park? Pioneer Courthouse Square? The Park Blocks?

The Eastbank Esplanade is very cool, and I'm sure the backdrop of the Portland skyline was incredible, but I really would have liked to go.

All that said, I'm not the only Blazer fan, and the organization certainly doesn't need to cater to me.

Looking forward to seeing/hearing Joel's comments and some photos from the press conference. Welcome back, Joel!

-Pop

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maxiep

Well, if it were to fit into my schedule, it would have been nice if the signing would have been in Denver.

I'm glad to hear there were a lot of people at the Przybilla signing.

blakeback

Pretty funny to read people bashing the Blazers for time/date/venue of the Prz celebration

maxiep

That was bashing? Boy, I remember when it was much worse.

SodaPopinski

Not bashing, just questioning. I'm sure the Blazers had their reasons, but 10:45 in the morning on a Monday seems odd to me, especially if you're encouraging the public to attend. Sounds like they were sort of bound by scheduling conflicts among the necessary attendees. Fair enough.

-Pop

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mediocre man

I still can't get over the fact that they had a celebration at all. Joel is a great guy, and a solid player but this isn't like us signing Lebron James or someone like that. Joel averaged 7 and 6 and won't make a difference in any way for making the playoffs or a championship run. Those numbers don't scream "signing celebration", they say press conference at the practice facility. It shows a definate small town mentality for Portland IMO.

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Former Blazer Alaa Abdelnaby on being a student athlete at Duke. "The only way I could get 5 A's at Duke was to spell my name"


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It's_GO_Time

Is that a bad thing?

maxiep

It shows how bad we are, I agree. That being said, he seems to one of the few guys on our team that most people get behind. He's white, shiny, blue collar and just oozes that wholesome Midwestern vibe.

SodaPopinski

Bah. I think the Blazers are just making it a priority to open these things up for fans. It's a PR initiative for sure, but I like it. The very first sports press conference I'd gone to was last year when they opened the Nate McMillan new coach press conference to the public up by the Rose Garden in Washington Park. I thought it was pretty cool, and I definitely would have gone to the Joel press conference today if I could have gotten away from the office.

Maybe it appears "small town" to people outside of Portland, but if the organization wants to get back to the Blazermania days where thousands of fans would wait at the Hillsboro Airport just to welcome the team back from a standard three-game road trip, they need to start finding a way to reconnect with the community. This doesn't get them all the way there, but it's a very cool way to make their players/coaches/management more accessible to fans.

To me, this is a no-brainer. Open these things up to the public. Hold them at places that are "uniquely Portland." Why not? It doesn't cost any more (save minor travel expenses for the necessary people from the organization) to hold a press conference at the Eastbank Esplanade than it does to hold it at the practice facility. The A/V needs are the same. Setting up the table and the backdrop have to happen regardless.

I think I'm a pretty good lithmus test as to whether or not these things are good PR, since I tend to be pretty skeptical at times (if you haven't been able to tell).

-Pop

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mediocre man

I agree with all of that. Teams just don't have celebrations to sign role players. Someone let me know when any other team has their celebration for signing a journeyman NBA player.

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"SHOW ME THE BUFFET!!!"


Former Blazer Alaa Abdelnaby on being a student athlete at Duke. "The only way I could get 5 A's at Duke was to spell my name"


I'm Mediocre Man, and I approve this message.

mediocre man

But I remember those 80's teams, and there were no "celebrations" when we signed any of those players. Buck wasn't given a party when we traded for him. Ainge wasn't either.

While I think he's a bad coach, opening up the press conference for Nate was worthy. That was a much bigger deal nationwide. I think the signing of Joel made it across the bottom line on ESPN 3 times before it became officially old news.

__________________
"SHOW ME THE BUFFET!!!"


Former Blazer Alaa Abdelnaby on being a student athlete at Duke. "The only way I could get 5 A's at Duke was to spell my name"


I'm Mediocre Man, and I approve this message.

mediocre man

YES!!!! Portland is such a wonderful city, but the problem with it is this. Half of the people living in it want it to be a small town, while the others want it to grow. If you want MLB or the NHL then you need to think big. If you want small town wonderfullness then say goodbye to pro sports and development.

__________________
"SHOW ME THE BUFFET!!!"


Former Blazer Alaa Abdelnaby on being a student athlete at Duke. "The only way I could get 5 A's at Duke was to spell my name"


I'm Mediocre Man, and I approve this message.

It's_GO_Time