Event Ask Me (Almost) Anything As We Fly To Los Angeles

[e_blazer]

Casey, you went from the Oregonian to a NBA Team, you seem to be following in the footsteps of David Kahn. When can we expect you to be the GM of the Minnesota Timberwolves?

And a follow-up question: What are your recovery plans after that inevitably goes badly?

 

[JfizzleBlazer]

Casey, did you ever go to Oregon state university job fairs while you worked for the Oregonian? I could have sworn I saw you and talked to you there 6-8 years ago

 

[BlazerBeav]

Casey, what road game usually attracts the biggest number of Blazer fans? Seems like DC must be near the top.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

What city has the best looking or "friendliest" groupies?

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

What is the second best fan-base in the NBA?

 

[BlazerWookee]

Do you keep the little soaps and shampoos from all the hotel rooms?

 

[kjironman1]

Do you keep the little soaps and shampoos from all the hotel rooms?

Maybe the hair nets also?

 

[Sedatedfork]

Casey -- do the Players seem to trust Adam Silver more than David Stern? Have you noticed anything different in your interactions with the team under Silver's regime?

 

[Sedatedfork]

Casey -- the Blazers have had mixed results with international players, but most of the experiences have ended poorly. Patty Mills, Rudy Fernandez, Claver, Monia, Khryappa, Kopponen, etc. Do you think Freeland is happy with his role on the team? In your opinion do the Blazers have a poor reputation with international players?

 

[Sedatedfork]

Casey, once again Wojnarowski at Yahoo sports crushed it during this year's NBA trade deadline. He even broke the news on the Afflalo and Gee trade. Where is does he get news like that? Agents? Blazers front office? How does he routinely scoop everyone?

He must have secret photos of somebody high up in the NBA.

 

[THE HCP]

Case is fueling up for this massive Q&A!

Sent from my Baller-Ass 5.5" iPhone 6+......... FAMS

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Case is fueling up for this massive Q&A!

Sent from my Baller-Ass 5.5" iPhone 6+......... FAMS

 

[kjironman1]

Do you speak Jive????

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Casey, what's your favorite restaurant in Portland?

 

[caseyholdahl]

Alright, I'm on the plane and the wifi is all warmed up, so I'll start answering your questions to the best of my ability now.

 

[kjironman1]

Do you speak Jive????

This was a joke Sly. Not a real question sorry. Just the next line from the movie.

 

[caseyholdahl]

IYHO, will Wes re-sign? Will Afflalo?

I know Wes wants to re-sign (he's a starter on a playoff team and has the freedom to take basically any shot that he likes) and I assume the team wants him to as well. It's hard to tell what Portland's threshold is w/r/t what they're willing to offer in free agency, but you would think a number between 10 and 12 million a year for four years would satisfy both parties. Obviously if another team has Wes as a FA target and drops a huge contact on his lap, that metric changes.

I think you could say the same about Afflalo, though you assume it can't be Afflalo AND Matthews. Some, Amin Elhassan at ESPN for one, has opined that Afflalo probably gets a few million less per year on the open market than Matthews, but again, good luck predicting what teams are going to do in free agency, especially with the specter of the cap going up precipitously in 2016.

(Best case scenario would probably be Matthews re-signing and Afflalo waiting to become a free agent until 2016, as he has the option of doing, though it's hard to tell were Afflalo is w/r/t that decision)

And while I suppose anything is possible, the it seems like it's probably either one or the other, but not both. It could be done (or at least I'm pretty sure it could) but that probably pushes Portland well into the luxury tax.

 

[Strenuus]

Just learned new slang from Casey! w/r/t means with regards to.

Hello, new brain wrinkle!

 

[Sedatedfork]

Thanks -- I was trying to figure it out myself, thinking it meant waive/resign/trade

 

[Strenuus]

Thanks -- I was trying to figure it out myself, thinking it meant waive/resign/trade

Same. haha.

 

[3RA1N1AC]

Hey Casey, what's your favorite blazer jersey design of all time? What seems to be the players favorite current jerseys? Do they like the sleeves?

 

[caseyholdahl]

Can I have your job?
do you need an assistant?
is sarah Hecht single and ready to mingle?
who drinks more on the plane, lillard, or rice?
were you ever a fan of a basketball team before the blazers?

1) Well, someone is going to have to take over for me eventually. I've been doing this for a while now and the beat will need fresh eyes eventually, so I guess start working on your resume now.

2) While the Casey Holdahl Mentorship Experience has turned out some great young professionals, most of whom have full-time jobs working in sports, the days of taking an assistant under my wing are over. Everyone is better for it.

3) No she is not. She's got a steady boyfriend and seems quite happy. I saw here briefly at Jerome's memorial yesterday. Dustin Hawes, too.

4) Rice consumes more of everything than everyone on the plane.

5) I lived in Sacramento for four years after my parents divorced, so I remember watching Kings games at my grandparents' house when I was in elementary school, but that's about the extent of my non-Blazers fandom.

 

[caseyholdahl]

Casey, what's your favorite restaurant in Portland?

Ox or Ava Gene's for the fine dining experience. The original Fire on the Mountain on Interstate (their spicy peanut wings are better than the other locations) for day to day eating.

 

[caseyholdahl]

How is the crew accepting AA and Gee into the mix?

So far, so good. I think you might start seeing Gee play a bit more in the next few weeks. Both guys seem to be the easy-going type, so I think the transition has been rather easy for all involved.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

Who makes the decision for the Game Night T-shirts. Is it a Blazers marketing person or an outside graphic designer?

 

[caseyholdahl]

Hey Casey, what's your favorite blazer jersey design of all time? What seems to be the players favorite current jerseys? Do they like the sleeves?

Those red hardwood classic jersey's are my personal favorite. The players loved the non-sleeve Rip City jerseys. They also like the red alternates, but if memory serves, their record while wearing those ain't great, and players do tend to be a bit superstitious.

As for the sleeves, I don't think they love them, but I've also heard numerous players say they aren't so bad. If nothing else, the Rip City sleeve jerseys are some of the best sleeve jerseys in the NBA.

 

[caseyholdahl]

Who makes the decision for the Game Night T-shirts. Is it a Blazers marketing person or an outside graphic designer?

I think we have one of our in-house designers put those together, but I think the decision is ultimately made by Meredith, who runs retail ops for the team. She's done a great job mixing up the options in the team store.

 

[caseyholdahl]

After a pretty successful week against SAS, OKC, and SAC... what's the general feeling with the team?

Also, whose the most consistently funny Blazer? It seems like there could be a few in the running with this bunch.

Thanks, as always, for doing this Casey.

I think they're feeling much better about the way they're playing than they did a week and a half ago. Of course, if they win the next two games, they're probably feeling like they're rounding into form. Win one, they probably feel just okay. Lose both and it's right back to the funk they were experiencing before RoLo came back.

Funniest on the team is a bit of a tossup. Kaman is usually good for a laugh if you don't mind being the butt of the joke from time to time. Same with Wes. Dorell is right up there too. RoLo is more gregarious with the team than he is with the media, or I'd probably say him.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Well, someone is going to have to take over for me eventually. I've been doing this for a while now and the beat will need fresh eyes eventually, so I guess start working on your resume now.

Do you see yourself moving further into the front office of a sports team or maybe more of sports columnist? I'd love to see you replace Canzano.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

How would one go about to date a Blazer dancer?