Ken Berger of CBS gives thoughts on kpee http://www.cbssports.com/nba/story/...-blazers-gm-pritchard?tag=globalNav.nba;cover Also, much like Pritchard -– who watched his colleague, Penn, get promoted and paid -– Warkentien did not have his contract extended along with coach George Karl's this season. There are rumblings that owner Stan Kroenke is ready to move on without Warkentien and VP of player personnel Rex Chapman, with advisor Bret Bearup orchestrating the coup and Kroenke's son, Josh, on a fast track to a bigger role. Meanwhile, Pritchard's adversaries are delighting in his imminent downfall, the end of the road for a rival who did an unassailable job in a "just ask him" sort of way. If arrogance were a fireable offense, Pritchard would've been gone a long time ago. So would some of the people having a field day with him now. Bill Parcells used to say of the NFL, "This is not a game for the well adjusted." For some reason, that quote came to mind when I listened to the audio of Miller's news conference Monday -– the part where he said Pritchard would be evaluated after the season –- and found myself thinking, "On what?"
Re: Ken Berger of CBS gives thoughts on kpee heres another gem A lot of people in the NBA don't like Pritchard. They bristle at his swagger and smugness, and seethe with envy over the supposed advantages he has working for Paul Allen, a billionaire many times over. As if other NBA teams aren't owned by billionaires. As if the Blazers sell out game after game after game because people want to come see the suits from Allen's Seattle-based Vulcan Inc. sit courtside and eat popcorn.
Re: Ken Berger of CBS gives thoughts on kpee Why do you bold the negative parts, and don't bold the very next sentence basically countering that sentiment, stating all teams have billionaire owners? I understand you don't like KP. I understand you're a whiney troll who just likes to point ou tthe negative in any situation, even when someone writes an article seemingly supporting KP from the two parts you quoted, but fuck.
Re: Ken Berger of CBS gives thoughts on kpee I like how Mixum has taken this entire article out of context just by what he chose to bold.
Re: Ken Berger of CBS gives thoughts on kpee its says what we all know... kpee is gone mark w is the next gm im down.
Re: Ken Berger of CBS gives thoughts on kpee Tunnel vision... kind of like Lloyd thinking he has a chance. [video=youtube;KX5jNnDMfxA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KX5jNnDMfxA"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KX5jNnDMfxA[/video]
Re: Ken Berger of CBS gives thoughts on kpee The funny thing is... Jim Carrey went on to fuck the shit out that chick
The real story has played out behind the scenes inside the Vulcan Empire. What was said at yesterdays press conference at the Blazer practice facility wasn't enough to let any of us know much of anything. Which is usually the way the Vulcans like it. Here is what we know so far. The Blazers hiring of Kevin Pritchard as GM was one of the first steps in turning this franchise from a national joke into something we've all grown proud of. He has presided over a number of shrewd draft day deals and a top pick. He has been one of the major players and the most respected voices of this organization for a number of years. His popularity in Portland sparked two popular phrases, "In KP we trust", and "Pritchslapped". And we also know he has gone from being the apple of Paul Allens eye to being someone who is very close to losing his job. Why? No one who knows is saying, which leaves you and me and the pundits a lot to speculate about. Jealosy, disagreement over the Tom Penn thing, getting nothing for RLEC, the handling or mishandling of last summers free agent aquisition, speculation we didn't do our due diligence in the medical investigation of Greg Oden prior to drafting him, Kevin whinning to other people in the league about being underpaid, or....................(fill in the blank)................ You can CLICK HERE and go to Blazers Edge and they have links to transcripts of Larry Millers comments and Kevin Pritchards comments at todays press conference. They also have links to audio from the press conference. I listened to the audio on 95.5 FM. And it seemed abundantly clear to me that Kevins words were carefully measured and scripted, and he sounded afraid. He had the fear in his voice someone has when they think they are about to lose their job. And when I saw the pictures and the look on his face I thought the same thing. Change is on the horizon for this franchise, no matter how the team ends the season. Some media analysts are speculating that KP wanted to replace Nate, others are saying if KP goes that Nate will not re-sign with the team. I find it surprising that both Dwight Jaynes and Jason Quick are so far apart on these issues. Either they don't have the "insider" scoop they claim they have or they are out of the loop. I can understand the team and its officials clamming up about Penn. Its pretty much standard operating procedure for companies who negotiate severance agreements with employees to have signed an agreement not to slander each other. Miller insisted that the team would not make any decisions about further changes until the off-season evaluation period. And he fell far short of endorsing Kevin and the positive things that he did say about Pritchards role in the organization seemed to me lacking in enthusiasm. Its my belief Kevin was sincere in his desire to remain with the Blazers organization. While I have never thought he was the genius some fans did, I do recognize what he has done for this team and this community. And I hope the team, the Vulcanites, and Kevin are able to find a way to make it work. Three critical components of a GM's job are 1. drafting players 2. trading players and signing FA's 3. negotiating player contracts Here is some of what I have heard in relation to the three components. 1. There is a growing sentiment amongst the Vulcans that KP made a mistake in evaluating Gregs physical condition. Although its pretty easy to argue that there isn't a GM out there who would have drafted Oden ahead of Durant. 2. Even if you write the draft issue off as hindsight being 20/20, you have the FA mess of last summer. Personally, I was after Miller all along and am glad he is the one we ended up with. However everyone at Vulcan and here in PTown was sold on RLEC and all hyped up about it. We got nothing out of that. Then we were all sold on Hedo Turkoglu. And when I say all of us, I am including Paul Allen...a man used to getting what he wants. Then we miss on Milsap. Sure, I'm glad we have Andre, but you can't escape the fact that Kevin identified who he wanted, sold everyone on the idea, and then didn't deliver. And lastly you have Pritchards attachment to "his" guys. He himself has admitted he has overvalued his own players at times, and been less willing to trade them than he probably should have been. 3. We're hearing that Vulcan took over the contract negotiating because Kevin wasn't getting it done and Brandon Roy went over his head. So if you are looking to dish out some grades for these three critical components of Pritchards job, there is room for legitimate criticism in two out of the three areas. Is there a better person for the job? Mark Warkentien who was Bob Whitsetts assistant and is the reigning NBA exeuctive of the year is rumored to be interested in the job. There are a lot of rumors floating around this. Mark still has a house in Lake Oswego, and his contract in Denver is up at the end of the season. There are stories floating around Denver about a potential front office shakeup. And still more stories that Mark was upset about Kevin getting the job he wanted in Portland and that he has been spreading rumors about Kevin around the league for some time. If you ignore all the stories a couple facts remain. Warkentien is qualified and likely available Warkentien has a house in Portland Warkentien has ties within the Blazer organization Is he better? If you go back to the three components identified as critical to the GM job I don't think he is better at number one....but at number two and three one could argue that he may indeed have a better skillset than Kevin. He certainly has more experience in those areas. Maybe thats the way Vulcan sees it as well. Personally, I would like to see Kevin Pritchard remain in Portland. However, after yesterdays news conference its clear his position here is very weak. For him to continue here and be effective in the future he is going to need some corporate support and a vote of confidence somewhere along the line. If he doesn't get that within the next few months the team should probably go ahead and make a change. We can't be competitive if our GM has his hands tied behind his back.
From a business perspective, why the fuck would the Vulcans care about this? The team has had nothing but sell-outs since Oden was drafted, and a TV contract that doubled what they used to get pre-Oden extends 7 more years. We got Andre Miller out of that. Marcus Camby as well, if you assume that Blake, Outlaw, or other vets would have to be included in a February 2009 deadline trade. Plus, a big contract in return, like Vince Carter's. So the Vulcans are to blame for signing Roy? That must also mean that they are to blame for massively overpaying Aldridge. Exactly how is Pritchard the problem here? The team will make the playoffs this year after suffering some catastrophic injuries. It's almost surreal that Pritchard will be let go, but it looks like that's what's going to happen.
I never said Pritchard should be let go. I can see where a case could be built against him though, if someone wanted to replace him. He isn't perfect. I do NOT want Warkentien to replace Pritchard as GM. But I do see where he is probably better qualified than Kevin in several key areas of the job. You have to remember, Paul Allen, like the rest of us was sold on the immense value of RLEC...and we got nothing for it. Yeah nothing. Because we were all promised a blockbuster deal that never happened and then told that capspace would be a wonderful thing. Next we, and Paul were sold the idea of Hedo Turkoglu being the perfect fit for the team....and we got nothing there....and then Milsap....and then nothing....and then finally Andre Miller, whom we could have traded for midseason. I like Miller and I always have. And out of the three players mentioned I'd prefer him. But if you look at what happened there and how it happened one could argue that KP didn't git er done. He did not get Paul what he had convinced Paul was needed. Paul is a very wealthy man who is used to getting what he wants. The way things played out may have pissed him off. It sure as hell pissed a lot of fans off. There was all kinds of crap written about it all over the internet.
RLEC had almost no value in a trade, at least in terms of salary cap implications. Would you want Vince Carter in return, knowing that Roy, Aldridge, and hopefully Oden would be extended? I wouldn't. I think Batum is a better fit for this team right now as it is. As for RLEC last summer, the Darius Miles fiasco in Memphis blunted its impact. We'd have two additions had Miles stayed off the books. Since he didn't stay off the books, Pritchard's choice was to either take on a huge contract in return via trade, or find a lesser player via free agency. He chose Option B, and Miller has had a very good season for us. I happen to like what happened. If the Vulcans don't, it's because they don't know shit about hoops.
Thats just a story. I have another one. What you choose to believe is up to you. The story fans were sold and ownership as well was that RLEC did indeed have immense value. After it failed to bring us a deal another story was promoted to mute the dissapointment in Blazer land when the trade deadline came and went. Since you bring up Darius Miles....that is another faux paus. Who was responsible for that? KP? Vulcan? Larry Miller? Who knows. If it was KP and the Vulcans of course know this that would be another potential strike against him.
Here is how I hope it goes down in the postseason evaluations. Vulcan: Kevin, we're not happy about some things and want to make some changes. KP: I understand Vulcan: Kevin, here is what we want to do differently................................................. Would you be willing to make these changes? KP: Yes Vulcan: Good. Now that we're on the same page we can move forward together.
can you point to past examples which would indicate that you are correct? what past championship teams brought in veteran gms to "finish the puzzle"?
There are probably no examples, since previous champion teams became contenders only because they had GMs with trading ability. They hadn't lucked into a great center while having a GM whose sole success had come from the owner's financing every single trade with millions of dollars. Pritchard tried hard to trade RLEC at the last moment. But he drove too hard a bargain with more than one team, e.g. expecting to get Vince Carter for nothing. Hours after the deadline, the Nets GM said, "We're aiming to reduce salary, but this isn't a pure salary dump. We aren't just going to GIVE him away." So praising Pritchard for not making a move at the midseason deadline doesn't hold water. He didn't refrain voluntarily, he failed due to his own arrogance. It's like praising him for not signing Hedo--what? And if you say we DID get something for RLEC because we got Andre Miller 6 months later (Minstrel likes to repeat that)--well, he was available at the February trade deadline. We could have included Sergio with LaFrentz for Miller. So we were unnecessarily delayed in acclimating Miller to his new team by half a season. Whichever way you look at it, Pritchard could have done better.
what big trades did the spurs swing to win titles? seems like they followed the "luck into a great center" method. and do trades not count if they happen during the draft? my point was that the idea of needing to upgrade the gm from a "builder" to a "vet finisher" is just something that isn't historically supported. i was kinda hoping to figure out where someone would get the idea, though i'm sure mixum doesn't have an actual legitimate reason for thinking it.
He doesn't, and he made it up hypothetically, but his theory might be true, but never demonstrated till now. Maybe the middle stage GM has always been able to be the final stage GM, until now. Ours can't make trades, so Mixum's construct might be necessary for the first time, for us. Yes, I'm including draft day trades--every one of the major ones has needed that magic $3M to get the other side to agree. (Except Pendergraph cost only around $1.5M.) No other GM has this advantage. When a trade is detailed without mentioning the large payoff to the other owner, it looks like a Pritch-slap on paper, for local consumption. But the other owner is humming happily.
