Event Kerry Eggers live here in the forum, Dec. 10th, 7-8pm! Answering your questions about the Blazers!

[blue9]

Overall sure some of those guys had there troubles, but I've always been of the opinion that Patterson was the only one who really deserved the label "jail blazer".

Quintel Woods.

 

[Propagandist]

Who was the worst Jailblazer?

Z-bo without a doubt, with Woods as his sidekick. Total idiocy. Think back, y'all. Dogfights, running trains, parties where drug dealers get beaten, drag racing in downtown Portland (wtf) AND locking his keys in the car that held handguns and whatever else, locker room fights, and on and on and on. Best addition by subtraction trade of all time when we sent him to New York for the ghost of Stevie Francis...

 

[hoopsjock]

Do you think Trader Bob Whitsitt would be a good GM in today's NBA with the world of social media (everything players do is more scrutinized and public) and more salary cap restrictions?

 

[swish3]

The Blazers have Meyers as one of the top few swish3 % leaders in the NBA, and he is obedient to coaching, but attempted only 3 swish3s in the last 4 games combined. Why wouldn't Blazer coaches have a game plan that mandates Meyers scoring at least 3 swish3s per game based on his >50% shooting (probably 6 shots or less)?

Those 9 additional points would make a major difference in winning (and I note that Meyers has scored 3-5 swish3s at total of 28 times in the NBA).

 

[hoopsjock]

The Blazers have Meyers as one of the top few swish3 % leaders in the NBA, and he is obedient to coaching, but attempted only 3 swish3s in the last 4 games combined. Why wouldn't Blazer coaches have a game plan that mandates Meyers scoring at least 3 swish3s per game based on his >50% shooting (probably 6 shots or less)?

Those 9 additional points would make a major difference in winning (and I note that Meyers has scored 3-5 swish3s at total of 28 times in the NBA.

LMAO, please ask this one!

 

[illmatic99]

Kerry,

Is there any player/combo of players from that team that would instantly make the current team a serious contender?

My vote is for Pippen and Sheed.

 

[illmatic99]

Kerry,

even through all this nonsense off the floor, the team from 99-02 would have won at least one title had it not been for Shaq/Kobe (or the refs!). What made that team so terrific on the floor, even if it was so volatile off it? Is there something to be said about having a few loose cannons on the team who will act as instigators when needed? I keep thinking about Draymond. This team currently could use a guy like that.

 

[stampedehero]

From your prospective, when the "Jail Blazer" title was hung on the team; especially Rasheed, did this moniker cause premeditated negative commentary from broadcasters? If so, were they directed to do this as broadcast policy to amplify ratings?

 

[blue9]

The early 2000's team carried the moniker of the Jailblazers, what should the current iteration of the Blazers be dubbed?

Day Hikers

 

[kjironman1]

The early 2000's team carried the moniker of the Jailblazers, what should the current iteration of the Blazers be dubbed?

Halo Blazers!

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

Question:

Who was the most troublesome player the Management had to deal with - off the court?

 

[HailBlazers]

MUCH love Kerry.

A. Do you think the GM owes it to the fans to answer/be asked tough questions? how do you feel about the current media access to the team?

B. In your opinion should we keep or trade CJ? If keep, what type of player(s) added to the team could vault them into contention?

 

[barfo]

Any Paul Allen anecdotes you want to share?

barfo

 

[Kerry Eggers]

I’d like to ask him about Oregon State. How does he feel about Luke Heimlich and the press coverage of his sex offense conviction?

 

[Kerry Eggers]

From your prospective, when the "Jail Blazer" title was hung on the team; especially Rasheed, did this moniker cause premeditated negative commentary from broadcasters? If so, were they directed to do this as broadcast policy to amplify ratings?

I'm not a broadcaster. I can pretty much guarantee, though, that no broadcasters had any directives to use the term to "amplify ratings." Jail Blazers was a catchy phrase that got picked up early and -- though the "Jail" part was harsh and mostly incorrect -- was a metaphor for the troubles of the team through that period.

 

[Kerry Eggers]

Question:

Who was the most troublesome player the Management had to deal with - off the court?

There's no doubt it was Isaiah "J.R." Rider. The dude was a rare talent but a walking time bomb, irresponsible, at times lazy and certainly a disruptive part of what was going on with the team at the time.

 

[TorturedBlazerFan]

Thanks for taking time out of your day to speak to us!

 

[Kerry Eggers]

MUCH love Kerry.

A. Do you think the GM owes it to the fans to answer/be asked tough questions? how do you feel about the current media access to the team?

I do. I always believed Paul Allen, too, should have been available to the media -- and even to the fans -- at times. He closed himself off in the latter years, when I think he could have really helped the team by having an open line of communication. Neil Olshey is available to the local media once in training camp and then after the season (I believe he'll make himself available to national media, especially his favorites). That's simply not enough. It's the first time I've had to deal with not having access to a Blazer GM, which is too bad. Doesn't benefit me, and I don't think it benefits the team, either.

B. In your opinion should we keep or trade CJ? If keep, what type of player(s) added to the team could vault them into contention?

Very difficult question. CJ's play has fallen off a tad this year. I'm not sure if it's due to a slightly changed role (playing more with Damian, less with others where he gets the ball more and more shots), a couple of minor injuries or what. He is still a very valuable player beginning his peak years as an athlete. He gets along great with Damian and likes being here. That said, his value will never be higher. If they could acquire a power forward with shooting range -- a Blake Griffin type -- you would think they'd have to consider it.

 

[Chris Craig]

Yes, thank you Kerry for taking the time to come do the live interview with us here at S2. We appreciate it!

 

[ripcityboy]

Q: Are there any good stories from the Jail Blazer era, that for legal or other reasons, haven't been told..... (You can answer this one yes or no, if you want.)

 

[Kerry Eggers]

Any Paul Allen anecdotes you want to share?

barfo

I didn't know Paul well. Covered his team for 25-plus years, did many interviews with him (until the latter five-six years or so), always exchanged greetings when we passed in the hall, but very little casual conversation. So I have no first-hand stories to pass on. I'll say this: When we did chat during an interview, it seemed like just one regular guy shooting the breeze with another -- not one of the world's richest men conversing with a hack.

 

[hoopsjock]

Were any of the players unwilling to speak to you for your book?

 

[Kerry Eggers]

The press coverage of Heimlich was not fair to him. So many members of the media used terms like "convicted" and "felon" that simply weren't true. Heimlich went undrafted not because major league clubs questioned his character or worried that he would cause them trouble. They simply didn't want the bad publicity his signing would generate. That's a shame.

 

[Kerry Eggers]

Yes, thank you Kerry for taking the time to come do the live interview with us here at S2. We appreciate it!

My pleasure. Hope you will go out and get the book, either for yourself or as a gift.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Kerry, are you a little surprised that none of the Jail Blazers have gotten into serious trouble since their careers have been over? Seems like for the most part they've faded away.

 

[Kerry Eggers]

Q: Are there any good stories from the Jail Blazer era, that for legal or other reasons, haven't been told..... (You can answer this one yes or no, if you want.)

There are stories I heard that I could not publish, primarily to protect the source that told me.

 

[Hobbesarable]

Kerry, who is your all-time favorite Blazer player and why?

 

[Kerry Eggers]

Were any of the players unwilling to speak to you for your book?

Yes there were, and I listed many of them in the acknowledgements. I would have loved to have talked to Bob Whitsitt, JR Rider, Rasheed Wallace, Bonzi Wells, Scottie Pippen and a few others. They either didn't return my calls or declined to speak for the book. Damon Stoudamire and I spoke for 15 minutes on the phone, but he also decided not to cooperate for the book, in part because he said he and former Portland teammates were putting together a documentary and wanted to tell the story in their own words.
On the other hand, I'm grateful to the 70-plus people who did speak on the record, including all four head coaches (PJ Carlesimo, Mike Dunleavy, Maurice Cheeks and Nate McMillan), most of the assistants during that time and about 25 players.

 

[hoopsjock]

Yes there were, and I listed many of them in the acknowledgements. I would have loved to have talked to Bob Whitsitt, JR Rider, Rasheed Wallace, Bonzi Wells, Scottie Pippen and a few others. They either didn't return my calls or declined to speak for the book. Damon Stoudamire and I spoke for 15 minutes on the phone, but he also decided not to cooperate for the book, in part because he said he and former Portland teammates were putting together a documentary and wanted to tell the story in their own words.
On the other hand, I'm grateful to the 70-plus people who did speak on the record, including all four head coaches (PJ Carlesimo, Mike Dunleavy, Maurice Cheeks and Nate McMillan), most of the assistants during that time and about 25 players.

Were you surprised by any of those guys declining to speak or was that pretty much expected going into the process?

 

[MARIS61]

Why did the Blazers turn their back on rural Oregon? They used to be (less than 10 years ago) very involved in the Central Oregon community, played pre-season games in Redmond, were promoted in local media...

They are pretty much unknown around here now.