Do you even know what you're talking about? Do you have a clue about Kevin Love and his father's history?
If guys like Kevin Love stayed home and showed some loyalty to his home state, Oregon could have achieved just as much as UCLA did and wouldn't have sold out and played for the state of California. I guarantee Hairston, Taylor, Leunen and Porter along with Love would have went just as far as UCLA did last year. As for the "University of Nike", sounds like sour grapes, let me guess your a OSU alum.
I can't think of a school where he would get more hot tail that has the same basketball tradition. You need to think like a high school kid. I don't begrudge him for heading for a year of fun in the sun. The guy is stuck in Minny right now.
What if all those LaSalle Prep guys that occupy U of O's roster showed loyalty to their home state and went to Cal? This is a bullshit argument.
UCLA is not just another PAC 10 school now. They've gone to the final four three years in a row - including the two years before Kevin Love went there. When was the last time Oregom made the final four, 1949? Given the choice of going to a program that has made the final four the previous two years and one that hasn't made it 48 years, I can't think of many people that would chose Oregon. Especially after Nike "fired" him from their AAU team. The U of O athletic program receives huge amounts of money from Phil Night and Nike. That's really helped build their football program over the last decade, but you take the good with the bad. Nike does something that pisses off a top recruit and that recruit goes elsewhere. If Oregon REALLY wanted Love, they should have spoke up when their major sponsor kicked him off their AAU team. That was the straw that broke the camel's back and lead Love to choose UCLA. Prior to that, both Love and Kyle Singler used to talk about attending the U of O together. Nike screwed Love and killed that dream. Of course, Kevin Love has family in Los Angeles and it's also closer to home and in the same time zone as Oregon. So, travel is easier for his family to attend games, etc. than going to an East Coast school. And if UCLA is just another Pac 10 school, I guess that makes Duke and UNC just a couple of ACC schools. After all, neither had been to the final four in the two years before Love went to UCLA. BNM
Yeah, I do. I know his father is a major tool. Evidently, you have some sort of information that's not publically available. Please share your knowledge so we can all become enlightened and understand what Kevin Love and his father did that justifies death threats and screaming WHORE!!!!!! at his grandmother and little sister. Did they kill someone and get a away with murder, or perhaps an unrepoerted rape? It must have been something exceptionally vile to justify the response. It must have been something far, far worse than choosing to attend a school with a better basketball program. BNM
Nope, but way to try to make this about me. The University of Nike comment is a refernce to the University of Oregon's major benefactor that pumps millions of dollars into the school's athletic coffers. As I said in my previous post, with that influnce comes both good and bad. For the most part, it's been good. The U of O has the best college football facilities in the country, and that's a huge recruiting advantage. But, if Nike pisses off a recruit (or his tool of a father - who happens top be an Oregon alum), it shouldn't surprise anyone when that recruit goes elsewehere. BNM
One of the things I like most about Portland is that it's not Philadelphia. I'd prefer to keep it that way. BNM
I don't think anyone's saying yelling at his family is acceptable, but I don't see why it is completely classless to boo the kid if you don't like him, for whatever reasons you don't like him. Including not going to your alma mater. But now you're going on and on, and lumping Blazer fans booing him at the game to Duck fans yelling at his family. I agree with you about him making the best decision for himself on school choices, and it's the same decision I would have made. I didn't go to either Oregon school, and don't have an allegiance to either. But I don't see the big problem with people booing him during introductions and when he was shooting FTs.
I think its classless and reflects poorly on Blazer fans. Again, this is why I like living in Oregon rather than cities where crass, boorish behavior is encouraged and excused. Rather than address the offensive behavior, most here simply want to justify it by blaming Kevin Love for choosing to attend a school with a better basketball program. BTW, I do boo the refs when they make a terrible call, but it's the call I'm booing, not the person. Similarily, I'd boo anyone who commits a dangerous flagrant foul against one of our players. Again, it is the action I am booing. And yes, I'd boo Kevin Love loudly if he undercut or closelined one of our players. However, those booing Love during introductions and during FTs (very early in the game), as well as those who booed Zach when he returned to Portland are making it personal. Maybe that doesn't offend some people, but it does offend me. I had always thought Blazer fans were classier than those in other cities that boo anyone and everyone (including Santa Claus) without provocation. Perhaps, I am wrong about that. Maybe we are just another Philadelphia where rude beahior is accepted and encouraged. BNM
Well, it's OT, but as for Santa Claus, that wasn't exactly without provocation, but nobody wants to remember it that way, because it sounds better to just say Philly fans suck, they booed Santa Claus. All fans are different, some will cheer for everyone, regardless, some get upset with their own players when they are performing badly, etc. As for booing calls, you can tell yourself you are booing the call, and not the ref, but that is clearly booing the ref as well. He calls a foul. You didn't think there was a foul. You boo. You are booing the foul call, but by thinking it is a bad call, you are also booing the ref for making what was in your mind a bad call. You're not booing the action, because the perception to you was there was no action to warrant the call, so it is obvious the blame is going to the individual that made the judgment you disagree with. People booed Ricky Davis and still do when he comes back to Portland. Is that classless? Was booing Gilbert Arenas every time he touches the ball classless? Is booing Kobe classless?
Philly booed Mike Schmidt. That would be equivalent to booing Clyde Drexler in Portland. Fucking shameless. The problem with Philly fans is there's no goodwill reserve bank. It's all "what have you done for me lately?". They're the worst fans in the country. As an aside, the only time in my life I have actually feared for my physical safety at a sporting event was attending a Skins/Iggles game at The Vet.
Oh, I don't mean to give them a pass, just saying the Santa thing has been used so often, it has gotten really annoying. I'm not saying it makes them good fans at all, I know they suck. Just that one instance is well overplayed. And incorrectly.
LaSalle Prep guys? What are you talking about? If your comparing the talent pools of California and Oregon you are way off. I'd like to think as a born and raised Oregonian that we have a little more pride in our college athletics than the millions and millions of residents of California. Lets look at the Oakland, Los Angeles, San Diego and Sacramento areas that have ridiculous amounts of talent for California schools to choose from. If a school like Cal wants to get one of those guys I'm sure its not hard. A lot of those guys who go to Oregon for football or basketball are overlooked in by their own states colleges.
Its funny how people have a complex against the whole Nike thing. If Phil Knight would have been an Oregon St. alum or an alum of any school that a particular person likes they would love him. Meanwhile, Oregon St. has some guys named Reser who makes store bought potato salad or something so their facilities suck and they don't have great money. Get over it. It drives me nuts that people think when a University has the options they do like Oregon they wouldn't take advantage of it. Anytime someone talks bad about Phil Knight's contributions to Oregon athletics it makes me think that its all just sour grapes. BTW, Phil has donated to OSU as well. Something he did out of generosity and as gratitude to another institution in the state he was raised in and loves. But, I'm sure Beavers fans aren't complaining about that.
I just don't get the sour grapes comment. I attended a Big 10 school and have no affiliation with either the U of O or OSU. I said: "For the most part, it's been good. The U of O has the best college football facilities in the country, and that's a huge recruiting advantage." How is that sour grapes? It's a simple statement of fact and not judgmental in any way. I was just pointing out that when Nike "fired" 16 year old Kevin Love from their AAU team, they pretty much guaranteed he would not be attending their favorite university. This isn't a U of O vs. OSU thing - at least not for me. My daughter calls me a platypus because I cheer for both schools - and when they play each other in the Civil War, I cheer for the one who has the chance to go to the best bowl game. You seem to be reading more into my comments than what's actually there. Where did I say Oregon shouldn't take full advantage of Phil Knight's generosity? Where did I even mention OSU (prior to this response)? It seems like your entire rant is based on a bunch of false assumptions. U of O's close ties to Nike hurt there chances of landing Kevin Love. That was my only point. It was just an observation, not an indictment of the entire U of O/Nike relationship. As I said, for the most part, it's been good for the school, but in this one particular case, it backfired on them BNM
