http://www.oregonlive.com/sports/ore...290.xml&coll=7
The NBA's golden boy arrived at the Rose Garden on Saturday in a silver Acura MDX. He wore a gray pinstriped suit, had a fresh haircut, and a light purple dress shirt to go with a dark purple tie.
It's not lost on anyone that Trail Blazers general manager Kevin Pritchard has a blank check for an owner. And that the three drafts Pritchard handled for Portland he was given the resources to land five lottery picks. And also, the GM has Jeff Ma, the Massachusetts Ins ute of Technology card-counting genius responsible for "Bringing Down the House," writing computer-algorithms for his scouting database.
So, yeah, basically there's an old-guard NBA faction that would love to see this guy walk into a five-star restaurant and sit down in a chair sometime that splintered and buckled underneath him.
Portland beat Golden State 113-100 on Saturday. Afterward, Pritchard left the Rose Garden arena with his girlfriend, Marlene, a teacher and former Blazers dancer. And so yeah, basically, when the rest of the league saw an opportunity to squash Pritchard's summer 2009 salary-cap flexibility by signing Darius Miles to a 10-day contract, it was going to get done.
Said one Western Conference GM of Pritchard on Saturday: "(Bleep) that guy, he's walking around rubbing everyone's nose in the deals he's made and even with all those lottery players his team is still not in the playoffs.
"There was a line of guys in the league waiting to sign D. Miles if Memphis didn't."
What we have here, see, isn't so golden.
It's dark. And ugly. And maybe, too, a little bit educational. Because all that jealousy, hostility and contempt is going to manifest itself over the next couple of months, maybe years, and at the very least Pritchard better come to understand this if he's going to navigate the territory successfully.
There is a new way of doing things in the NBA. And an old way. Pritchard, Cleveland's Danny Ferry, Oklahoma City's Sam Presti, Houston's Daryl Morey, Toronto's Bryan Colangelo are among the new-way guys.
The new guys are young, and dress well. They live well. They incorporate computer programs in their scouting process. They're outspoken, they're creative, forward-thinking and progressive. Sometimes that stuff plays obnoxious to outsiders. Sometimes it just is. And when you threaten to win big -- the Blazers are eight games over .500 and are a potential player in trade/free-agency -- well, that pretty much makes you the grand pooh-bah of the new-world guys.
It's not lost here that Pritchard is also a rabid Blazers fan. He reads every word written by local and national media about the team. He comes home from games and pores over the fan message boards, too. And on Saturday he admitted that he even posts on the Internet fan forums under an alias, because he simply can't help himself.
The big surprise this week isn't that Memphis, and others, were ready to take on Miles and make life difficult for Portland. But rather, why anyone paying attention would have been shocked to see someone eager to stand in Pritchard's way.
On Saturday, asked about the target on his chest, Pritchard said, "They probably see that we're winning, and it's the whole organization they see in a position to have success."
Um, no.
Maybe there's a little truth there, but if it were an old-world general manager sitting in the middle of what looks like a bright future at One Center Court, you can bet the resistance wouldn't be as enthusiastic. Outside GMs would be crowing about a well-done job, and years of hard work paying off, and a break that management had coming.
Instead, other league executives are asking stuff like, "Did that (bleep) really coin (the phrase) 'Pritch-slapped' by himself?"
(No. He didn't. The term was born in the mind of a Blazers fan after a series of Pritchard personnel moves. But you get the idea.)
Pritchard hasn't missed with a single player transaction since arriving in Portland. He's made all the right moves. Every one of them. Some with brains. Others with luck. And after the Blazers beat long odds and landed the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 Draft (Greg Oden), you half expected the Blazers general manager would show up in the center of the city and make the Broadway Bridge levitate.
I guess this is where I'm supposed to say that Pritchard should do a better job of appearing humble and grateful. That he shouldn't stand out front and smile so much when he cuts a big trade. That he should have kissed the ring of the old-guard a little more, and maybe, life feel so hostile.
That he shouldn't do so many national interviews. That he shouldn't brag that 25 percent of his scouting is done by the program written by the MIT genius. Maybe, too, that Pritchard shouldn't rave so loudly that he thinks Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge are the best two players from the 2006 Draft.
If he followed that advice, maybe the old-world wouldn't resent him so much. Maybe they wouldn't have been as eager to curb his cap flexibility. Maybe he would have had an easier week.
But as long as he's making the right moves, and following the rules, how can you tell Pritchard to change a thing?
It's his world, you know.
Reply With Quote
Posting Permissions