This franchise can take injuries and defections at just about every position but one — at the very top. There is no other owner out there like Paul Allen.

I remember telling someone this summer, every time this man sets foot in the Rose Garden he ought to get a standing ovation. He’s been that important not only to this franchise but this city. Do you really think Portland would have built a new arena unless he paid for it? Really? I don’t. No way.

The city of Portland would either be still trying to tweak and “renovate” Memorial Coliseum — or the team would be long gone to Memphis or somewhere else by now.

Do you think any other owner would be willing to lose the millions and millions of dollars Paul Allen has lost on the Trail Blazers? I don’t think so. The realities of owning a team in a small market haven’t been a problem here for years. We’re so spoiled here that fans and media take it for granted. I have for years.

Allen treats this franchise as if it’s located in New York or Los Angeles, spending what it takes to win and knowing the bottom line is going to be scary. He’s tightened his belt at times, but who doesn’t? It still hasn’t deterred him from trying to make this the best franchise in the NBA.

He just wants to win. God love him for that. And God bless him in his fight against non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

My first reaction upon hearing the news that he’s fighting cancer again was pretty much what I wrote at the start of this post. I worry about who would own this team if he doesn’t. I can’t imagine the next owner being willing to subsidize the franchise the way he has.

I think that’s a natural knee-jerk reaction a lot of us had. But what I’m thinking about now is the man I’ve now been acquainted with for nearly two decades. A quiet, hard-to-get-to-know guy who keeps to himself and doesn’t reveal much. I’ve tweaked him in print and on the air countless times, without him ever complaining or whining or even acknowledging it.

But to watch, through his tenure as the team’s owner, what he’s put in to this town, both financially and emotionally, has been amazing.  He doesn’t ask for kudos or credit, but there ought to be a statue of him in the courtyard of the Rose Quarter.  Someday, the arena should bear his name.

I’m reminding you, he’s a special guy. Sure, he’s made mistakes and we’ve criticized him for them. But I also think we’ve taken him for granted for too long in Portland. Without him, I just don’t know where we’d be as a sports town — but it would be a lot less than what we are now.

Good luck, Paul. Beat this thing. Your team has a long run ahead but for it to reach its potential, you’ve really gotta be here running the show.

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Tags: city of Portland, Memorial Coliseum, Paul Allen, Portland Trail Blazers, Rose Garden, Rose Quarter

I sent you to the website the other day – imaginejumptown.com — but I didn’t have time to comment much. It appears that Larry Miller has gotten his old pals at Nike to buy into the thing with some sort of Nike museum. That sounds great for the area in the Rose Quarter.

But what still bothers me is the stubbornness of sticking to this “bright future for Memorial Coliseum” garbage. I realize the Trail Blazers have sold themselves on the concept that the indoor venue, the coliseum, cut down to seat 5,000 or 6,000  people, is a more viable venue than a Triple-A baseball park for bringing people into the new neighborhood.

I think they’re wrong. Yes, much of the winter the ballpark would be vacant. But that’s the time of year when the Rose Garden will be hopping. You don’t need the ballpark in the winter — you need it in the summer and spring when the Rose Garden (and Memorial Coliseum) is dark all the time.

Does Portland need a 5,000-seat arena? I don’t think so. We already have one at University of Portland’s Chiles Center. I think that size is a little too small for the Winter Hawks, who should be playing in the Rose Garden. And I think by the time you get done updating 50-year-old plumbing, wiring and structure of the old MC, you’re spending so much money you’d have been better off leveling the thing and starting all over.

It’s going to be a money pit. A big, big money pit. And when you’re done, what kind of arena will it be? Probably not much of one. Honestly, if they’re so committed to keeping the outside structure, the box, they ought to gut the inside and install the world’s biggest and fastest indoor roller coaster there. It would have a better chance of being a big attraction than that old junky arena. Seriously.

A wise baseball guy, Bill Cutler, a one-time owner of the Portland Beavers, once sighed as he watched the city of Portland first installing artificial turf on ancient then-Civic Stadium. He turned to me and smiled.

“It’s like putting silk stockings on a hog,” he said. And he was so right. But this is Portland — we just can’t bring ourselves to throw anything away here. We’re constantly recycling.

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Tags: Bill Cutler, Civic Stadium, Dwight Jaynes, JumpTown, Memorial Coliseum, Portland Trail Blazers

I’m not going to spend a lot of time on this because the game itself will take more time.

The building looked as good as it’s looked in years. I give the crew over at the Memorial Coliseum a lot of credit for spiffing the place up. And I will say, leaving that black curtain open changes the look of the place on the inside.

But man it was cold in there most of the night. And having the curtain open — and by the way, the old drop-ceiling that used to be in there is now also gone — meant that the noise level in there was much lower that it used to be. Granted the fans didn’t have much to yell about, but it really wasn’t nearly as loud as it once was.

Man, the lines at the concession stands looked impossibly long and the concourse was choked,  as expected. It was fine for one game and I give everyone — coaches, players, front office, support staff, everyone — credit for going along with it.

But once was enough.

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Tags: Dwight Jaynes, Memorial Coliseum, Portland Trail Blazers

Mostly via Twitter:

–  the Blazers say they WILL leave that big black curtain down — the one that blocks out the glass on the outside walls — throughout the game. It’s the first time that’s been done in Blazer history. Must be a few architects in the house. Enjoy the view, guys. And then one more time tell me your plan for the dump.

– The game is now sold out. Be interesting to see if they wistfully call it 12,666, even though I doubt it holds that many any more.

– Portland’s wearing those “rip city” uniforms tonight.

– The replay screen will not be working. Thanks to those previous Winter Hawk owners, for buying that piece of junk. As Blazeredge Ben said, the sound you hear is those replacement refs celebrating. But oh well — they said it was a throwback game. This will be old school. Instead of a PA system they ought to get a guy with a megaphone.

– Have a great time everyone! And don’t forget to comment on the open thread about the Schonz if you’re out there listening.

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Tags: Dwight Jaynes, Memorial Coliseum, Portland Trail Blazers

Yes, we knew this would happen. I’m sure, now that this designation has been won, all those architects who fought so hard for this will pay whatever associated costs there are for getting this whole thing done. Yeah, sure they will.

The best part of this story, by the way, is buried toward the end. It reads:

Four large concrete columns carry the building’s weight, allowing the walls to be made of glass panels. The lack of interior support gives spectators in a curved bowl a view of the outdoors.

This is the big misconception of all the fools who drive by that building all the time but don’t set foot in it for any kind of events. If you’ve been in it literally hundreds and hundreds of times, as I have, you’d know that the people in the interior bowl NEVER get a view of the outdoors. That’s because whenever there’s an event in the building, a huge black curtain is lowered that blocks out that view.

So there you have it, the thing that makes the structure so unique really doesn’t exist in the real world. But hey — we’re going to keep it alive not because of its function, anyway, but because of its style. And now the $64 million question is what the hell are we going to do to find a function for it? It’s Portland, so of course, the mayor has already set up a committee of people who don’t know much about the place to study it.

That will take money and months. And in the end, they’ll have a lot of ideas.

I believe, knowing the city the way I do, it will inevitably end up being a site for some sort of farmer’s market, flea market, street fair, bike racing track, mass transit museum. All at the same time.

And before it’s brought up to code and “repurposed,” it’s going to cost enough money to build three ballparks.

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Tags: Dwight Jaynes, Memorial Coliseum

Even if you’ve read the morning paper, you may not know that Randy Couture, a man Shaquille O’Neal once told Sports Illustrated was his favorite athlete, is fighting tonight in the Rose Garden on a pay per view event that will be shown all over the world. There are some other very good bouts on the card. Tickets are still available and the fights start at at 4:30, although the TV presentation doesn’t get under way until 7.

And the Portland Winter Hawks are playing their first exhibition game of the season tonight next door in Memorial Coliseum, against the Seattle Thunderbirds.

Enjoy your evening.

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Tags: Dwight Jaynes, Memorial Coliseum, MMA, Portland Winter Hawks, Randy Couture, Rose Garden, Seattle Thunderbirds, UFC

It came to me last evening, as I was interviewing Jack Ramsay during the BFT on 95.5 The Game.

Yes, they’re letting Bill Schonely broadcast some of the game. Ramsay thought that was a cool idea. Of course, we all do. But what about bringing Jack Ramsay back, digging an old pair of paisley pants out of the closet for him and letting him be with the team for a few days and then coach part of the game? I’m sure Nate McMillan wouldn’t mind — I mean, come on, it’s only an exhibition game.

I can’t imagine there would be any bigger thrill for Trail Blazer fans — or basketball fans in general — than to see Jack Ramsay for just a few minutes, down on one knee in front of a Trail Blazer bench. And you know, I think if it’s handled right, Jack would do it.

“I don’t know,” he said Monday when I asked him about it. “I think my coaching career is over.” But then he paused a little and I think considered it some. Actually, I think it would be great for Jack, too, to feel the love just one more time. There’s a whole generation of Trail Blazer fans out there who have never seen him on the sidelines.

And any exposure this team can have to the great Hall of Fame coach would show the players the championship legacy the Trail Blazers own. Honestly, a few days – even one night – with Jack Ramsay would help any team in some way.

I don’t know, maybe I’ve kind of gone wacky with this game, because going back into that building is sort of a once-in-a-lifetime chance to recapture memories that were just about gone. I just think if you’re going to go back in there and play one more time, you may as well do all you can to maximize the moment.

AND BY THE WAY: Not that it would appeal to anyone at One Center Court, but can you imagine the publicity it would generate on ESPN (Jack’s network) to have him doing this? And I’d make it clear, too, that it isn’t a publicity stunt. Make sure Jack gets a few days prior to the game with the team to leave what will be a lasting impact on the players. The Ramsay charisma and winner’s mentality is still very strong.

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Tags: Bill Schonely, Dwight Jaynes, exhibition game, Jack Ramsay, Memorial Coliseum, Portland Trail Blazers

Our “beloved” mayor Sam Adams has the names of the fine folks named today to the committee, along with a few ridiculous statements, right here. I wonder how many on the committee have actually visited the “beloved” building in recent years? Seriously. Do they know what a dump that bulding is? Or how much it’s going to cost to save it?

They’re going to find out, I hope, very soon.

In his statement, Adams says:

. . . the Rose Quarter and the Memorial Coliseum are beloved community assets, with an even brighter future.

I really cannot tell you how much it irks me to hear the coliseum described as a “beloved” community asset — which it isn’t really in any possible way (it’s not beloved and it’s not an asset) — and to say it might have anything close to a “bright” future is downright absurd.

Ah, this is my “beloved” city of Portland.

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Tags: Dwight Jaynes, Mayor Sam Adams, Memorial Coliseum, Portland

Pretty cool stuff announced up in Longview, Wash., today at a news conference in the Mark Morris High School gym, the site of Portland’s first-ever exhibition game.

Portland’s exhibition game this Oct. 14 will be in Memorial Coliseum, as you all know, with Bill Schonely sharing play-by-play duties with Brian Wheeler. I was actually kind of hoping for a reappearance of either Dave Twardzik or Geoff Petrie alongside The Schonz, but hey — just happy to see Bill get one more game, just a couple of days before he turns 80 years old.

They’re already apparently selling tickets for that game at $19.70 — reflecting, of course, 1970, Portland’s first NBA season. Just remember to bring your radio.

It sounds as if the team will be celebrating its 40th anniversary in high style with events throughout the season that bring back key players and coaches from the past.

I’ll have some more details from that news conference later, including a Terry Porter update.

Also need to mention that I’m doing the Morning Sports Page on 95.5 The Game with Chad tomorrow so you won’t see any early blog posts. Just the idea of getting up at 4:30 so I can go on the air from 6-9 a.m. is daunting enough — without worrying about the blog. I’d appreciate it if you’d give us a listen in the morning.

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Tags: 95.5 The Game, Bill Schonely, Brian Wheeler, Chad Doing, Memorial Coliseum, MSP, Portland Trail Blazers

If you really want to go all nostalgic for that exhibition game, let’s do it up right. Why not have Bill Schonely do the radio play-by-play of that game? And why not juice it up even more by bringing in Dave Twardzik or Geoff Petrie to be his sidekick?

I have to tell you this: Schonz, doing one final game from that old building — with either Geoff or David on the air with him, that’s gold. That’s radio gold, folks. Man, how big would that listening audience be?

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Tags: Bill Schonely, Dwight Jaynes, Memorial Coliseum, Portland Trail Blazers