.....when the Great Northwest was endowed with the top two draft picks in 2007 there was a lot of bitterness / anger emanating from the eastern seaboard, as if all that talent would somehow be wasted in our small market areas. I hesitate to say it was “hatred” though.

I could see some genuine hatred for Portland rising up over the years however, if the present trend continues: high future draft picks accumulate, talent continues to simmer and develop overseas, veteran stars are attracted to a winning program, management keeps a fluid, long range plan in place, team improves every year and (the clincher), fans don’t get complacent but actually more rabid with each passing year. In essence, the rich get richer. Who doesn’t hate that.

I used to be on the Laker hating wagon, but now that Rick Fox is gone, Kobe has improved his public image, and no more Slava Medvedenko, I have a hard time generating a lot of hatred towards that team. I now really dislike the Celtics, but not anywhere near the hatred I had for the lakers.

What is the perceived character of that community/city regardless of basketball?

Trust me, one of the reasons Blazer fans hate the L[xxx]rs so much is the dynamic of Portland’s regard for L.A.
It’s not JUST the L[xxx]rs we have a problem with; we’ve got a very strong antipathy toward Los Angeles itself,
partly borne out of the Southern California roots of many Portland residents.

But even outside of how Portland views L.A., there’s just this QUALITY to Los Angeles,
perceived not just nationwide, but internationally.
For many people, there’s a real attraction to the California lifestyle,
the image of Hollywood and Rock’n’Roll and babes and celebrities and so on.
There are also a lot of people who simply hold up L.A. as the ideal for What To Avoid And Never Become.
These twin regards spill over to L[xxx]r fans AND L]xxx]r haters outside of L.A.

And so as applies to outside-of-Portland regard for the Blazers and how Blazer fans affect that,
I think the bigger dynamic is how Portlanders behave and are perceived by the outside world.
And right now, I think that perception is largely positive, and the Blazers are very lovable for that.

To cite two examples which have cropped up recently here at the Bedge
that explain how community image affects perception of a team and its fans:

1) Remember that footage of multiple incidents of L[xxx]r fans assaulting Celtics fans
at a Finals viewing party (of a game played in Boston) in the Forum?
Didn’t many of us (myself included) link that thuggery to the wider perception
of Los Angelenos as bad seeds, thugs, rioters, bandwagoneers, and party animals?
This isn’t just a L[xxx]r fan thing; this is a L.A. resident thing.

2) A few comments lately (which I enjoyed participating in myself) regarding Bulls fans:
Fat guys with Mustaches (or, as I said, mustaches with fat guys attached), like the SNL “Da Bulls” skit.
Well, isn’t that just more of a stereotype of Chicagoans in general, independent of teams or sports?

This is a fine facet of how sports provide a way for a community to come together and feel like a cohesive whole:
When outsiders want to register an opinion on a city’s character, we do it through their sports team and its fans.
As Portland and her citizens are regarded in general, so shall the Blazers and their fans be regarded.

But the degree is variable. Let’s take SA, for example. As much as I pull against those guys, they’re not very hateworthy. The thing is, it’s easy to focus on fringe details when a team wins often and is in the limelight. On the Blazers, you can look at the big dogs (Roy, Oden, LMA) and wonder what’s to hate, but once we start winning, maybe someone will hate on us because Rudy flops (maybe), or because Roy is too nice (and therefore annoying?), or because Oden gets superstar favoritism (hopefully). My reasons for disliking SA are pretty dumb… they already win plenty, but Duncan wines after every call (as if that’s uncommon among stars… I’ve seen Roy do it, and hope it doesn’t become a trend, but won’t hold it against him), and Manu flops and should shave his melon to lose that ridiculous bald spot, and Bowen is flat out dirty, etc.

And keep in mind, SA isn’t even a sexy team. You get a Kobe on the roster, and now you have bandwagon fans jumping on right and left nationwide, and now everyone else is even more annoyed. If the Blazers become exciting to watch, and Oden is the personality and talent he appears to be so far, and Roy continues his clutch play, then that equals more bandwagon fans, which also equals more annoyance from fans of other teams and other players.

perceived as fans by other fan bases?

There will always be a couple of misfits in the bunch that can taint the overall public view. Personally I do not care what a NY fan thinks of us as a collective fan base.

I will do my part to be a “good sport” and call it good. My definition of a good sport may not match another’s view. Me, I love good, fun loving trash talking. It seems that some other’s in here think it is ‘uncivilized’. Not trash talking to intimidate, just the banter.

However, I will play my hardest and if you beat me fair and square I will shake your hand and congratulate you on a game well played. I will not pout, sulk or throw the ball. That to me is being a good sport and that is how I carry myself as a fan. That is my code of conduct.

If I don’t fulfill someone elses expectation of a good sport or a good fan so be it.

Ideally you don’t want other fans, teams, or the media talking about anything other than the basketball your team plays . If they hate us cause we’re good, that’s fine. That’s expected. That’s respect. If they hate us because one of our players spit on a fan (How did he get that TNT studio position anyway?) or because our fans do something like throw beer on other fans who come into the stadium it’s completely a different thing. We can’t help if they hate us or not, but we do have some control over why they would.

This issue goes deeper than just how we are viewed by other fans. When Eagles fans cheered when Micheal Irving was carried off the field on a stretcher, the media didn’t question the fans about what it was like. They questioned the team. Is that fair to put this team any team for that matter, but especially this one in that type of position? How do you think they would feel? Maybe a little betrayed? Maybe like they are holding up more than their fair share of the bargain? How do you think Jack feels right now about all the hard work he put in to this team?

It would also reflect on the fan experience. Would you want to take your kids to a game where all the people are acting like, um, appropriate spot for a curse, inappropriate website (and post)? How about bringing your wife or girlfriend, or boyfriend out and having to try and ignore or explain the other people around you? Think they would want to do it again if you were trying turn them on to the Blazers, or even better, trying to present an argument to buy season tickets?

The only people it doesn’t affect are the people who are being disrespectful because they aren’t taking other people’s perspective into consideration. That is why I feel it is necessary to let them know that their behavior is bothering you.

such a good replacement for the curse that I hinted about.