tlongII
12-28-2011, 02:19 PM
http://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/index.ssf/2011/12/blazers_insider_gerald_wallace_meet_section_314_of .html
http://media.oregonlive.com/oregonian/photo/2011/12/-d5514f5d770b806a.JPG
Trail Blazers forward Gerald Wallace brings the ball up the floor against the Sacramento Kings at the Rose Garden on Tuesday.
It's only Game 2 of their season, but the Trail Blazers have already unleashed their most powerful recruiting tool to convince Gerald Wallace to stay in Portland after this season.
Mr. Wallace, meet Section 314 of the Rose Garden.
These are the Blazers die hards. The rowdies. The ones who start the chants that catch on like wildfire throughout the Garden.
And on Tuesday, they rewarded Wallace with the chant that has become a rite of passage for Blazers stars: "GER-ALD WALL-ACE! GER-ALD WALL-ACE!"
They did it for Marcus Camby that one April night in 2010, and two weeks later Camby signed a contract extension to stay in Portland.
"It meant a lot to me," Camby said, remembering his chant. "It definitely helped my decision in staying here."
After this season, Wallace has the option to sign on for another year with Portland for $11.4 million, or explore what will be a lavish free-agent market, with more than a dozen teams expected to be under the salary cap.
It has become perhaps the biggest topic with Blazers management, so much so that interim general manager Chad Buchanan said the team is very conscious in making sure they do the "little things" to make sure Wallace and his family are kept happy this season.
"We do have to do the little things to keep talent because we are not a major market," Buchanan said. "We are not Hollywood. We are not New York City. We are not Miami. But we do have a lot of things to offer."
Like an incredible fan base that recognizes when a player has given his all, and produced at an All-Star level, much like Wallace did Tuesday against Sacramento: 25 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two blocks.
When he was finally subbed out of the game in the final minute, he was serenaded by Section 314, and the chant eventually engulfed most of the building.
Sitting courtside, Wallace's brother, Courtney, soaked in the cheer. When the grade-school girl next to him joined in on the now-resounding chant, Courtney couldn't help but smile.
"It's a great sensation," Courtney said.
But is it enough to keep Wallace in Portland?
Wallace has been adamant that he will not talk to the media about his contract during this season. And he was blunt last February after he was traded that it was tough for him to move from Charlotte, N.C., and the South (he's an Alabama native). But on Tuesday, two important developments were revealed: First, Buchanan said he has had introductory conversations with Wallace's agent, Rob Pelinka, about a contract extension. Second, Courtney, his 32-year-old brother, said Wallace no longer views Portland as a foreign country.
"He loves it here," Courtney said. "It was pretty tough at first, but now it's like home. He likes the fans the most. The fans pump him up and make him better."
In another positive sign, Wallace moved his wife and four kids to Portland in August so his kids could enroll in school.
"We've been able to get comfortable," Wallace said. "We know our way around the city, we have been able to meet people, get out and do things. And we have a home. And once you get that feeling, things open up for you."
On Tuesday, an arena and a fan base opened up to Wallace. It is one of those moments that makes Portland, and the Blazers experience, so special.
"From a basketball standpoint, this is as good as there is in the NBA," Buchanan said. "We have a great building, a great owner, a great coach, great culture and that's what eventually sells guys on staying with us. And we have the best fans in the league, and the guys know that. It's huge for our guys to know that our fans know the game, and recognize guys who play hard and play the right way."
In turn, Wallace says all those floor burns, all those sprints down the court, and all those bruises from drawing charges and banging bodies, are for those fans in 314 and around the Garden.
"I come out and play for them every night and leave it all out on the court," Wallace said. "For them to show they appreciate my hard work on the court ... it feels great."
http://media.oregonlive.com/oregonian/photo/2011/12/-d5514f5d770b806a.JPG
Trail Blazers forward Gerald Wallace brings the ball up the floor against the Sacramento Kings at the Rose Garden on Tuesday.
It's only Game 2 of their season, but the Trail Blazers have already unleashed their most powerful recruiting tool to convince Gerald Wallace to stay in Portland after this season.
Mr. Wallace, meet Section 314 of the Rose Garden.
These are the Blazers die hards. The rowdies. The ones who start the chants that catch on like wildfire throughout the Garden.
And on Tuesday, they rewarded Wallace with the chant that has become a rite of passage for Blazers stars: "GER-ALD WALL-ACE! GER-ALD WALL-ACE!"
They did it for Marcus Camby that one April night in 2010, and two weeks later Camby signed a contract extension to stay in Portland.
"It meant a lot to me," Camby said, remembering his chant. "It definitely helped my decision in staying here."
After this season, Wallace has the option to sign on for another year with Portland for $11.4 million, or explore what will be a lavish free-agent market, with more than a dozen teams expected to be under the salary cap.
It has become perhaps the biggest topic with Blazers management, so much so that interim general manager Chad Buchanan said the team is very conscious in making sure they do the "little things" to make sure Wallace and his family are kept happy this season.
"We do have to do the little things to keep talent because we are not a major market," Buchanan said. "We are not Hollywood. We are not New York City. We are not Miami. But we do have a lot of things to offer."
Like an incredible fan base that recognizes when a player has given his all, and produced at an All-Star level, much like Wallace did Tuesday against Sacramento: 25 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two blocks.
When he was finally subbed out of the game in the final minute, he was serenaded by Section 314, and the chant eventually engulfed most of the building.
Sitting courtside, Wallace's brother, Courtney, soaked in the cheer. When the grade-school girl next to him joined in on the now-resounding chant, Courtney couldn't help but smile.
"It's a great sensation," Courtney said.
But is it enough to keep Wallace in Portland?
Wallace has been adamant that he will not talk to the media about his contract during this season. And he was blunt last February after he was traded that it was tough for him to move from Charlotte, N.C., and the South (he's an Alabama native). But on Tuesday, two important developments were revealed: First, Buchanan said he has had introductory conversations with Wallace's agent, Rob Pelinka, about a contract extension. Second, Courtney, his 32-year-old brother, said Wallace no longer views Portland as a foreign country.
"He loves it here," Courtney said. "It was pretty tough at first, but now it's like home. He likes the fans the most. The fans pump him up and make him better."
In another positive sign, Wallace moved his wife and four kids to Portland in August so his kids could enroll in school.
"We've been able to get comfortable," Wallace said. "We know our way around the city, we have been able to meet people, get out and do things. And we have a home. And once you get that feeling, things open up for you."
On Tuesday, an arena and a fan base opened up to Wallace. It is one of those moments that makes Portland, and the Blazers experience, so special.
"From a basketball standpoint, this is as good as there is in the NBA," Buchanan said. "We have a great building, a great owner, a great coach, great culture and that's what eventually sells guys on staying with us. And we have the best fans in the league, and the guys know that. It's huge for our guys to know that our fans know the game, and recognize guys who play hard and play the right way."
In turn, Wallace says all those floor burns, all those sprints down the court, and all those bruises from drawing charges and banging bodies, are for those fans in 314 and around the Garden.
"I come out and play for them every night and leave it all out on the court," Wallace said. "For them to show they appreciate my hard work on the court ... it feels great."