Brian Berger: Interesting Inside Info about KP

That's neat. Now he has an hour show on the weekends and a PR firm that is near bankrupt.

Hi Brian!

 

Great. Now, validate what Brian is claiming, and then call his PR "firm" and ask about his client list.

 

here's some of the info..
Here are some bullet points:

-KP not what he was perceived to be publicly - KP seemed like a good guy when I talked to him

-KP was basically incompotent. Others made him look good. - I have heard this as well from someone inside the Blazers organization

-He and Tom Penn were not as close as perceived - Never heard this, but I think both guys are "lookout for #1 guys"

-Penn made attempts to make KP look incompotent in front of other GM’s and agents - Never heard this either. Both had the same agent, so I would doubt it

-KP was not as beloved within the organization as the public thought he was - I know of 3 people personally that work for the Blazers that did not like KP

-many believe that Penn actually wanted KP’s job - Nope

-There was a divide among players’ feelings about KP - This is very true according to a friend of mine

-He wanted Morrison over Roy. That angered Roy. - Paul Allen wanted A_am.

-Patterson actually drafted (traded for) Roy and LMA. KP took credit. - As I said before, I believe this to be 100% true

-Jason Fillipi (international scout) was responsible for finding Batum not KP - Yes, but KP has said this as well

-KP was surrounded by guys to hide his deficiencies. - I think most great leaders are surrounded by these people

-KP was the lowest paid GM in the league and he wasn’t happy about it. - This is true


I know most don't give a rats ass what I think, but I really do know people that know these things.

 

I have literally zero interest in doing that. If you want to criticize me for being anonymous, post her with your full name. Or, shut up about it.

I'll consider the source, and I'll assume his motivations. I'll check up tomorrow to be sure.

He's in PR. He has a new client, a client who desn't go by the names Paul Allen or Bert Kolde.

I can live with that. I know Brian Berger. Do you, anonymous Ed?

I know there isn't. So why are you lobbing personal attacks at me?

 

I have little reason to believe anything this guy is saying. He basically says Steve Patterson's story and says yup, it's true.

This is boring.

 

There is literally no reason to believe it, but Brian, you have to pay the bills, right? He isn't even good at PR. At least make it realistic, my man. PM me, and let's hash it out.

 

1 – that Roy’s body is breaking down and he only has 2-3 years left in the NBA - I have heard from several people that Roy's legs are not good for longevity

2 – that LMA is not reliable or rugged enough to count on as one of our pillars - Not heard this at all

3 – that Nate’s days are “numbered” and he will be fired if things are not firing on all cylinders after the first half of the season - Yay. Seriously, yay

4 – that Greg Oden is unlikely to play more than half a season per year - Haven't heard this either.

 

So everybody here who criticizes a public figure is a hypocrite, other than you, of course?

That's a pretty broad brush, Mr. Ouellette. Or does this only apply to me?

 

I also don't get what's the big deal about not being the one to find Batum/Rudy/etc.

They're here, aren't they? Who makes that decision? Who moves around the draft board to get them?

This is why I find this whole thing funny. If the GM bombs, it's all his fault. If he does well, he had very little to do with it.

Bottom line, who was responsible for putting the roster together? Kevin Pritchard.

 

This whole thing just seems like damage control to me.

Sure, KP wasn't a saint. But some of this is just ridiculous.

 

Back on topic.

Some of the stated reasons for firing KP are rather suspect.

He wanted a raise? Wow, like no PA emplyee has ever asked for a raise before.

Patterson gets the credit for Roy/LMA? Then I guess he should also be held responsible for Webster-over-Paul, or Telfair- over- Jefferson.

Some of the other stuff, about KP's unpopularity with staff/players, sounds like Patterson projecting his own experience onto KP.

To be blunt, this sounds less like "inside info", and more like Patterson.

 

Wrong about what? About knowing Brian? If I fucked up his bio, I apologize to Brian, and to you, since you seem to care so much about it. His one hour radio gig here in Portland has been quite the career since being let go from the Blazers. Well, there is alway the PR firm.

 

Things I took away from the program (assuming Brian Berger is telling the truth).

1. The Blazers needed a new face of the franchise in 2006 because Patterson was so villified (rightly so) in the local media.
2. There's a fairly strong chance Patterson made the deals, KP helped ID the talent (or didn't if Berger is telling the truth about him wanting Morrison)
3. We now have conflicting reports about how much credit/blame is due KP and two of the people contradicting the official account we've been lead to believe are former employees who may or may not have an axe to grind with KP and could have just as much of an axe to grind with Allen, but we don't really know.
4. KP is fired. It was either because of gross incompetence and petty jealousy on the part of Allen, or he had basketball related reasons for doing so ...

I want to believe there were basketball related/professional reasons because it means that maybe the inmates aren't running the asylum. As a fan of the Blazers you should probably want Patterson and Berger's version of events to be true if you harbor hopes of them winning a championship. If you discount their versions of events and Paul Allen is a bumbling idiot with a vindictive streak that overrules common sense then your favorite hoops team is probably fucked and they're probably not worth wasting your time on. Who knows what is true.

 

Anyhow, back to what Brian the PR flack said. Where is the proof?

 

The only person they brought up was Brandon Roy, and they said he has supposedly never forgot that KP supposedly wanted Morrison over him. Yup, that's the reason they used as to why KP wasn't cool with the players.

Bullshit. KP was the first guy that wanted to give Roy his money, and I'm sure Roy knew that.

Shit is not adding up.

 

Why on Earth would you assume that he's telling the truth, or even knows the truth? Did you mean if he's telling the truth?