Not sure where that is coming from? Drexler has said good things about Portland a bunch of times. Business is Business and in the end the NBA is a Business.
where it's coming from from me is he spent the better part of 12 seasons in Portland and 3+ in Houston. He played 900 games in Portland and 186 in Houston. Yet, when the NBA named the greatest 50 players, he wore a Houston jersey; Charles Barkley even told him that was a shitty thing to do he may have "appreciated" Portland, but he didn't show it any loyalty. Actions over platitudes this is why it's such an easy call for me to say Dame is a better Blazer than Clyde. Same for Walton...maybe even worse.
Where was he when they did the 50th year all decade teams? That would've been a good time to do it, instead of waiting till after people gave him guff for not showing up for the celebration of breaking his record or even recording a video. Actions speak louder than words. And words that came only because Dwight Jaynes went out of his way to prove his opinion was correct, doesn't impress me.
Clyde actually made a lot of sense...he didn't agree with firing Adelman and breaking up the core of contenders and if they hadn't done that he would've stayed in Portland for his career...he had a problem with the front office, not the fans or city. He also said how lucky he was to win in Houston his first year there. He also mentioned how Cuban gives his ex players jobs in the organization but the Blazers didn't nurture those ties with him or his teammates....that once retired he didn't get offers from Portland at all nor did his teammates. He mentiond all the great ex Blazers who did remain in Portland and showed none of them were working with the Blazers organization since retiring either. Made sense why he made his decision and at least to me, sort of changed my opinion of the situation. He called both Chauncey and Dame when Dame broke the record and is proud of Dame. The Rockets gave Clyde a job after a short stint playing there...the Blazers did not and if I'm honest about it I'm glad Clyde isn't broadcasting games...he's not great at it.
To me, he knew it would be a slap in the face of Portland Fans by not wearing a Blazer jersey for the top 50. If he had that would have sealed his legacy here.
Because it finally sunk in that he's no longer everybody's all time favorite Blazer. Interesting dude.
I'm wondering what I would have done? Could it also have been a slap in the face to Houston if he wore a Blazer Jersey?
I don't blame Clyde for wearing the jersey he won a championship in. Wouldn't have been my choice but it makes sense.
Except.....the rest of his starting lineup teammates worked for the Blazers in some capacity for a time since retiring. Not sure what he's talking about. Jerome Kersey was both a director of player programs and alumni relations, and an ambassador for the team. Terry Porter was an alumni ambassador (and is now returning to that role), as well as a sideline reporter. Buck Williams was an assistant coach under Sarge. Kevin Duckworth was an alumni ambassador. Did he just want all of them to have admin jobs? Does he want all-ex players to given jobs by the team? There's still plenty more ex-Blazers that have been involved with the team. Is he still pissed that Trader Bob didn't give him a chance to coach the team after Dunleavy was fired? Those early 90s teams were my first taste of basketball as a kid, and I didn't miss the eight games a year that KGW put on broadcast. Clyde was my favorite Blazers player growing up; I still have both his BP and Meister Brau posters up in my man cave. Post-Blazers....sorry, he's been an after-the-fact do-nothing when it comes to Portland. Clyde the Snide.
