PORTLAND — Larry Miller has a vision.
It is the not too distant future. Game day during the NBA Finals. And the Portland Trail Blazers president sees a vibrant, energetic crowd wandering through the Rose Quarter on a warm summer day in mid-June.
The sea of red and black has gathered in the name of Blazermania. And as an omnipresent blimp passes overhead, it televises an image of passionate, devoted Blazer fans who are shopping, talking and walking — communicating and participating en masse, in a manner normally reserved for major markets such as Los Angeles or New York.
It is the Rip City community in full force. Out to support Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Nate McMillan and the rest of the Blazers as they attempt to bring an NBA Championship back to Portland for the first time since 1977.
And converging around a renovated, fully bloomed, fully sustainable Rose Quarter that has been revamped and renewed.
"That’s the vision," said the 59-year-old Miller, who was named franchise president in June 2007.
Miller’s vision will take time. A partnership between the City of Portland and the Blazers to re-do and re-imagine the Rose Quarter is at least two years away from reality.
But the NBA Finals part of the dream? It might be closer than some imagine.............
