Throughout All-Star weekend, Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge and various Trail Blazer staffers will be blogging about their experiences in New Orleans.

Submitted by Bill Evans, Blazers Director of Corporate Communications

Thursday, 9 a.m.

Trail Blazers Director of Sports Communications Jim Taylor and I arrived in New Orleans last night as the ‘advance team,’ awaiting the arrival of Brandon and LaMarcus later today. Our official duty here is to help Brandon and LaMarcus navigate media responsibilities this weekend (i.e. remind them where they have to be and when they have to be there…and then make sure they get there). Today, NBA Entertainment has a ballroom at the players’ hotel with media ‘stations’ that Brandon and LA will visit for portraits, interviews, etc. More on that after they arrive. That is their primary responsibility today, a light day officially since a few All-Stars have games on Thursday. The fun really begins on Friday.

We arrived at 9 p.m. local time, after a stop in Houston, where the Clyde Drexler legacy is still goin’ strong, at least in terminal C. It was eerily quiet at the New Orleans Airport and even relatively calm on Bourbon Street. Locals scoff when asked if the city is ‘ready’ for an event of this magnitude. The desk clerk at the hotel, as she rolls her eyes, chuckles “we did just get finish this event we call Mardi Gras!” While this might be NBA’s signature event, in the French Quarter it's just another weekend.

After a short walk, some people watching and an off-Bourbon gyro, Jim and I retired to our respective rooms. I logged on to read the bad news from Dallas, then got nostalgic on NBA.com, watching highlights from my first All-Star Game, back in 1993. Brandon Roy was 8 years old. Man, do I feel old!

1 Comments:

 hg said...

Just keep us updated, we love it and have never been given the scoop of what events are to be going on.

I am excited for LMA and Brandon.
I am just going to enjoy the weekend.

I don't suppose you will have a sweet valentine’s day, but I hope it is happy.

I have a big bowling tournament this weekend so will depend on you for all the updates, but you are so good at it I need not worry.

A weekend of bowling will also get me away for the weekend. I am real happy about our first half. But, I do worry that they might be going into a tailspin.

It has been said by you, me and many others just how important James Jones is to our team. But, I agree with you we have to find someone to step up or redesign our offense. Martell is good, Travis is good, but they are streaky and that makes for a bunch of anxiety.

I also worry about Oden's return. He is a valuable key to our future but we should not make him that valuable.

see you at the next blog

hg

4:21 PM  

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