Poll: Biggest fear of the new ownership group (6 Viewers)

[Phatguysrule]

I can’t imagine what Portland fans would be willing to do to an owner who moves this team.

They won't care anymore. At this rate he's going to make the experience so miserable nobody will be paying attention.

 

[LayneStaley]

The NBA prob wants us moved and found the biggest asshole they could find to get it done.

 

[crandc]

Seems determined to save money in all the ways that upset fans and players the most.

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

Who the hell cares if Love isn’t traveling with the team. As it said, he’s ineligible to play & we wouldn’t want him playing anyway. Him being there doesn’t give us a better chance to win, not at all. Blazer fans will find anything to cry about & to make it seem a bigger issue than it really is.

 

[Mediocre Man]

WTF are you talking about? Why should we get comfortable with it? The only reason we're okay with Billionaire assholes owning teams is so that they overspend their ill-gotten gains on something we enjoy. You know who tried to make money owning a team? Donald Fucking Sterling.

Get comfortable with it because it’s what’s gonna happen. You guys want to bitch……please welcome the Kansas City Blazers

 

[illmatic99]

None of the above
I'm not worried about anything. Tom has turned the Hurricanes into one of the best teams in the NHL. I know it's harder to accomplish that in the NBA, but the fact that he's done it with an NHL teams gives me confidence he can do it with an NBA team as well.

how are they even remotely relatable? in the nba we have seen time and again that you have to pay to win. sure there are outliers and no guarantees, but i'd rather have a guy overspend than cheap out at every corner.

i'm worried about what i'm reading about this guy

 

[crandc]

Who the hell cares if Love isn’t traveling with the team. As it said, he’s ineligible to play & we wouldn’t want him playing anyway. Him being there doesn’t give us a better chance to win, not at all. Blazer fans will find anything to cry about & to make it seem a bigger issue than it really is.

I care. I bet players care. When the team had so many injuries the two way players stepped in. They won some games for the Blazers. At least let them come along.

 

[illmatic99]

Who the hell cares if Love isn’t traveling with the team. As it said, he’s ineligible to play & we wouldn’t want him playing anyway. Him being there doesn’t give us a better chance to win, not at all. Blazer fans will find anything to cry about & to make it seem a bigger issue than it really is.

such a bad take

 

[Freshtown]

FWIW dundon is known in the nhl as a cheap owner for non player things but willing to spend on players. Also cross posting this comment from Reddit last summer when the acquisition was announced:

Canes fan here. The Dundon era in Raleigh has been transformative. Here's what you can expect:

1. He will put every dollar he can find on the court, because (a) he hates hates HATES to lose, and (b) he understands that the most sustainable financial advantage is winning.
2. Conversely, he will dump people/things he doesn't see as contributing to winning. We had imho the best play by play man in hockey, John Forslund, who was (and still is) absurdly beloved in Raleigh. Dundon dumped him without a second thought. People will misconstrue this as "Dundon So Cheap".
3. Your organization will now live and die by analytics. The Canes GM is Eric Tulsky, who was a Harvard/Berkeley educated nanotechnologist who got bored, started a hockey blog, and became the biggest fancy stats guru in the NHL. If there's a person like that in or near the NBA, Dundon will find them.
4. He will be incredibly involved in the front office. Not necessarily in a bad way -- he will learn the NBA inside and out, quickly, and he will absolutely demand collaboration and a leadership team that can explain their reasoning for every single decision. If they don't play along, they're out. Previous president/GM Ron Francis was a legend in Carolina, but he didn't want to have to explain all his hockey wisdom to a newbie owner. He was gone in two months. Everyone was mad at the time. Not now.
5. He will absolutely push for a new arena district. He's managing to build one in Raleigh under fairly impossible circumstances. Seems like you guys are ready for that, which is good. Give him what he wants/needs and the team will stay.
6. He will play hardball, and he will work every angle. He will send away beloved players without a second thought if they are too expensive, too old, or don't quite fit. Player negotiations will be extremely uncomfortable. This will take some getting used to. Don't get too attached to jerseys until you know who fits.

 

[Natebishop3]

Who the hell cares if Love isn’t traveling with the team. As it said, he’s ineligible to play & we wouldn’t want him playing anyway. Him being there doesn’t give us a better chance to win, not at all. Blazer fans will find anything to cry about & to make it seem a bigger issue than it really is.

Because it’s not just this one thing. It’s like 5 different things in short order.

He’s cutting things that NO OTHER TEAM is cutting. It’s not like he’s targeting things that the blazers were doing above and beyond the rest of the league. No other team had their 2 ways stay home.

 

[HailBlazers]

Because it’s not just this one thing. It’s like 5 different things in short order.

He’s cutting things that NO OTHER TEAM is cutting. It’s not like he’s targeting things that the blazers were doing above and beyond the rest of the league. No other team had their 2 ways stay home.

He's making his mark and charting a new direction. Can't say I'm surprised.

 

[illmatic99]

He's making his mark and charting a new direction. Can't say I'm surprised.

we thought free agents didn't want to come here before....

 

[Phatguysrule]

He's making his mark and charting a new direction. Can't say I'm surprised.

I'm not surprised. Just disappointed... Red flags everywhere...

 

[blazerkor]

To early to tell but not the most encouraging signs so far.

 

[BBert]

Who the hell cares if Love isn’t traveling with the team. As it said, he’s ineligible to play & we wouldn’t want him playing anyway. Him being there doesn’t give us a better chance to win, not at all. Blazer fans will find anything to cry about & to make it seem a bigger issue than it really is.

It's a symptom of a potentially bigger problem.

 

[GoZers]

FWIW dundon is known in the nhl as a cheap owner for non player things but willing to spend on players. Also cross posting this comment from Reddit last summer when the acquisition was announced:

Canes fan here. The Dundon era in Raleigh has been transformative. Here's what you can expect:

1. He will put every dollar he can find on the court, because (a) he hates hates HATES to lose, and (b) he understands that the most sustainable financial advantage is winning.
2. Conversely, he will dump people/things he doesn't see as contributing to winning. We had imho the best play by play man in hockey, John Forslund, who was (and still is) absurdly beloved in Raleigh. Dundon dumped him without a second thought. People will misconstrue this as "Dundon So Cheap".
3. Your organization will now live and die by analytics. The Canes GM is Eric Tulsky, who was a Harvard/Berkeley educated nanotechnologist who got bored, started a hockey blog, and became the biggest fancy stats guru in the NHL. If there's a person like that in or near the NBA, Dundon will find them.
4. He will be incredibly involved in the front office. Not necessarily in a bad way -- he will learn the NBA inside and out, quickly, and he will absolutely demand collaboration and a leadership team that can explain their reasoning for every single decision. If they don't play along, they're out. Previous president/GM Ron Francis was a legend in Carolina, but he didn't want to have to explain all his hockey wisdom to a newbie owner. He was gone in two months. Everyone was mad at the time. Not now.
5. He will absolutely push for a new arena district. He's managing to build one in Raleigh under fairly impossible circumstances. Seems like you guys are ready for that, which is good. Give him what he wants/needs and the team will stay.
6. He will play hardball, and he will work every angle. He will send away beloved players without a second thought if they are too expensive, too old, or don't quite fit. Player negotiations will be extremely uncomfortable. This will take some getting used to. Don't get too attached to jerseys until you know who fits.

He sounds like a miserable scumbag who will be despised in Portland.

 

[Phatguysrule]

To early to tell but not the most encouraging signs so far.

Yeah. If I wanted to move an NBA franchise this is exactly what I would do. Including getting them to invest as much money as possible into the stadium.

Even more of a reason for the fans to be pissed and boycott the team.

Hope I'm wrong, but...

 

[blazerkor]

Yeah. If I wanted to move an NBA franchise this is exactly what I would do. Including getting them to invest as much money as possible into the stadium.

Even more of a reason for the fans to be pissed and boycott the team.

Hope I'm wrong, but...

This doesn't make sense. Not trying to be rude but getting the state, county and city to pass funding that you've already said will result simultaneously with the team signing a 20 year lease, isn't what an owner would do if they wanted to move the team. If he wanted to move the team he would have dug in his heels on a brand new arena.

I also don't see how any of the cheapskate bullshit that Dundon has reportedly been pulling hurts the fan experience at all... especially to a degree that would cause a boycott.

The team is trending in the right direction as far as wins and losses are concerned and we're about to get a completely rebuilt Rose Garden. I think that will equal more attendance at games not less.

 

[Phatguysrule]

This doesn't make sense. Not trying to be rude but getting the state, county and city to pass funding that you've already said will result simultaneously with the team signing a 20 year lease, isn't what an owner would do if they wanted to move the team. If he wanted to move the team he would have dug in his heels on a brand new arena.

I also don't see how any of the cheapskate bullshit that Dundon has reportedly been pulling hurts the fan experience at all... especially to a degree that would cause a boycott.

The team is trending in the right direction as far as wins and losses are concerned and we're about to get a completely rebuilt Rose Garden. I think that will equal more attendance at games not less.

No worries. I don't take it as rude.

I haven't seen the details of that agreement. If there is a 20 year lease that a billionaire wouldn't be able to easily buy out then I'll feel much better.

You don't see how paying among the lowest coaching salary in the league and creating inconveniences for players and staff will impact the fan experience?

If we don't have good players or good coaches we'll probably not enjoy the team as much.

I sincerely hope it doesn't go there. But I'm not liking what I'm seeing.

*Edit* I'm also not sure we're trending anywhere on wins. We just decided not to tank this year. Deni is really freaking good.

But so was Dame.

 

[wizenheimer]

This doesn't make sense. Not trying to be rude but getting the state, county and city to pass funding that you've already said will result simultaneously with the team signing a 20 year lease, isn't what an owner would do if they wanted to move the team. If he wanted to move the team he would have dug in his heels on a brand new arena.

I also don't see how any of the cheapskate bullshit that Dundon has reportedly been pulling hurts the fan experience at all... especially to a degree that would cause a boycott.

The team is trending in the right direction as far as wins and losses are concerned and we're about to get a completely rebuilt Rose Garden. I think that will equal more attendance at games not less.

most times, renovations seem to reduce capacity, not expand it

 

[BigGameDamian]

 

[SharpesTriumph]

Well guess I'm getting a spot on Dundon island fan club - I seem to be one of the only ones that likes what I've heard from him, from Canes fans, and have no problem with the cheap coach search/2 way actions.

I get why many fans here don't like him. Personally I don't care about those things though.

If he does get the team in a better position to win I'll be all for these changes.

Will save the bulk if my judgement for the summer moves.

 

[Everything Beagle]

The NBA prob wants us moved and found the biggest asshole they could find to get it done.

Hatchet man

 

[Everything Beagle]

most times, renovations seem to reduce capacity, not expand it

The building can’t get any bigger and luxury takes up space.

 

[Phatguysrule]

Well guess I'm getting a spot on Dundon island fan club - I seem to be one of the only ones that likes what I've heard from him, from Canes fans, and have no problem with the cheap coach search/2 way actions.

I get why many fans here don't like him. Personally I don't care about those things though.

If he does get the team in a better position to win I'll be all for these changes.

Will save the bulk if my judgement for the summer moves.

It seems far more likely to me that these changes will hinder winning than help it.

But I agree. If the team is legitimately contending I'll be fine with it.

 

[LayneStaley]

Going through 4 years of a rebuild to finally start looking like a legitimate team then immediately getting this cheap owner. Unbelievable.

That trade he woulda pulled was probably Grant/Milwaukie picks in a salary dump. Nothing worse than a cheap hands on owner.

 

[LayneStaley]

Honestly though, he can’t take us to Texas. Where would he want to go?