As the Portland Trail Blazers are about to host the Eastern Conference leading Detroit Pistons Monday night, the franchise has decided to honor its historical 1999-2000 incarnation. That team lost in the Western
Conference Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers in spectacular fashion, a painful memory for Blazers fans. Processing those events in a Detroit context made me recall another time the Motor City monikered NBA team came to town while on top of the East.
Picture it…June 1990. The NBA Finals. Portland, and pretty much most of Oregon, was experiencing a full blown case of Blazermania. You couldn’t walk a block without seeing a “Go Blazers!” or “Rip City!”, or “Red Hot and Rolling” sign in business, residential, or car windows. Sometimes the signs would be in the team’s colors. Many times they were in neon green or pink, you know, the unofficial official colors of that era.
During the Trail Blazers’ 1989-90 NBA Playoff run, they received a hero’s welcome at the Hillsboro airport. It didn’t matter if the plane landed at 2am. Fans were there in droves as the players, wearing their wild patterned rayon shirts and Starter hats, walked off the plane to flashbulbs and cheers.
The relationship that formed between the franchise and its fan base had never felt bigger or more connected. The Memorial Coliseum was always like a 6th Man, giving it the feel of a wild Ducks game in Autzen Stadium. Around town, strangers were like family when talking about Blazers Basketball. Kids and adults alike would wear those t-shirts that featured a caricature of a player with a giant head and tiny body. Blazermania was a unique, all-inclusive force of nature, and it seemed as though the team was on the precipice of its second title.
After losing a tough Game 1, 105-99, the Blazers came back with their rendition of Rocky II in Game 2. Led by an inspired Clyde Drexler’s 33 points (and this legendary fastbreak dunk over Isaiah Thomas ), with Terry Porter sinking a clutch franchise playoff record of 15-15 at the free throw line, the Blazers took down the Pistons in overtime, 106-105. The series was tied 1-1, with the next 3 games to be played in Portland. Porter ran into the locker room and yelled out “We takin’ it back to the crib baby!!”
Back then the NBA Finals had a 2-3-2 format, so the excitement was at an all-time high coming back to Rip City. Why did this feel like destiny?
The Detroit Pistons had not won a game in Portland since December 21st, 1974!!
16 years, and 20 total games had passed with Detroit taking a L in Portland. It should be noted that the Pistons were in the Western Conference during the 1970’s, and during that decade the two teams played each other 4 times a year. 2 home and 2 away.
As a young teen in 1990, just hearing about this drought by Detroit in Portland, made my friends and I very optimistic about the Blazers’ chances of winning the championship. As kids we didn’t consider “battle tested, mean and nasty championship experience” a major thing back then, even though it took the Pistons two Finals attempts to beat the Lakers for the Larry O’Brien in 1989. After that Game 2 win, and Detroit losing in Portland for almost a generation straight, emotions were riding high!
Then reality set in.
The Blazers woke a sleeping giant, and then got cooked….by a Microwave. While the Blazer starters did what they could, their anemic bench scored a total of 27 points across Games 3,4,and 5. Meanwhile, on the other bench, was Vinnie “The Microwave” Johnson. A stocky 6’2” guard with an unorthodox jump shot, Johnson’s play inspired the ideal phrase for instant offense off the bench. It didn’t take long for him to heat up. He averaged 18.5 points in Games 3-5, and ripped the beating heart out of Blazermania with a crazy last second jump shot in Game 5. The final score: Detroit 92 Portland 90.
My friends and I could only slump to the ground with our heads in our hands, as the Piston bench ran and celebrated on our court. 3 straight losses in Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum? How? Inconceivable! And wouldn’t you know it? The Pistons lost in Portland 113-101 early the following season. They’d finally break the 17-year regular season losing curse in 1991.
Now after a lengthy run of being a downright abysmal team, while still paying a former head coach $7 million a season for the next 5 years, the Pistons come to town with an East leading 21-6 record. Go figure! They’ve found their superstar in Cade Cunningham, and have some other intriguing young talent that is sure to be tested come playoff time. The Pistons currently hold a 2 game winning streak against the Blazers at the Moda Center.
On the flip side, the Trail Blazers are still trying to find their way out of the wilderness. The once feared homecourt advantage they enjoyed is nothing but a distant memory. They’re currently 5-6 at home and haven’t had a dominant year at home since the 2018-19 season when they finished 32-9. But enough of that! Let’s see if we can stick this landing on a fun note.
Paul Allen bought the Blazers the season before that magical 1989-90 team. He inherited a 26-year-old superstar in Clyde Drexler averaging 27 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, plus a few other good complementary players. After finishing 39-43 and being swept out of the first round, Allen fired head coach Mike Schuler. He then signed off on the franchise altering trade that brought the legendary Buck Williams to Portland. The rest is some of the best in Blazers history.
Next season Tom Dundon takes over as the new majority owner. He’ll inherit a 26-year-old burgeoning superstar in Deni Avdija averaging 26 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, along with a bevy of solid role players. The current coaching situation can be best described as “extremely fluid.” Could history be repeating itself? Portland could do a lot worse.
