OT How far Statbo come!

[magnifier661]

http://m.espn.go.com/nba/story?storyId=12436371&src=desktop&rand=ref~{"ref":"http://m.facebook.com"}&ex_cid=espnFB

An 88-year-old Iwo Jima vet watches his beloved Grizzlies for the first time

Later this month, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the battle, Keep is returning to the island for the first time. Before his trip, though, he was featured in his hometown paper, the Memphis Commercial Appeal, in which he revealed he is a die-hard Grizzlies fan who never misses a game on television. The tough-as-nails veteran has a particular fondness for the team's Grit 'n Grind bruiser, Zach Randolph.

"They're men," Keep told the CA of the Grizz. "They're not afraid to bust your ass to get to the basket, especially [Zach] Randolph. Randolph's my man."

Only problem? In his advanced age, Keep had never been able to get to FedExForum to see his NBA team play in person.

So the Grizzlies decided to fix that, inviting him and his family to sit in owner Robert Pera's courtside seats for Friday's game.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

TOLD Y'ALL.

 

[BlazerCaravan]

Love that ninja turtle.

 

[3RA1N1AC]

trade sucked at the time, sucks even worse in retrospect

he might have needed to get out of portland to grow up though, so it seems to have worked out well for him, which is nice

 

[magnifier661]

Yes and is Hoopsfam even around? Seems like Zach finally mellowed out.

 

[Strenuus]

Good for him! And thank you, sir, for your service.

 

[OSUBlazerfan]

He's the only likable/good player that bridged the gap of the 2000 WCF team to the Broy/LMA team. I'll always be a ZBo fan

 

[KingSpeed]

Zach has always been a good guy. Of all the Blazers I've ever talked to, Zach was the nicest.

 

[BlazerWookee]

trade sucked at the time, sucks even worse in retrospect

he might have needed to get out of portland to grow up though, so it seems to have worked out well for him, which is nice

That's bollocks. Arguably the best trade the Blazers ever made. Zach was a kid with a huge heart, but he needed to go. We ended up with Brandon Roy as the undisputed leader of the team, we got Channing Frye who fit perfectly on the court and in the city (until Oden went down, anyway), Stevie Franchise Killer was railroaded out of the NBA, the Hoops Family no longer stunk up the Rose Garden, and strippers city wide were no longer in danger of being roofied and cornholed against their will.

 

[jlprk]

"Bollocks," lol.

 

[jlprk]

Good article. He likes Zach for his toughness. When he was a Blazer, Zach's opponents and the Oregonian wanted more touchy-feely players, and they got them.