Feb 21

  Now that the all-star weekend is behind us, all I have to say is this; it's Portland's turn to host the festivities. Portland is a great basketball community and the city would thrive from hosting it. Other cities have hosted the all-star game, some even twice. But never in Portland. That needs to change- right away. Portland would be a wonderful spot for the best athletes in the NBA to gather, and here's why:

#1 LOCATION- The Rose Quarter is ideally located around other activities people could do. They could go check out downtown and experience first hand what makes Portland unique. They could go up to the Lloyd Center and check out all the activities there, including ice skating. The Memorial Coliseum would host a variety of events that go on at an all-star festival.The venues in the Rose Quarter would cater to all basketball enthusiasts.

#2 THE RESTAURANTS- Portland has a unique variety of restaurants that cater to people of all walks of life. If you like cajun food, there's a restaurant for that. If you're into Thai, Portland's got it. Whatever type of food you like , it can usually be found here.

#3 THE ROSE GARDEN- Need I say more? The RG is one of the best venues to host a basketball game. Look at the success Portland had last year in hosting the 1st and 2nd  rounds of the NCAA tournament. It went so well that the organizers have decided to have another tourney round in  Portland in the next year or two. If it can do well at the college level, imagine how the success would turn out at the NBA level?

#4 THE BLAZERS HAVE ALL-STAR PLAYERS- Brandon Roy is a 3 time all-star and he could have more appearances should he remain healthy, LaMarcus Aldridge should have been on this year's roster and will likely get his shot at a roster spot down the road, Greg Oden's health will get better and when he is healthy, no center in the league will be able to defend him, Wesley Matthews is a hard worker and filled in nicely during Roy's injury; all he needs to do is be more consistent, which will come with time.

  I believe next year's game will be in one of the Eastern Conference cities, so next year won't work out. I don't even know how far in advance the NBA plans these events, but one thing I know for sure- Portland needs to host All-Star Weekend. the pickin' is ripe. It's time to take advantage before it's too late.