Will KP leave in a "Blaze of Glory"?

When Blazer bosses stay silent on Pritchard and don't attack him, they are criticized for totally mismanaging the situation. When Pritchard stays silent, he is praised for staying dignified and just doing his job to the end. If they ever tell us the reason, they'll be raked over the coals for talking, just like they are now for not talking.

 

I AM SURPRISED to read he is trying to go out "in a blaze of glory". If the writing is on the wall, and there is no possible way he could return, is it really in his best interest to get a deal done that COULD (we have no idea what kind of deal he's working on) make the Blazers a Championship Contender? Seems like that would make his next job that much tougher. My question is - is he trying to save his job? Or, does he know his job is done and is he trying to cement his legacy as the Blazers GM? Because the natural assumption is that he would resign, or mail it in (Show up to work and draft the best possible player at #22 and be on his merry way after the draft) if he know for a certainty he was gone no matter what.

 

The Blazers' brass silence has helped this PR mess get out of control because people are wont to fill in the blanks when no explanation has been forthcoming (or at the least no decision). KP on the other hand is the employee being left hanging, staying silent and not blasting his bosses for putting him through this makes him look like the bigger man ... but you already knew that didn't you?

 

If he builds a championship contender before he gets the boot, people in power around the league will notice who was responsible and they'll remember the architect when it comes time to find the replacement for their own underachieving manager. Having to face his former team is no consideration at all.

 

I disagree 100%. Think about if you were in that position. Let's say he does pull off some blockbuster deal (that does for the Blazers what Gasol has done for the Lakers). KP is shown the door after the deal and winds up the GM for some other team, and proceeds to watch Portland have a tremendous amount of success. Do you really think there will be satisfaction for him at that point, knowing he was the "architect"? Would you rather be known as the "architect" who put together a winning roster but wasn't able to hold on to his job long enough to see it flourish, or be able to move on to another job and stick it to Portland every chance you get?

I don't think KP needs "People in Power around the league" to notice him. He's already established himself. He took a 20 win team with major personnel issues into a back-to-back playoff team with a roster of solid character guys - he's already established himself. It's not like he needs this last "Blaze of Glory" deal to prove his doubters wrong. If this were John Nash I might buy that theory, but not for KP - he doesn't need to pull something off to be considered a success.

 

KP gets fired he gets paid
KP quits, he does not get paid

Go KP...

 

Everyone from Jerry West to Mark Warkentein have been mentioned in the search.

Actually, those are the only 2 I've heard mentioned.

 

First of all if he miraculously pulls off some Gasol-type deal then it might actually be possible that he keeps his job, barring some kind of miracle like that, this draft is part of his resume', the better that resume' looks the better his chances of getting another gig and the more in demand he will be. These players here in Portland are not going to play forever and if he takes the helm of a rebuilding team their window is unlikely to coincide much with this Blazers squad -- unless you are one of the few that think Brandon has another ten years in the tank of peak performance or that somehow this Blazers team is poised for a decade long run of dominance.

 

Wait, you don't think management hasn't been hanging him out to dry? It's what has been leaked and not been said that humiliating Pritchard. It's a passive/aggressive way of trying to get him to quit, and it's a chickenshit strategy.

 

How has management put Pritchard through a mess? What rumors have they leaked?

What has happened is that they quietly fired Penn without comment, Pritchard's agent made it a public issue, and since then, neither side has talked. I don't see management badmouthing him, leaking rumors, or trying to influence things in any way. How is this hanging him out to dry?

How would YOU fire someone if you wanted to do it right after the draft? By talking to Canzano so he wouldn't criticize you? The Oregonian thinks that they run the team and should pick the GM. The Oregonian has been extremely strong on its opinions of the last 3 GMs.

The media runs the team only in Portland. With the Sonics, it took a decade of bad leadership before any Seattle papers wrote one article against Wally Walker. (Steve Kelley wrote just ONE article in the Times. There were never any others, including Times blogs.)

 

You're choosing to be obtuse. That's your right.

 

Damn right, and thank you for defending my rights.

In most NBA cities, the coach and players are public figures, but the GM is behind the scenes. The owner considers him easier to replace quietly, while the coach and players are more "owned by the public" or "public property."

But even there the media isn't this meddlesome. This Oregonian thinks they own the team. If Allen wants to replace his butler, chauffeur, yacht masseuse, or GM, it's his business. The coach and players--well, then, public input is appropriate.