Bust a bucket contributors NOT explicitly banned! Ahhhhha! Prepare yourself for my James "Hollywood" Robinson essay!

My favorite Trailblazer of all time is # 22 Clyde "The Glide" Austin Drexler because when I first discovered Rip City in the late 80's Clyde was The Man. His versatility and athleticism left me dumb-struck. His skills on the court and professionalism off court made him an ideal hero for a young Oregonian.

My favorite Blazer of all time would have to be Jerome "No Mercy" Kersey. That dude could dunk with the best of them back in the day. I used to love watching him get lobs from Terry Porter, and he was real quick in his prime. Plus I met him before, and he's a way cool guy. "No Mercy" lives on!

While I love all of the old, storied Blazers, I think my favorite one right now has to be Juwan Howard. He was brought in as a 15th man this year to fill a roster spot, then he watched as both Greg and Joel went down for the season. He hasn't complained, hasn't made excuses, hasn't done anything except turn back the clock and fill in the holes for us. He's not dominating in the paint, but he's not letting anyone roll over him, either. He's been nothing but heart for this team, and really, isn't that what being a Blazer is all about?

Jerome Kersey is my favorite Blazer, not for his years of great play but for a couple visits to a Hospital he made. My uncle Rob had cancer, and after a misdiagnosis it was too late to do anything about it.

Some of the Blazers made the rounds of the hospital my uncle was staying in and Jerome sat and chat with him for a while. My uncle loved th Blazers and I'm sure this brought him some happiness before he passed. My family will always root for Jerome.

I can haz tshirt?

My fav Blazer of all time is Brandon Roy. I was also a big fan of Jim Paxson's perm and porn moustache combo. Rudy should adopt this look immediately.

The year was 1991. Clyde "The Glide" Drexler was averaging 25 points per game. I was in 4th grade and was at one of my older brother's pole vaulting meets at Benson Tech in downtown Portland. Clyde rolls up in a sick red Acura, opens his trunk and proceeds to hand out some of his signature Avia shoes to some of the bigger kids just as long as they didn't break into his car when he was gone. I remember feeling like I was in a dream. Everyone loved Magic, Bird, Jordan, but they were untouchable. Clyde lived in the same city as me, drank the same water, went to the same stores. He was OUR superstar. He is my favorite Blazer of all time because he proved himself time and time again...in big games..playoff games...Finals games. I wasn't alive when we won back in '77 so I didn't get to taste the win. He helped bring us the closest my generation has been to tasting that glory!!!!

Can you say Juwan Howard? This guy never quits smiling, he is always has a smile on his face, even after the worst of plays. He is bringing back some good basketball to rip city, and keeping the fans and players into the game. We needed a old school player on our team to do exactly that.

My favorite Blazer of all time has to be Terry Porter - some of the plays he was able to make in crunch time back when it seemed every game was decided in the last 5 minutes (I am thinking playoffs here)... he was just amazing. He actually got fouled on a 3 with us down and absolutely needing it (seconds left) and managed to toss it in from a weird half-cocked position over his shoulder. My mom used to have to work on something (laundry, dishes, you name it) because the games were so tense! Anyways Porter has always been a real class act and I hope he continues to be involved with the organization.

I may be biased, living in Seattle, but I have a soft spot for Brandon Roy. Since I started watching the NBA in 1999, I have been partial to the Trailblazers. Their team was from the Northwest, and they were really good at the time. The rest is well, history.

Living in Seattle's University District, I actually met Brandon a couple times when he was at UW. He was my favorite player on the Huskies, and a downright likable guy. On draft night, my fingers were crossed that he would end up on the Blazers. I just knew, when the Blazers essentially traded draft bust Bassy for the #7 pick, then that pick (which would become draft bust Foye) was dealt for Roy, that things were turning around for my downtrodden favorite team.

My favorite player ended up turning my favorite team into the most likable team in the league, as well as a contender. It has been a blast being a Blazers fan (especially living in Seattle) the past few years, and that's all thanks to one Brandon Roy.

All about #5 here! Rudy! Rudy! he's our man! If he cant shoot it, now one can! Ok yea that was lame, but its the thought that counts! Something about Rudy's shots seem almost magical. When he makes those threes he has everyones hands in the air cheering, roaring his name in the Rose Garden. I find that the coolest thing.

The Greatest Passing Center of All-Time, Arvydas Sabonis is by far my favorite Blazer of all time. He had a complete game and made some amazing plays. He is often forgotten by basketball fans and Portland fans, but I guarantee that the centers of the Western Conference during his time will never forget him. Ask any foreign player in the League now and they will mention him as a trailblazer (couldn't help myself) for then in the NBA. From the behind the back bounce passes to Damon Stoudamire to draining bullet 3 pointers with no arc he will always be my favorite Blazer. Just wish we had gotten him when he was dunking on David Robinson in the Olympics (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06usV6451ik).

My favorite Blazer of All-Time is Uncle Cliff. Clifford Robinson blazed the trail for 6'10" guys being able to hit threes while wearing a head band. It's a feat we'll never see in the McMillan "no head-band" era and we can never take that for granted.

Undoubtedly my favorite Blazer of all-time is Ha Seung-Jin. This South Korean giant is often overlooked even by the most ravenous Rip City enthusiast. Taken just three picks after Trevor Ariza in the 2004 NBA draft, the second-round sensation never failed to impress during his all-too-short stint with the Blazers. I would be remiss not to make note of his sparkling performance during the '06 season where he was forced into action due to another unfortunate rash of Portland injuries. Starting four games, Ha, played like a man possessed. Also, let us not forget his 13 point domination of the Lakers some years ago on 4:20. Walton, Sabas, those were great players, Ha however single-handedly saved South Korea from Kim Yong-Il and in the process swatted 8 shots-with his face. Don't forget- don't you dare ever forget.

Sabas was something else. I started playing and watching basketball as a young whelp in the 90's. I did that thing that a lot of young basketball players do--look for who plays your position on the local team. During this Blazer era that just happened to be the big number 11. I watched him play and learned a bit about him, the entire career he had before coming over to the US as a old man (at that time I thought anyone over thirty was old decrepit and on their way out), the injuries he found a way to adapt with. Two things about Sabonis's game stood out with me--his epic battles with the NBA's big dog of the time--Shaq--and one game I went to I remember him with the ball of the low block-somehow his arm got locked with the defender (I think Sabas had something to do with that) and Sabonis just tossed the ball up over his shoulder for the perfect no look and one. Sabonis is the greatest Blazer of all time--he's had the best and most prestigious of any major Blazer contributor, gave us someone to guard O'neal, changed games with his passing and IQ and was an inspiration for more young children then just me I am sure.

Kevin Duckworth was the heart of the most important Blazer teams of my lifetime. As much as I love the current team and hope they win 17 titles, they won't ever mean as much to me as the 1990-1992 teams did, for one simple reason: I can't ever be 8 years old again, and things meant more to me then. This was a time before the internet, before I noticed girls, before I had a job or bills to pay--there was only the Blazers, and taking an afternoon nap so I could stay up late to watch them in the NBA Finals.

Duckworth was the guy everyone loved to blame when things went wrong, and everyone made fun of him for his weight, claiming that he was lazy and that a team couldn't seriously contend with him starting. In that sense, Duckworth's career is a fair analogy for Portland basketball in general--no one ever takes us seriously, and our city, our HOME, is viewed as a joke to the rest of the league and especially to free-agents who frequently refuse to play here, despite the most dedicated and loyal fans in the world.

Here's what I remember: Duck making the biggest shot possible on the biggest stage possible--a 10 footer late in regulation in a must-win game two of the 1992 finals:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QnJ1Z5pGKQ

Fast forward to 9:10 of that clip and tell me you don't get excited. I literally remember jumping up and down in my living room and screaming until the neighbors pounded on the wall to get me to shut up.

Here's what else I remember--in game 7 on the 1990 West Semi's against San Antonio, Duckworth ripped the cast off his arm and played with a broken hand, shutting down David Robinson for much of the game. Ironically, no one ever saw Duck and his amazing heart coming. When he died, I remember feeling truly sad. He was an important part of an important team that meant a great deal to Portland and to me personally. Although I can never be 8 years old again, I'll never forget Kevin Duckworth, my favorite Blazer of all time.

rasheed wallace. for so many reasons. most of them not very good.

... but, in 1996 he established a devoted love for the game and for the blazers in my very impressionable 10-year-old heart. during his career with the blazers i was able to attend my first game at the rose garden where my dad and i were able to sit courtside. i spent the entire game completely transfixed with this larger than life figure who could string together a litany of swearwords the likes of which i had never before encountered. it wasn't just the fact that he was ridiculously talented, i fell in love with his passion and the fact that he justified my own tendency to get overly involved in the game and to this day i am drawn to players able to bring up the intensity and emotion in games (a reason i love watching jerryd bayless play in person).
i met rasheed wallace when he came to visit the boys & girls club in ne portland. he played h-o-r-s-e with some of us and stayed awhile for pictures and autographs. unfortunately, when it was my turn to take the photo the lady taking the photos had her thumb blocking rasheed's face in the picture and i was devastated. when sheed realized that this had occured, he let me come back for a redo and i'm so happy in the picture that my asian eyes are super-duper squinty from the larger than life smile.
rasheed gave loads of reasons for blazers fans to love him or loathe him. i choose to remember the dominations he had over karl malone (my least favorite player of all time) and his infamous run in with tim donaghy (a ref who actually - turns out - deserved to have lots of people angry with him) where rasheed engaged in vigilante justice... so, while rasheed is now a portly shadow of his former self on some team in boston, he was once a player who inspired me to proudly hold up a 'sheed for prez' sign and though he was a creature of mythic proportions on the court, allowed himself to be a human being to the fans like me that he introduced to our own obsessions with the game of basketball.

Favorite Blazer of all time.....Buck Williams. Scrappy, hard worker,.....rec specs. It doesn't get any better. Unless you have a poster in your room as a kid of a bespectacled Buck Williams dunking on a bespectacled Kurt Rambis.

My favorite Blazer of all time is Danny Ainge. He's a local legend and he just played with such intensity, which is something you gotta have in the NBA when your a white guy. He D was ferocious, his jumper was wet, and he had more heart than anyone I ever saw put on a Blazer uniform. He was also a pretty funny guy.

One of my favorite moments was on an early 90's blooper video I came across. Ainge plays a joke on Alla Abdelnaby by pretending that he bought a one eyed race horse for $50,000 of Alla's money and catches his reaction on film right outside the coliseum. It was corny, but priceless in nostalgic value and overall added to my love for Ainge (I liked Abdelnaby too)

Plus, I'm kind of partial because my mom went to high school with him at North Eugene. She even went to the 1975 prom with his older brother when she was pregnant (not his kid either, so that shows some real courage with the Ainge family.)

Since he came from the "bust a bucket" era, then I should be most definitely worthy of one of those wicked awesome t-shirts!

It has to be Clyde Drexler. Do you need to know why? He is The Glide. A real class act on and off the court. Although I was saddened when he was traded to the Rockets, I was happy when he won his ring with Hakeem.

My favorite Blazer that I can tell a story about is Brian Grant. The man was a beast down low and it was a joy watching the "Rasta Monsta" mix it up with greats like Karl Malone and Tim Duncan. He was fearless and a banger and that is one of the reasons why the Blazers were so successful from around '98 to 2000. When he left for Miami it killed me since he was one of the good guys and I loved watching him play. Thankfully, he came back the next summer and ran a basketball camp at Portland State. I can't say enough about how awesome he was to us and how he would give us advice everyday to think about while we played. He gave out prizes to the kids who weren't necessarily the best, but busted their ass like he did on the court. For him, he realized how much effort matters over stats. He stayed the entire day, watched the games, organized drills and even had three point and 2-ball contests for fun. It was the best basketball camp I'd ever attended. He even Rasheed Wallace to come out (even though he looked bored as hell and ignored everyone the whole time) and sign autographs. Near the end he set up time for every single kid to get an autograph and talk to him which was more than a huge Blazers fan like me could've asked for. Truly one of the greats and I'll never forget him even if his name will never be in the rafters at the Garden.

Sheeeeeed!

Growing up Rasheed was my idol. A 6'11" PF with crazy athleticism, deep range, and a fiery attitude... I was enamored. I'll never forget the tandem of him and Pippen hooking up for that full extension alley-oop against Houston, or the final minute comeback against Utah in the playoffs. And his post-up turn around jumper? Unblockable. I still have my child sized Wallace jersey I got for Christmas after begging Santa for months. Best present ever.

Despite my login name, my favorite Blazer is Billy Ray Bates. I was at the game (as a Birthday present) where he won it on the inbounds play vs. the Sixers.

I also loved that he got a Nike Poster. Always wanted one, but could never find one.

I always now think of him riding a bike in L.A. Oh well . . .

Sabonis
Played brilliantly (at times) without the support of ankles - transcended Soviet - era politics to get to USA only to deal with Sheed's towel slapping (and didn't kill him in response). Gave Blazer fans a reason to hope.

My favorite Blazer is B.Roy, because the day he was announced to his first ASG I was at the arena when they held the conference. After the big presser, I managed to get photos taken with LA, Outlaw, Sergio, and Duck, but when I asked Brandon, he was on his way to do an interview for ESPN. He stopped, told the chick guiding him to take the photo, and motioned me over.

I'll never forget that

My favorite blazer of all time is Kevin Duckworth. Strictly because I like saying the name Duckworth, and it makes me think of Mighty Ducks. "Quack Quack Quack Mr. Duckworth"

Sabonis! Those sick passes! That flat shot that somehow found it's way in! However, lately another euro player is storming up my list. Batum is winning me over big-time! Kid is all hustle and potential! The future looks rosy!

My favorite Blazer will always be Clyde the Glide. Clyde Drexler was unlike any player in the league back then. As a kid I was enamored of the way he took the ball to the hoop.

Thanks to everyone who entered, winners should be announced tomorrow.

By the way, if you commented but didn't register an email address, please come back and comment with a REGISTERED name. If you have any problems just email me at Sheed52 at gmail dot com.

Really you have done a good job. The written style is very prompt and the highly prectical manners. So fruitful for us.
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Maybe we should all send him one dollar. He could use it to take out another 85% interest loan.

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