Chrissy Geraci's Blog

Feb 03

Patience.  That what is takes to survive in the northwest.  Patience with the weather, patience with the traffic, and patience with the Blazers.  For some time now, it seems like being a Trail Blazer was an intermediate step onto something bigger and better.  Well, yes it’s been since 1977 that we’ve won a championship, but if you were alive (like me), those amazing games have taught us to be patient in hopes that it will happen again.  I believe this group has all the “key’s to the game” to take it all the way.  But, it will take patience: on the part of fans, on the part of the guys, and on the part of the coaches.    Any great accomplishment takes time; Rome, the pyramids, Dom Perignon White Gold, Mt. Rushmore, The Eiffel Tower, Aqueducts, and the Blazers.  We get close and it times it starts to resemble the “Curse of the Bambino” or should be say the curse of the “Bowie” (taking Sam break-my-leg Bowie instead Michael Jordan), but curses were made to be broken.   It seems we get close, but that’s it.  Just close.  We compile the right players that show us such promise.  We file into the Rose Garden, paying way too much for tickets and parking, a ridiculous amount for food and drinks, but we love our Blazers and have earned the reputation as the most intimidating fans for a reason.  That takes patience.  But them – BAM - someone, key to our success gets hurt.  A friend of mine has a theory that the damp environment and the fact that our boys have to fly ridiculous distances to get to a game, is causing an irregular amount of knee problems (scientists feel free to test this hypothesis).  Then the rest of the players, sore with losing, scatter like ants to better opportunities.  Who can blame them?  They want to win, we want them to win, and a title is the ultimate achievement when you’re an athlete.   But what it?  What if, instead of looking for guys who might “fit” a need, we take the guys we have and develop them instead?  Shake things up, move things around; give the guys time to gel.  The thing that is so profound to me about this team is the love and camaraderie they have for one another.  True respect and admiration.  The last time I saw that was 1977.  Could it be?    We’ve got guys who are great; great athletes and great people.  They care about Rip City.  So instead of screaming about the officiating (I agree that at times it is awful, but we’re not on the floor...) screaming about who should be making shots, who should be coaching the Blazers and support, without judgment, the guys we’ve got?  Hey we beat the Lakers!  And yes we’ve lost a lot of road games some so very close that fell apart in the end but instead of calling for someone’s jersey (or coach’s suit) we give them time to gel. We’ve had a lot of change and a rotating player’s door.   It may not happen this year, great achievement takes time.  Instead of saying we need to get rid of so and so and take Steve Nash (barf), let’s take a look at our guys and see what else they’ve got.  This team is far from throwing in the towel.  They’ve got the talent, the depth, we all just need patience.