Thank You Ben

And Dave.

And the rest of you people.

You both do a superb job!!!!!!!!!

By Ben and his hard work. Thanks a lot! The interviews you provided this past week were really indepth and really brought us as fans in deep in the minds of the scouting crew. Now if you can use the same jedi mind tricks to pull some real info on what’s on Nate Mcmillians mind without him being so guarded… Jason Quick better start covering MLS. Haha. J/k

Thanks for all the hard work. I can honestly say that BE is the first stop on my morning internet jaunt because of the in-depth coverage that you have given us Ben. Many thanks and I can’t say it enough!

thank you, ben (& dave)

all your work is much appreciated!

(not gonna lie, when i saw the title of this post I thought ben was gonna be done and you were saying thanks for workin with bedge. THANK GOD, i was wrong)

The energy and dedication he puts into his work is reason enough to believe in him; and he keeps churning out great crap as well. It’s not really fair.

We are very lucky to be Blazer fans.

Mortimer

Blazersedge is my first stop when I open the net. Well written, in depth, “real time” coverage – - – Blazersedge were awe-inspiring happens.

(Heads up for SB nation for mobile services that have made my Blazersedge addiction complete. I can now be here even on my way to work.)

Marcus

… I was there and the furnace that they call summer should be enough to give him an extra ‘endurance to stand the heat’ badge.

Good job, Ben!

I dont post very often but I love your work!

And Dave too!

Look for Ben’s intimate look at the politics of the big people (the team) and the little people (the front office) at quality bookstores everywhere.

Thanks Ben and Dave!

!

just kidding.

thanks Ben, Dave. you guys make being a Blazer fan all that more enjoyable. and that’s pretty rad.

From, Magnum

from the bottom of my Blazer-loving heart

And Dave too!

Now a few sites around SBN and the larger basketball/sports web community have people in similar roles, but while he might not have been the first he was at least a trail blazer along with a handful of names who have already moved on to national media outlets, NBA.com or individual teams. And he did great and hard work in that capacity ever since, with real sources giving him real statements about the team on and off the record that inform his writing, and make it so different from what many many sports sites do that just create or aggregate rumors and distant analysis. Thanks Ben for that.

If it wasn’t for the slow death of the printed newspapers, he might have already gone off to pursue his journalistic career. But content still is king, and Ben produces a lot of it along with the eyeballs that read it. So while it would be sad to see him go I hope his future in sports writing is bright if that is what he chooses to pursue.

What few people know: Ben was also Wieden + Kennedy’s inspiration for the “Old Spice and the Man Your Man Could Smell Like” campaign, when according to unnamed sources with knowledge of the events a creative director and Blazers fan saw him riding out of the Rose Garden parking garage on his white horse, feverishly scribbling a post game report into his notepad and smelling like – get it – roses. Manly roses! The agency only used Isaiah Mustafa to star in the videos because Ben didn’t want to draw so much attention away from his beloved writing. Though sources close to the situation tell me he is a bit disappointed that they ignored his casting request to have Brandon Roy star in the campaign.

P.S.: Anonymous league sources claim the Oklahoman’s new media outlet NewsOK.com is getting ready to create the position of Personal Beat Writer to Kevin Durant for next season, and the short-list of writers they would consider for this assignment is really short, it currently only has one name on it. A short name. But it would require a toxic offer to get this restricted free agent…

And we wonder why mainstream print media is failing. Except for the excellent behind closed door series from Quick we rarely see the in depth coverage that Ben gives on a daily basis. He gives us the meat and potatoes along with all the rumors/fluff that we as die hard fans yearn for. Kudos to Ben!

Was Ben let go for undisclosed reasons? Rumor on the street was that he has a corrosive agent, who got the best of Dave. Now all Ben can do to save his job is break the CP3 to PDX story…

To both Ben and Dave,

Yes thanks.

I’m not much of a “joiner” type. The fact that I even have an identity on Blazeredge isn’t reflective of my personality. I bother to visit this site and respond from time to time based primarily on the fact that I find the work done by both Dave and Ben above average.

Not only are the posts insightful and usually well thought out, but there is a good balance between open and free discussion and maintaining intelligent decorum.

So thanks Ben, Dave and everyone that makes Blazersedge worth visiting.

Ben (and Dave) are my first read each and every morning.

Means so much in so many little ways guys.

Thanks for the site.

But I’ve definitely appreciated all Ben’s articles within the past couple weeks. Great coverage guys.

BE is a big part of my daily routine. It’s one of the good things that makes life more enjoyable. Thanks to Ben, Dave and anyone else that helps make it so.

Rock on Ben. Thanks for all your good work.

Thanks to Dave as well. BEdge is the place to be. – Elgin

Ben brings the most compelling combination of pound-the-pavement reporting and insightful analysis I’ve seen in sportswriting. Thanks for making BE your home.

in the last 5-6 months I feel like Ben has really stepped his game up. He is no longer the most prolific blogging reporter on the Blazers, he has usurped the old regime of blazer talking heads, insiders, and reporters. The oregonian and 95.5 don’t have diddly on the Sedge. I heard from Ben first that the Blazers were looking at Cho, Pfund, and Ferry, not Quick. The write-ups that Ben did during the draft and summer league on all things Blazer related put other blazers news sources to shame. No one else came close to providing in depth player analysis, histories, draft stock, and what they would mean to the blazers.

This site has become my gauge on whether news, rumors, or other Blazer related awesomeness is relevant, and Ben’s awesome front line coverage is a major reason for that. Thanks for all your hard work Ben! It’s obvious you go the extra mile by the quality and depth of your writing. Please stay on Blazer Sedge forever.

Ben, you had me at hello.

Interviewer Extraordinaire!!!!
Sports Writer Phenom!!!!
Great Talkin’ Ball Guest!!!!!

Let’s face this guy…Just…Plain…Brings…It !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I <3 BEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(In A Straight Manly Way of Course!) :)

Yes, Dave hit it right on the head. BIG Thank you Ben. You and Dave both have made this the best blog on any subject in the entire world. Your hard work and dedication truly shows.

I’m a big fan of Ben’s work on this site.

Will not be sitting together at games next year.
Just sayin……

I’ve said it here before — I work in the declining newspaper industry, and Blazer’s Edge is the one place that gives me hope that a few really good people (e.g. Ben and Dave) + technology + community can create something new and excellent after we print dinosaurs are gone. Ben and Dave — you are my best-case scenario! Keep it up!

Now go break the next big story!

Recently it has been the best source for Blazers news as well. Well done Ben.

“What Ben gave is these last two weeks was the best single-team access and reporting you could find anywhere.”

Didn’t put a thank you in the posts comments since Ben says he doesn’t read that, but hoping he takes in this post’s comments because he deserves a big

Without a doubt, that was the best Summer League coverage anywhere. No other team’s fans got that kind of insight into scouting and management. Good work, and thanks.

Careful BE fans we can’t heap to much praise on him or some four letter sports network will make him an offer that he can’t refuse. Or maybe he will be part of the Chris Paul trade. Miami may have Chris B LBJ and D-Wade. Portland has Ben , Dave and all the great members.
Again Ben great job and hey cheer leading isn’t a sport sorry DUCKS!

Your dedication is inspirational and I can’t imagine this site without you. Also I just wanted to mention that I heard you on Courtside a couple of times this summer and you were great. I hope that turns into a regular gig.

Blazer fan that he is, he’d be down with that.

And then he’d write an excellent series describing how the deal happened.

I agree that his stories have been the best – B-edge is now my #1 news source, on top of the longstanding top source for analysis. We owe a lot of that to Ben.

He also did a great job on Rip City Live – his analysis was certainly better than Dwight, Rashad and that Jill chick. He can be the B-edge talking head from now on.

I know you don’t read comments Ben, but if you do – THANKS!

The quantity and quality of Ben’s work has everything to do with making BE such an important resource for serious Blazer fans. In the last few weeks, I have had my criticisms of Ben’s reporting but they have been a reflection of my high expectations for him after reading this site for the last three seasons.

This past off-season has been especially important for us as the Bob Woodward of One Center Court, Jason Quick, has been conspicuously absent. While in many ways nobody in the local media have been able to get any good answers, Ben was at the forefront of asking the hard questions. Sometimes that’s the best anyone can do, and he was as good at it as anyone.

kudos this week even though a few of them sounded as though it really pained them to give Ben credit for breaking the new GM news. Great job Ben!

Covering the Blazers as good or better than a certain beat writer at the big O….you schooled a guy with a ton of experience. Way to go!

Ben, your coverage has been the best. I found Blazers Edge years ago googling Trailblazers to get a fix in the summer. This summer was great. The interviews of the scouts about the rookie and sophmore blazers was inspired.
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.

You and Dave are the two journalists I trust the most when it comes to the Blazers and the media in general. No one else comes close!

The amount of time put in by both Ben and Dave has always been amazing, and Ben’s contributions have become nonstop. Thanks to both of you for your work with this blog.

Jedi Master!
Thank you

You da bomb! You da bomb-digity reporter. Great work!

And not just for thinking my tat is awesome. Your work is one of the reasons why I was drawn to the Bedge in the first place. You and Dave make a great team, and I’m glad to be a part of the Blazersedge Army!

Thanks Dave and thanks everyone.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3F84FOi-20

Get that man some skrilla!

I regard BE and McCovey Chronicles as the platinum standard of SBN, and the summer league posts were certainly no exception.

Well done…as always.

And the rest of the team too