Our strengths are our weaknesses as fans. We’re the best because we care so much but we also over react the most because of that very reason.

Blazers are making a playoff run and have held together despite all the setbacks this year, let’s enjoy that and worry about the other crap after the season.

When it comes to Portland, you can bet your money Simmons will miss the point completely every time.

I don’t care about Tom Penn, I care about Kevin Pritchard. It wasn’t us who went on to assume Pritchard was next, it was his own agent.

I seriously hate Bill Simmons, he knows nothing about Portland

Also, as always, Bill Simmons can go jump in a lake.

have you read his “Book of Basketball”? he has some of the best NBA insight of anyone out there. So what if he doesn’t absolutely LOVE our franchise? He’s from Boston and lives in LA, why would he? I think he has pretty good insights and covers things pretty well overall. It’s no secret that he loves Kevin Durant and has given the Blazers a hard time for drafting Oden – so what a lot of media people have done that.

Anytime in recent history he has written about Portland and the Blazers (like when he was here for his book tour, and in today’s Diary as examples), he talks about what a great, unprecedented basketball city we are, how great and rabid the fan base is, and how no other city is like us (in a good way). How can you be hating on that?

may I be the first to say that the only time I’ve read Bill simmons is when someone at BE has brought his name up. (Thanks a lot, Bedgers for widening my horizons.) Now, do everybody a favor and stop talking about BS since you think he’s so clueless

And it you love his stuff and can’t get enough of him, then the two of you need to find a private chatroom

FWIW, A-Woj thinks Portland fans obsess over Blazer minutia as well. (Hey, at least we’re known for something) but I don’t go looking for Wojo’s columns unless somebody drops them in the fanshots, either. So if you follow the Simmon’s formula re: A-Woj (see ^ above) perhaps we’ll all come out of this crisis a little older and wiser

He’s the highest guy on the food chain that actually has something to say to us! (Sorry Larry, but I guess that you and I have some “Philosophical Differences” as to what your true title should be.

Ever since Paul Allen and Vulcan bought the franchise – they’ve wanted to play the role of Black Ops by having no relationship with the local media or the fans. Over the years their public statements that they’ve issued through middle management have been no more enlightening than a Tiger Woods press conference.

I’ll always give them credit for throwing money at situations but that is it.. I’ll attribute all future success this team has to the GM position and below. I can no longer throw kudos out to shadows.

And perhaps that’s the way PA and Vulcan want it. /shrug/

We over react beyond belief about everything, but that’s what comes with being such passionate fans with not much else to talk about around here sports wise.

When it comes to this whole management issue, really what bothers me the most is how much the Vulcans seems to overrate Nate. Sure is feeling like Sarge is gonna be around for a while, which means our team will be playing in a system that handicaps most of our talents for many early playoff exit seasons to come.

Simmons is missing a crucial point. We’re not merely reacting to Penn being fired. We’re reacting to the absolute mess created by the Vulcans. It wasn’t a simple firing. It’s being grossly mishandled.

if fans were going crazy about an assistant gm being fired. However, as many of you have pointed out, Simmons elects to ignore the real source of the fan anxiety; namely, the uncertainty. I’m not really concerned that Penn was fired, in a general sense; rather, I’m troubled that a situation that might have normally been viewed as mostly innocuous has been bungled so badly in term of public relations, that it has escalated to such a ridiculous situation.

before the Patriots, Red Sox won titles. And that’s why I used to read his columns. Then the Blazers lucked into the #1 pick, when the Celtics had the top odds of getting it. BS was thinking Durant going to the C’s all the way. When the Blazers ping pong ball popped up, well, BS lost it. He’s had a thing for zinging the Blazers ever since.

The responses on this topic make me laugh.

Really?

he’s right.

Oden hasn’t done anything. Unless he can be healthy he has no value.

I’m amused that Noah is doing well. One of the things I wanted was a move for Durant and Noah for Oden.

Portland fans also DO fly off the handle. I disagree that symptoms of the old guard ruining a good thing is reason to NOT fly off the handle though.