[165][169] It was renamed the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in 2011. The Blazers selected guard CJ McCollum out of Lehigh University with their 10th pick, and also selected center Jeff Withey from Kansas, power forward Grant Jerrett from Arizona, and Montenegrin big man Marko Todorović. Three players have earned the Most Improved Player award: Kevin Duckworth (1988), Zach Randolph (2004), and CJ McCollum (2016). Get the latest news and information for the Portland Trail Blazers. However, they never advanced past the conference semifinals during the decade. Reserves Batum and Fernández started the season on the inactive list and forward Travis Outlaw soon followed after a serious foot injury early in the season. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The 28-year-old never missed a game while in the NBA bubble, despite the fact he's been dealing with an L3 vertebral transverse process fracture in his back for most of August. [97] The Blazers finished the season 41–41, their best record since the 2003–04 season. [22] That summer, they also hired Jack Ramsay as head coach. If you make a request through the WarnerMedia Privacy Center, The bankruptcy of the Oregon Arena corporation, which resulted in the Rose Garden being owned by a consortium of investment firms, further alienated the fanbase, as did an incident in which forward Darius Miles (himself African-American) called coach Maurice Cheeks a "nigger", following it up with more racial invective when Cheeks sought out Nash, referring to Nash as Cheeks' "daddy. [26] Walton was never traded, and he held out the entire 1978–79 season and left the team as a free agent thereafter. [199], Relations between the team and The Oregonian have often been tense; the paper is editorially independent of the team and is often critical. [72] Wallace was suspended for seven games for threatening a referee. French-native Nicolas Batum emerged as a skilled defensive forward who was inserted into the starting lineup as a rookie. Expectations by sportswriters and analysts were high for the Trail Blazers going into the 2015 NBA season given their surprise success in 2013–14. Four ABA teams joined the NBA; the remaining teams were dissolved and their players distributed among the remaining NBA squads in a dispersal draft. Games of the Trail Blazers are routinely broadcast via television and radio. [45], In July 1994, the Trail Blazers announced the hiring of a new team president, former Seattle SuperSonics general manager Bob Whitsitt. After he averaged 33.0 points, 8.0 assists, 4.8 three-pointers, 3.8 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game over his 13 contests in the bubble, Lillard likely solidified his standing as a first-round pick in fantasy drafts. Notable local journalists to cover the team include John Canzano of the Oregonian, Jason Quick of CSNNW, and Dwight Jaynes of the Portland Tribune. [143] They erupted to number 8 but, were eliminated by Lakers 1-4.[144]. [186], Trail Blazers broadcasts have been criticized on several fronts. The Blazers also traded for the sixth pick, Brandon Roy. In the playoffs, Portland lost to the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1978 conference semifinals. Filthy Crossovers. The Blazers fared well in the first two games despite not having home-court advantage, beating Houston 122–120 and 112–105 in Games 1 and 2 respectively, fueled by Aldridge's 46 points and 18 rebounds in Game 1, and 43 points and 3 blocks in Game 2. Portland then traded forward Gerald Wallace to the New Jersey Nets for center Mehmet Okur, forward Shawne Williams, and New Jersey's first-round, top-3-protected pick in the 2012 NBA draft. Wesley Matthews also emerged in the absence of Brandon Roy, proving his worth as the Blazers' key off-season addition. [151] They also changed their red alternate uniform to include a black and grey variation of the "blaze" strip inspired from the team's pinwheel logo and a lack of white elements. [27] The team was further dismantled as Lucas left in 1980.[21]. The 1975–1977 uniforms featured the team name written vertically on the right side; this uniform was used in their 1977 championship season. A 2002–03 rebrand saw the team add silver accents and introduce a red alternate uniform, while a slight change in the 2005–06 season saw the Blazers return to the city name on their road uniforms. [51] Rasheed Wallace, who was acknowledged as a hot-tempered player since college,[52] was also acquired, in a trade with the Washington Bullets. [30] In the next year's draft, the Trail Blazers landed the No. [183] The next day, the team announced that veteran sportscaster Kevin Calabro would become its new lead commentator beginning in the 2016–17 season. 3 to the Dome. Porter would go on to become one of the top point guards in the league, and the Blazers' all-time leader in assists. The change came as part of a plan by the team to overhaul its telecasts as it enters the final year of its current television deal with CSN Northwest. If all goes well in his recovery, McCollum should be fully cleared by the start of November. Roy appeared in his second-straight All-Star Game, and Fernández competed in the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest during NBA All-Star Weekend. Dame averaged career highs in scoring (30.0) assists (8.0), three point percentage (40.1%), and field goal percentage (46.3%) this season. The Blazers signed their 30th pick from the 2006 draft, Joel Freeland, and their 22nd pick from the 2009 draft, Víctor Claver,[116] as well as re-signing Hickson[116] and Nicolas Batum. The following 2005–06 season was not better, as the Blazers posted a league-worst 21–61 record. [11][12] The Trail Blazers' 34 playoff appearances rank third in the NBA only behind the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs since the team's inception in 1970. [42] Led by Drexler, the team reached the NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992, losing to the Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls, respectively. The team has a cheerleading-dance squad known as the BlazerDancers. In 1972 the choice was LaRue Martin, Bill Walton was picked in 1974, Mychal Thompson in 1978, and Greg Oden was taken in 2007. Since leaving Fox Sports Net Northwest in 2007,[181] all television broadcasts of the Blazers' games, when not carried on a national network, are broadcast by NBC Sports Northwest (formerly Comcast SportsNet Northwest). A popular unofficial mascot was the late Bill "The Beerman" Scott, a Seattle beer vendor-cheerleader who worked for numerous pro teams, including the Trail Blazers, the Seattle Seahawks, and the Seattle Mariners. With the 2019-20 NBA season, which spanned... PORTLAND, Ore. (October 9, 2020) – The Portland Trail Blazers, with support from Multnomah County,... Hassan averaged 15.5 points and 13.5 rebounds per game in his first season with Portland. The broadcast personalities, all of whom are Trail Blazers employees, have been criticized in the media for being "homers"; further it has been alleged that the 2005 departure of Steve Jones was due in part to team displeasure with Jones' sometimes frank analysis of the team's on-court performance and off-court decisions. In June 2012, the Trail Blazers hired Neil Olshey as general manager. Vulcan Inc. is a private corporation in which currently Allen's sister Jody Allen as head of the Paul Allen's estate is the chairman and sole shareholder. [92] That summer Pritchard was promoted to general manager,[93] and former Nike Inc. executive Larry Miller was hired as team president. [73] Zach Randolph and Patterson got in a fight during practice, with Randolph sucker punching his teammate in the eye, an injury which kept Patterson from making a meaningful contribution during the playoffs. [34][35] During Schuler's brief tenure, the Blazers failed to advance out of the first round of the NBA playoffs. The team also shot 81.5% at the free throw line, made 770 three-pointers, and started four players for all 82 regular-season games, all franchise records. [152] In the 2019–20 season, the red "Statement" uniform was updated to feature white letters, white numbers with black trim and a thin white strip above the series of black and grey strips. The position of president and chief executive officer is held by Chris McGowan,[157] with Larry Miller having held the job until resigning in July 2012. 1 pick in the draft. Several Blazers' picks have been criticized by NBA commentators as particularly unwise:[31]. [88] However, Allen was willing to spend money and urged Pritchard to make draft-day trades. Damian Lillard explains why he votes and encourages everyone else to do the same. The team was also known for its long association with Steve "Snapper" Jones, who played for the team prior to his career as a television analyst; Jones departed the franchise in 2005. While his effort, which included a series high in points, helped keep the game close late in the fourth quarter, ultimately the Trail Blazers ran out of steam and the Lakers pulled away. All four players acquired in the trades held expiring contracts, meaning they would be free agents at the end of the season. Headed by their new general manager Olshey, the Trail Blazers front office further made a few changes during July 2012. WarnerMedia Privacy Center | 24 pick to Dallas for the No. On July 21, Wesley Matthews signed a five-year deal with the Blazers after his former team, the Utah Jazz, declined to match Portland's offer. [91] On the court, the team finished with a 32–50 record, an 11-game improvement, and rookie shooting guard Roy was named the 2006–07 Rookie of the Year. Fortunately for the star point guard, he appears to have avoided any sort of long-term injury that would affect his availability for the 2020-21 campaign. [154] The 2018–19 season "City" uniforms again used the 'Rip City' concept, this time with a more subdued red "blaze" strip and black and dark grey background. [200] For instance during a portion of a pre-2006 NBA draft workout, which was closed to the media, an Oregonian reporter looked through a curtain separating the press from the workout and wrote about this on his blog. Jody Allen as head of estate serves as the team's chairman, and her longtime associate Bert Kolde is vice-chairman. His shot also capped off a 50-point performance from Lillard. Just days after, Marcus Camby also underwent arthroscopic knee surgery to repair his left knee. [149], For the 2017–18 season, the Blazers made some slight revisions to their look upon moving to Nike, changing the alignment of the city and team name from italicized to straight while adding the 'Rip City' nickname on the waistband. The team had originally considered an arrangement with KPTV, under which games would be broadcast over-the-air and simulcast via an Internet service, but deals with potential streaming partners fell through. [141] In the Western Conference Finals, they faced the defending champion, the Golden State Warriors, and were swept in four games. In that series, the Trail Blazers dropped three out of the first four games before winning the next two, forcing a pivotal Game 7. Don't call it a comeback. Several players, most notably Drexler, were accused of undermining Schuler. Jusuf Nurkic made his triumphant return to the floor in Orlando and showed out. The team opened its garage to hand out vote yard signs, stickers, buttons and more to encourage Rip City to make their voices heard. [185], All Trail Blazers' games are broadcast over the radio, with broadcasting carried on the Trail Blazers radio network, which consists of 25 stations located in the Pacific Northwest. The return of the NBA this summer meant the return of the beast, and we were glad to have him back... Jim Barnett joins Trail Blazers Courtside to talk about playing on the first Trail Blazers team,... Former team executive Marshall Glickman discusses the grand opening of the Moda Center 25 years ago... Long time, no see to the podcast listeners out there. Additional coverage is offered by various blogs, including Blazers Edge[207] (part of SB Nation) and the Portland Roundball Society[208] (part of ESPN's TrueHoop Network). [47] In the fall of 1995, the team left the Memorial Coliseum for a new home, the 20,000-seat Rose Garden Arena. Nurk averaged 17.6 points, 10.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 2.0 blocks in his 8 regular season games in 2020. [105] On August 12, the Trail Blazers signed two new assistant general managers, Bill Branch and Steve Rosenberry. [161][162] A month later, the Blazers named Oklahoma City Thunder assistant general manager Rich Cho as their new general manager. Despite this, the Trail Blazers had a 13-game winning streak that began in early December, resulting in a 13–2 record, an NBA best for the month of December. [76] Guard Bonzi Wells famously told Sports Illustrated in a 2002 interview: "We’re not really going to worry about what the hell (the fans) think about us. 1, the Trail Blazers selected Kentucky center Sam Bowie. In November, they announced that Oden would have microfracture surgery on his left knee, ending his 2010–2011 season. [98][99][100][101] The Blazers clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2003 and achieved a 54–28 record, their first winning record since the 2002–03 season. 31 pick Jeff Pendergraph. [16], Sports promoter Harry Glickman sought a National Basketball Association (NBA) franchise for Portland as far back as 1955 when he proposed two new expansion teams, the other to be located in Los Angeles. The emergence of Aldridge and the play of Matthews kept the Blazers competitive, sealing another playoff berth by winning 48 games. The team from 1988 until 2018 was owned by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen; ownership of the Trail Blazers is currently via a series of holding companies which Allen owned. Oden suffered a pre-season knee injury requiring microfracture surgery, and missed the entire 2007–08 season. [107] The Blazers acquired rookies Armon Johnson, Luke Babbitt, and Elliot Williams from the 2010 NBA draft and off-season trades. Nate McMillan won NBA Coach of the Month honors, and Roy garnered NBA Western Conference Player of the Week honors in back-to-back weeks (the first Trail Blazers' player to accomplish the feat since Clyde Drexler in the 1990–91 season). Hassan averaged 15.5 points and 13.5 rebounds per game in his first season with Portland. On July 24, 2009, the Trail Blazers signed point guard Andre Miller. [170] A junior dance team composed of 8- to 11-year-old girls also performs at selected home games,[171] as does a hip hop dance troupe. [103] However, the accumulation of injuries was too much to bear, and the short-handed Trail Blazers lost the series 4–2 to the Suns.[104]. [108] [167] In August 2013, the arena's name was changed from the Rose Garden to the Moda Center, after the Blazers' front office officials reached a $4 million agreement with Moda Health Corporation. For the 2012–13 season, the Blazers changed their red alternate uniform to include black lettering, a more modernized "blaze" strip, and the pinwheel logo atop of it. "[82] The latter incident was compounded by what many viewed as inadequate discipline for Miles, followed by a secret agreement between the team and Miles to refund the amount of his fine. All rights reserved. The following year was marked by more trouble as the team plummeted to a 27–55 record. [61] After drafting eventual Rookie of the Year and three-time All Star Brandon Roy in 2006, attendance climbed in the 2006–07 season and continued to rebound in the 2007–08 season. [17] When the Memorial Coliseum was opened in 1960 Glickman saw the potential it could serve as a professional basketball venue but it was not until February 6, 1970, that the NBA board of governors granted him the rights to a franchise in Portland. NBA Privacy Center | To opt out of the sale of your personal information as permitted by the California Consumer Hollywood and Woods' other pit bull, Sugar, were confiscated, and Woods was given eighty hours of community service. Drafting third, the Chicago Bulls selected Michael Jordan. He was replaced on an interim basis with assistant coach Rick Adelman,[40] and Vandeweghe was traded to the New York Knicks. The team's colors are red, black, and white. Fresh off leading the Trail Blazers into the postseason, Damian Lillard checks in with Brooke Olzendam on a variety of topics including the team's playoff run, his injury recovery, family, music and much more. [89], In the 2006 NBA draft the Blazers traded Viktor Khryapa and draft rights for Tyrus Thomas for draft rights to LaMarcus Aldridge. However, the Blazers continued to struggle in the post-season, and in 1986, Ramsay was fired and replaced with Mike Schuler. [163] Cho was fired less than a year later, and director of college scouting Chad Buchanan served as interim general manager for the entire 2011–12 season. In this case, the team retains the player's draft rights in the NBA until one year after the player's contract with the non-NBA team ends. 2019 season schedule, scores, stats, and highlights. The trade sent Blazers guards Andre Miller to Denver and Rudy Fernández to Dallas along with international player Petteri Koponen, who had yet to make an appearance for Portland; Denver then sent guard Raymond Felton to Portland and Denver also received rookie forward Jordan Hamilton from Dallas as well as a future second-round pick from Portland. The Blazers finished the 2014 season with 21 more wins than the previous season, which amounted for the largest single-season improvement in franchise history. However, the team failed to win an NBA title, and failed to advance past the first round in 1993 and 1994. Although wins did not come as easily as the season before, the Blazers rallied to finish at 50–32, and finished 6th in the West. It was not to be, as Bowie broke his leg five games into the 1986–87 season, missing the next two and a half seasons. The name "Trail Blazers" received 172 entries, and was ultimately selected by the judging panel, being revealed on March 13 in the halftime of a SuperSonics game at the Memorial Coliseum. The uniforms were similar to the 'Rip City' jerseys but with a red base and white letters with black trim. Despite Aldridge's performance, the rest of the team became more inconsistent. [28] Adelman was fired after the 1994 season,[43] and replaced with P. J. Carlesimo,[44] which led to the resignation of executive vice-president Geoff Petrie, a close friend of Adelman's. [23] The team continued to average over 19,000 spectators per game until the 2003–04 season, when attendance declined after the team continued to suffer image problems due to the "Jail Blazer" reputation it had gained, and was no longer as competitive on the court. He led the NBA in blocks (196) and offensive rebounds (258). [153], The team's mascot is Blaze the Trail Cat, a two-tone silver-colored mountain lion, which has been the team's official mascot since 2002. Check out highlights from Gary Trent Jr.'s coming out party in the Orlando bubble. The "Earned" jersey was only used for that season before it was shelved permanently. [70], The next two seasons were just as disastrous for the team's reputation. Forward Jermaine O'Neal was traded to the Indiana Pacers for Dale Davis. In the Blazers' 50 years of existence (through 2020), they have qualified for the NBA playoffs 36 times, including a streak of 21 straight playoff appearances from 1983 through 2003. For the 2007–08 season, all but six regular-season games were carried on CSN Northwest or the Blazers Television Network (a syndication package within the team's television market, whose flagship was KGW);[182] the other six were broadcast nationally on TNT or ESPN. Scott worked for the Trail Blazers from 1981 through 1985.[156]. The announcement was issued by the Blazers' head office just an hour before the beginning of the 2010 NBA draft. Trail Blazers President & CEO Chris McGowan remembers Portland's time in the bubble and discusses ongoing planning to host games and fans again in the future. Geoff Petrie and Sidney Wicks led the team in its early years, and the team failed to qualify for the playoffs in its first six seasons of existence. Carmelo Anthony reflects on his comeback season in Portland and looks towards the future after the Blazers season comes to an end in Orlando. The Trail Blazers selected Maurice Lucas in the dispersal draft. Several players, including Wallace, Stoudamire, and Qyntel Woods, were cited for marijuana possession. [205] In the report,[206] both sides were criticized somewhat, but did not make any revelations which were unexpected.[205]. They also selected Villanova forward Dante Cunningham with the No. During the 1980s, the team was a consistent presence in the NBA post-season, failing to qualify for the playoffs only in 1982. [182] Bob Akamian served as studio host until halfway through the 2010–2011 season, when the team hired away Adam Bjaranson from their over-the-air TV partner, KGW, and former Trail Blazers' player Michael Holton is the studio analyst. [106] The organization also made changes to Nate McMillan's coaching staff by hiring Bernie Bickerstaff, Bob Ociepka and Buck Williams, with Bickerstaff assuming the lead assistant coach position due to the departure of Monty Williams. Wells was fined $50,000 by the Blazers for the statement. The Trail Blazers have had the No. [181][190][191], On June 16, 2016, The Oregonian reported that Barrett, Rice, and analyst Antonio Harvey had been released by the Trail Blazers. Some had speculated that they might choose Kevin Durant instead;[94] Durant was picked at No. [196] In addition to making Oregonian content available, oregonlive.com hosts several blogs covering the team written by Oregonian journalists,[197][198] as well as an additional blog, "Blazers Blog", written by Sean Meagher. [41] Under Adelman, the team went 14–21 to finish the season, and barely qualified for the playoffs. [28] The Pacific Division of the NBA was dominated by the Los Angeles Lakers throughout the decade, and only the Lakers and the Houston Rockets represented the Western Conference in the NBA Finals. Prior to 1995, the Trail Blazers' home venue was the Memorial Coliseum, which today stands adjacent to the Moda Center. Two Hall of Fame coaches, Lenny Wilkens and Jack Ramsay, have patrolled the sidelines for the Blazers, and two others, Mike Schuler and Mike Dunleavy, have won the NBA Coach of the Year Award with the team. Four days later, Lillard hit a three-pointer to tie the game and force overtime against the Thunder en route to 40 points and a 115–111 victory. [177], The phenomenon known as Blazermania started during the 1976–77 season, when the team posted its first winning record, made its first playoff appearance, and captured its only NBA title, defeating the heavily favored Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA Finals; the team has been popular in Portland since that time. The Blazers won the 2007 NBA draft lottery and selected Ohio State center Greg Oden with the No. During the 2011 off-season, the Blazers released Cho, reportedly due to communication and "chemistry issues" with owner Paul Allen. Players such as Miles, Patterson, Randolph, and Sebastian Telfair were involved in either on-court bickering or off-court legal incidents. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc. site: media | arena: nba | pageType: profiles | [81] Troublesome players including Wells, Wallace, and Jeff McInnis were traded. [82] Cheeks was fired that season and replaced on an interim basis by director of player-personnel Kevin Pritchard. Starting center Lopez fractured his right hand in a game against the Spurs on December 15, 2014, and missed the next 23 games. The two moves, coupled with the team's stellar play, led Portland to several firsts: winning record (49–33), playoff appearance, and championship in 1977. The Trail Blazers assistant coach talks with Jordan Kent and Michael Holton a couple weeks after Portland's playoff exit in Orlando. In the spring of 2007, Steve Patterson resigned as team president,[90] and Paul Allen entered into an agreement to re-purchase the Rose Garden. [102] As the fourth seed and holding home court advantage, the Trail Blazers played the fifth-seeded Houston Rockets in the 2009 Playoffs, losing the playoff series 4 games to 2. Portland also added some international flavor to the team with the arrival of Spanish swingman Rudy Fernández, a member of the Spain national basketball team. LaMarcus Aldridge emerged as the focal point of the team and posted career-high numbers, as well as Western Conference Player of the Week and Month honors. Neil Olshey became the new GM in June, making it just over a year since the Blazers had had a non-interim general manager.[115]. Anthony finished with 27 points (9-16 FG, 3-4 3Pt, 6-7 FT), seven boards, and one assist in 40 minutes of a 131-122 loss to Los Angeles on Saturday. After the Houston Rockets selected Drexler's college teammate Akeem Olajuwon at No. List of the last five seasons completed by the Trail Blazers. [19] Two weeks later, on February 24, team management held a contest to select the team's name and received more than 10,000 entries. [182] The Trail Blazers' former[183] television play-by-play team was Mike Barrett and Mike Rice, joined by sideline reporter Michael Holton, who succeeded Terry Porter (2010–11)[184] and Rebecca Haarlow (2009–10). [58] The move backfired, and the team lost 17 of its remaining 25 games, and was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs (swept by the Los Angeles Lakers). [21] That following off-season, the team drafted two players from behind the Iron Curtain, Arvydas Sabonis and Dražen Petrović,[29] and sent Thompson to the San Antonio Spurs for former Oregon State University star Steve Johnson. This facility, built in 1960, can seat 12,888 spectators for basketball (originally 12,666). © 2004-2020 CBS Interactive. Director of Scouting Chad Buchanan took over as acting interim General Manager. [201] Outraged, the team closed subsequent practices to the press altogether,[202] leading John Canzano of the paper to respond with outrage on his blog. [124] This included a period in November when they won 11 straight games, and 13–2 in the month overall, for which coach Terry Stotts took home Coach of the Month honors. Includes news, scores, schedules, statistics, photos and video. Despite this, they were the only team to beat the Boston Celtics on the road that season. [129] Portland finished 54–28, securing the fifth seed in the playoffs against the Rockets. Three-time All-Star Brandon Roy underwent double-arthroscopic surgery on January 17, 2011, to repair both knees after dealing with constant struggles, leaving his future up in the air. We count down the best swats and rejections of this past season. On April 21, 2018, they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the New Orleans Pelicans in a 4–0 sweep. CJ averaged 22.2 points, 4.4 assists, and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 38% from three point range this season. Like the season before, the Trail Blazers dominated the month of November, at one point winning nine straight games from November 9 to 26 before being defeated by the Memphis Grizzlies. The ABA–NBA merger of 1976 saw those two rival leagues join forces. Despite initial mixed response, the Trail Blazers name, often shortened to just "Blazers", became popular in Oregon.[20]. Covering the impact of coronavirus on the sports world. Online coverage of the Oregonian is provided through OregonLive.com,[195] a website collaboration between the paper and Advance Internet. Derived from the trail blazing activity by explorers making paths through forests, Glickman considered it a name that could "reflect both the ruggedness of the Pacific Northwest and the start of a major league era in our state." [53] Point guard Kenny Anderson was signed as a free agent,[54] and subsequently traded to the Toronto Raptors for Damon Stoudamire in February 1998 (the Raptors traded Anderson to the Boston Celtics five days later, because he did not want to play in Canada). [192], On July 6, 2016, the team renewed its contract with CSN Northwest through the 2020–2021 season, giving the network exclusive rights to all Trail Blazers games beginning in the 2017–18 season (and thus ending the team's over-the-air syndication package). [126] On December 14, 2013, the Blazers made a franchise-record 21 three-pointers against the Philadelphia 76ers. Many former Blazers' players settle in the Portland area after their retirement and are involved in the community in a variety of ways. [38] His first season as owner was one marked by turmoil, as conflicts erupted over who should start at several positions. On the same day, the Blazers front office had made a three-team trade with the Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks. [142], Following the suspension of the 2019–20 NBA season, the Blazers were one of the 22 teams invited to the NBA Bubble to participate in the final 8 games of the regular season. Despite struggles with injury, Portland performed at a playoff level throughout the season. [188] Brian Wheeler then did play-by-play from 1998 to 2019. [59] Longtime NBA coach and analyst, Doug Collins, referred to Whitsitt as a "rotisserie-league manager. In May 2017, the team revealed their new logo, an update of the pinwheel design with a new wordmark. DirecTV's Root Sports Northwest made a higher-value, long-term offer, but the offer was rejected because Root Sports could not guarantee whether its carriage deal with Comcast Cable, which serves 55% of the Portland market, would be renewed. [59] A particular criticism was that Whitsitt was attempting to win a title by assembling a roster of stars, without paying attention to team chemistry. The Blazers had a 15-point lead in the fourth quarter, but lost the game and the series to the Lakers, who went on to win the first of three consecutive titles. The 2017–18 season saw the Blazers finish with the third seed for the first time since the 1999–2000 season. After losing four of their five starters at the end of the 2014–15 season, the Blazers won 44 games, were the 5th seed in the Western Conference, and beat the Clippers in six games in the first round, but were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in five games in the Conference Semifinals.