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BlazersLadiesClub's Blog

Return to blog listing -> A call to Blazer fans to be better.
BlazersLadiesClub

Mar 03

A call to Blazer fans to be better.

By BlazersLadiesClub

This season has been a roller coaster so far.  The last 2 seasons were so marred by injuries that it seemed an accomplishment just to persevere, to make it to the playoffs with our heads held high. This season was supposed to be different, even after the loss of Roy to medical retirement. The team started out with so much promise, gelling on the court very well. The Blazers were being talked about nationally as one of the teams to beat. As a fan it felt like this was finally our time to get past the injuries, and to see what the team could do with a healthy squad and a talented roster.
Recently we’ve seen the Blazers struggle. When the struggles began it seemed to me like everyone was over thinking it. Now it just seems like the chemistry is missing.
I don’t know if it’s the lockout schedule and having so many games in a short period of time, but I’ve felt a bit burnt out this season. I was looking forward to All Star break so I could not watch basketball for a while, and I’ve been a fan of this team my whole life. This season has been tough on me as a fan. It’s also been tough to see the Blazers, with so much potential, struggle as they have been.
I know I’m not the only one who feels this way. I’ve heard more negativity about the Blazers this year, from fans, than I have in a long time. It’s all over Twitter, Facebook, the blazers.com chats, and even from the fans in the Rose Garden. You name the location, and I can point out the negativity.

I sat in front of a Blazer “fan” tonight who spent the entire game heckling the home team. I’m not saying that some criticism isn’t warranted right now. The team isn’t playing consistently, and there are definitely things that need to change (and soon if we want to make the playoffs). But this “fan” yelled things such as “Hey Felton, go eat another donut!” And I’ll admit that Raymond’s play this season warrants some criticism, that he hasn’t lived up to expectations so far. But can we please stop with the weight jokes. We, as a fanbase, need to be better than that.
This Blazers team, and every one before it, speaks so highly of the fans in Portland. We are the best in the NBA, the most formidable home court advantage. So how about we start proving them right. How about we stop heckling our own team on our own home court. And instead, how about we start showing them our support.
The way I see it is that every Blazer player is a Blazer, until he isn’t. I may not always be happy with every guy on the roster, I may even hope for trades sometimes. But until a player puts on another team’s uniform, I will still support him.
 Part of being a fan means taking the bad with the good. The bad times just make the good that much better. We will overcome this. And in the meantime, I challenge Blazer fans to prove that we still deserve to be called the best fans in the NBA.

Photo credit: Oregon Live

18 Comments

  1. Eloquently said --and you speak for many. Thank you.

    by occassia on 3/4/2012 12:09 AM

  2. Right on. Kudos. You're one of our best.

    by caseyholdahl on 3/4/2012 12:15 AM

  3. Eloquently stated indeed...you certainly captured in words exactly how I feel.
    Thank you

    by debra31098 on 3/4/2012 7:48 AM

  4. Exactly right, Kristin. Very well stated. Thank you for speaking out.

    by azblazer on 3/4/2012 10:50 AM

  5. Thank you, Blazer ladies, for sharing what's in my heart better than I could. To be a true fan we must represent! All the time, every time, and for EVERY Blazer. As I fight this disease they label "terminal" I compare it to our beloved Blazers. I'm tired of all the "terminal" talk. If my doctors, parents, siblings and friends "cheered me on" through my treatment the way too many Blazers fan have been "cheering on" our team, I can't imagine my will to fight would stay strong. I tried to express that in my blog as well. I share what my doctors say to me - STAY STRONG! If we truly love our Blazers, and I know many of us do, let's represent in a big way for every player every game in all the ways we can. As for me, I will keep - at times literally - bleeding Blazer Red!

    by Blazermanialives on 3/4/2012 10:58 AM

  6. Good words. We nee to stick together.

    by Devon Malone on 3/4/2012 11:17 AM

  7. Thank you for putting this out. I get just as frustrated as the next fan but I just don't understand how yelling out criticism is going to help. It's wonderful to have instant access to information on Twitter, Facebook, etc, but it also gives people a forum to say things (I would hope) they wouldn't say out loud, although the "fan" last night certainly did. Even in the dark days of the Blazers several years ago, I tried to cheer and encourage anything I saw that was positive and just kept quiet when I was frustrated. I think encouragement helps much more than negativity.

    **Blazermanialives........keep up the good fight and listen to the cheering and encouragement.

    @BlazerFanCindy

    by BlazerFamily on 3/4/2012 1:13 PM

  8. With regard to sports, there are few things that bother me as much as people telling me how to be a fan. I don't need to defend my fandom or love of a team. I also don't need people telling me that I am not as good a fan as someone else. I want the team to succeed. That doesn't always mean cheering for bad play. Sometimes the team plays poorly, and they get cheered. Sometimes they are truly awful and they get jeered. It's part of the game. I can't think of a reason to lay off Felton's weight. He is overweight. He came into camp overweight. Halfway into the season, he is still overweight. It affects his play. He is awful, in large part because he is overweight. It is his responsibility to correct that problem. If he doesn't correct it, why shouldn't he be heckled for it?

    by dantheman on 3/4/2012 2:46 PM

  9. VERY well said Kristin! What u said & what every1 here posted is how I also feel; I 2 feel conflicted @ times. Our guys for years have fought & overcame great adversities; I know it's draining to fight for so long & the thing that keeps ppl motivated is knowing that there's an end in sight; so this season/time w/ all that’s happened, some may see it as “the last straw[s] that broke the camels back;” k, if so or if we’re approaching rock bottom, it’s not 2 L8 to turn things around (granted it would have been easier 2 do so earlier but now we’re here & we’ll deal ;). It’s now or next yr. & next yr. doesn’t exist rt. now. Let’s SUPPORT our team & b true 2 Kristin’s words, “…[let’s] prove that we still deserve to be called the best fans in the NBA[!]” GO Blazers!!!

    Sincerely yours,
    Homer ;)

    by Simpson on 3/5/2012 10:07 AM

  10. dantheman, you are free to behave any way you want to, as long as it's legal, and doesn't get you tossed out of the arena. ;-)

    AND there are consequences for anything you might choose to do or say. If you sit next to me in the RG and choose to heckle, it will absolutely ruin MY experience as a fan. I have every right to object to that. The people I attend games with and I are very liable to take you to task. This pertains equally in online discussion.

    by occassia on 3/5/2012 12:23 PM

  11. I'm a kid and even I know that being mean isn't nice. So why, in the name of "fandom" should anyone justify being unkind? If someone sitting near
    me chooses to heckle Felton for his weight, as one example, what's next?
    I have been in other NBA arenas where I have literally been laughed at
    for having to wear oxygen. More than once a fan has said something to effect of "hey kid, good thing you're cheering for the Blazers. They're playing so lousy, you shouldnt' run out of oxygen screaming". The players are people first, players second. First and foremost, let's be kind to our team. Otherwise, why bother to call them our team? Dantheman, when's the last time you went on a public forum and called someone in your family fat and out of shape? Everyone gets to choose for themselves. As for me - I'm a Blazermaniac and I bleed Blazer red!!

    by Blazermanialives on 3/5/2012 3:58 PM

  12. I will be Chicago for two weeks having treatment. You can bet I'll be rocking my Blazer gear in Bulls country. I hope I can make it on "Wear in the world"!

    by Blazermanialives on 3/5/2012 3:59 PM

  13. Occassia and Blazermanialives, it is bizarre that the two of you don't see the difference between yelling at a player for not doing their job (in this case, not getting into game shape) and making fun of or 'taking to task' other fans. If you can't see that, I don't imagine my speaking at greater length would change that.

    by dantheman on 3/5/2012 4:33 PM

  14. Teasing and being mean is teasing and being mean. They taught me that in kindergarten. There are constructive ways to make our point as fans without public yelling at someone calling them fat. And If you can't see that, I dont' imagine my speaking at greater length would change THAT.
    Blazermania lives!!

    by Blazermanialives on 3/5/2012 5:37 PM

  15. Teasing and being mean is teasing and being mean. They taught me that in kindergarten. There are constructive ways to make our point as fans without public yelling at someone calling them fat. And If you can't see that, I dont' imagine my speaking at greater length would change THAT.
    Blazermania lives!!

    by Blazermanialives on 3/5/2012 5:37 PM

  16. dan, you won't change my mind, and I won't change yours. Who cares?

    I'm as free to object to *your* way, as you are to object to my objection. It's bizarre to me that you resent folks criticizing the worth of your fanhood, while simultaneously feeling that no criticism of a player is out of line.

    In my opinion --and it's only my opinion-- there is already more than enough incivility, hostility, and sheer snark in the world. Heckling is self-indulgent, counter-productive, and reflects poorly on one's upbringing. Your mileage may vary. But if you do it, I will think the less of you, and will infinitely prefer not to sit near you.

    by occassia on 3/6/2012 12:35 AM

  17. Occassia, I want to make sure I am understanding you correctly. I propose that it is ok to criticize players for not doing their jobs (in this case, not even bothering to get in game shape), but that I would prefer not to criticize other fans. Meanwhile, you are proposing that we ought not criticize players, but you are happy to engage in personal attacks on other fans (in this case, my upbringing). Is there anything I am missing?

    by dantheman on 3/6/2012 1:09 AM

  18. I know from experience that there is enough meanness in our world. And I recognize that not all players came in shape to play. It's not so much the message that bothers me. It's the forum it's delivered in. Yelling at a player is still yelling at a person. My point want simply that we shouldn't yell at one another regardless of our opinions. And to humiliate ANYONE is a public arena is hurtful. There's got to be a middle ground...express opinion in a way that is respectful of others. Maybe I'm wrong. After all, I'm just a kid

    by Blazermanialives on 3/7/2012 3:50 PM
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