Jason Quick.........to judge.

by DropstepJ on Feb 16, 2007 2:34 PM PST

I like Jason Quick. I think he is honestly trying to do a good job covering this team. Now for him to get all full of steam because there have been mentions of him being "part of the problem", seems uncalled for.

First, he has been part of the problem of the division and lack of trust between the local media and the organization. He HAS to admit that.
Then when he went off on his tirade, he kept on talking about all the "bad" things that Blazers players have done during his tenure. All of the things he mentioned are true.....but, with all of these things come judgement. My criticism is that these deeds are looked upon as "horrendous". Smoking weed? are you kidding me?
this is Oregon, 70% people smoke weed here (some of the best in the world). Darius getting dressed at half-time was the result bad communication and feelings getting hurt. Thats an internal struggle. How come its not as big of news when they patch things up?
Some are more sensitive (volitile) than others, but it doesnt mean that their wrong or bad.
Zach leaving the Arena has to do with the frustrations boiling over between people, is that bad, how do we know that if he would have stayed he might have punched someone out, or whatever. Why cant we just trust them? Why are they untrustworthy?
havent they worked it out? LET IT GO!!!

My complaint here is that it just seems so fatalistic. Why pass this kind of judgement on people about their worth. A bunch of Knuckleheads? Thats demeaning. that sucks.

Ive met Damon Stoudamire, he's a great guy. Im sure he's one of the knucklheads. Rasheed, is not your average personality, but he lives with integrity under his view of the world, plus the guy is a champion. He was my favorite player here for most of the nineties.
I have kids, two girls, I love them all the time....even when she goes and hits another kid on the playground. I try to talk to her and help her understand. I forgive. Why is it that these beat writers remember every little thing that these guys have done "wrong". How many teams have there been that have NEVER had a fight is practice? This is competitive basketball.
I hate the argument that because they're making tons of money somehow they should be better than they are. Look, they dont set the salaries, they were born into this crazy NBA industry. These players dont really have a say in what they get. Its run by the agents. and if a player settled for a reasonable contract (below their market value) then other players (and agents) blast them for taking money out of their pockets.

All I ask for is a little understanding.....is that too much to ask?

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Have you heard...

or maybe I should say read the things people have said about Quick?

Daily he is called clueless, ignorant, a joke and far, far worse. Usually the people doing the name calling are the people who are truly clueless or simply don't care whether "their players" do bad things or not. Personally, I think that caring about a person, a team or a city means speaking up when you think something isn't right.

Quick is a reporter and he is with this team and these players a lot more than the rest of us can imagine. This team has had a lot of problems for the last couple of years and it is Jason's job to report those problems when they exist and to report the good things when they exist.

I went and listened to that part of the interview and what people seem to keep overlooking is how positive it was toward the current Blazers. They are doing good things and Quick is reporting good things. That is a simple equation.

I suspect Jason Quick truly regrets going off the way he did. Nevertheless, he wasn't all wrong. The man does his job and does it pretty damned well. Unfortunately we all have to put up with detractors, in Quicks job the detractors are a little more public than for the rest of us. Sometimes we all have our little meltdowns and this was Quick's. Again, unfortunately, his was a little more public than the rest of us.

For me, I think he's a good writer and I think he has some good insights. Sometimes I disagree with him and sometimes I think he's right on the money. If I truly didn't like his work, I wouldn't read it. I personally will find it very easy to put this behind me and to go on reading his articles.

by ken @ Blazer's Edge on Feb 16, 2007 2:51 PM PST reply actions

Yes Ken

I agree that Quick does the extra mile for his job. Do I like his writing? Its pretty bland and predictable if you ask me.
anyways, he's our guy so Im gonna read the pieces.
I was more responding to the fact that what set this off was that people think that negative reporting sells papers. He went on to say that "truth sells." If you look at the sports section there is no doubt that journalists are attracted to trouble like flies on shit.
I dont understand how he doesnt acknowledge that.

this diatribe is really about most reporters not just specifically Quick. The same thing could be said about Canzano.

The reality is that the media DID play a major role in the disfunction of this towns relationship with its team.

by DropstepJ on Feb 16, 2007 5:10 PM PST up reply actions

I've heard him

answer the same question with a more even temper in the past pretty much with the same points. My guess is he got target practiced by a bird in the morning or something had him in a bad place before the question and he just snapped.

It wasn't the first time I'd been kicked in the cherries and called a rat by a woman, but it was the first time I didn't mind.

by shenanigans on Feb 16, 2007 2:52 PM PST reply actions

This issue for me is up there with such matters as

crunchy or smooth peanut butter?
Britney or Christina?

There are probably more issues that I could discuss, butI just don't care enough.

by EnglandDan on Feb 16, 2007 3:53 PM PST reply actions

and yet,

you took the time to tell us? :)

It wasn't the first time I'd been kicked in the cherries and called a rat by a woman, but it was the first time I didn't mind.

by shenanigans on Feb 16, 2007 4:25 PM PST up reply actions

Uhhhhh...

is there even a choice? On either?

--Dave

by Dave on Feb 16, 2007 5:04 PM PST up reply actions

Portland is lucky

to have Jason Quick covering the Blazers. Listening to the chat, the emotion in his voice is that of a true Blazer fan who wants very much to be proud of the team. He is not like most reporters who are just there to do a job until the next assignment comes along or until the LA Times calls. It is obvious in his work that he is as passionate about the Blazers as anyone in Portland has ever been.

by bbfred on Feb 16, 2007 5:53 PM PST reply actions

You know Dropstep, for whatever reason

I respect and comtemplate your posts almost more than any of the regulars on this blog (except of course for Dave). And I so much agree with the charges you are making against the media for having spread huge amounts of negativity over the last few years.

While I belive Quick got a little caught up on that particular bandwagon as it seemed like the popular thing to do all over Portland during those years, he by no means was the main culprit. Canzano, Jaynes and others were really the ones proliferating the cancer - not as much Jason.

Also, I think I too used to feel that Quick was a little bland in his reporting and maybe didn't even seem extremely basketball knowledgeable. But I've been paying close attention to what he writes this year - and also last year - and I'm finding myself very entertained with the slants/themes he uses to recap each game, and even more importantly with his astuteness and accuracy at reporting the details and flow of the game. I'm thinking his basketball knowledge has increased considerbly over the years and that has led to his production of high quality, entertaining reports.

This year, after watching each game, I always go immediately to Dave's and Jason's recaps. There, most of the time I'm able to gain additional insight regarding some of the less obvious aspects of the games, and of course, being close to the team, Jason often is able to provide interesting tidbits and explanations regarding team happenings.

Considering that I've always been a huge critic of the news media, I've surprised myself that I seem to have become a Jason Quick fan! And you know, his interview with Dave probably was a contributing factor.

P.S. Ken - great post above on the same subject.

by TwoDeep on Feb 17, 2007 12:01 AM PST reply actions

Two Deep

Great post. I have to admit that I've hardly read Quicks recaps since Dave started posting them. I havent paid that much attention. I DO really love the effort that he gives out including the extra interviews with Dave and Casey.

Im not an expert and am not close to the players like Quick or every paid writer. Im not going to pretend that I have some special insight into the players development or status, but I am a person who likes to think that I understand people.
What we all do here is try to see this team we love with an objective eye. We all have our shortcomings and I was just trying to call out the fact that A bunch of Quicks statements were coming from a place of frustration........just lke Zach, just like Darius, just like Rasheed. Were all human. It's too much pressure to put on these kids to be superhuman.

by DropstepJ on Feb 17, 2007 8:41 AM PST up reply actions

Jaynes

I have to admit that I really like the job that Quick has been doing. People have gotten fired (or at least moved aside or elsewhere) for their negative reporting in the Oregonian about the Blazers since Allen took over. Speaking of cancer, maybe some early detection (as Jaynes did) years ago would have turned out differently for the team.
I agree that Quick has gotten much better over the years in his summaries, even though the medium requires a certain blandness (deadlines, stats, etc.)
His outburst was uncalled for, however, and I'm sure he regrets it now.
But I don't think he has over-stepped his bounds in terms of negative reporting. Think of this: would you be OK if a reporter from another team (or a "national" reporter) had reported about the drug arrests, the fights, the inquiries into "....behavior"?

by JPOregon on Feb 17, 2007 12:58 PM PST reply actions

jason is correct

to many soft,blazer fans,who believe that,the players betweeen 95-06,were good guys,and that's why folks your team,is the new outpost of the nba..way to go gang,keep up the great work.

by fatty on Feb 17, 2007 4:49 PM PST reply actions