The Portland Trailblazers entere
The Portland Trail Blazers entered into the NBA as an
expansion team beginning in the 1970-71 season. Although they experienced the
usual struggles of an expansion team, within 7 seasons they had won an NBA
championship.
From the beginning the Trail Blazers had some talented
players. One in particular was Geoff Petrie, who played only 6 seasons. In his
rookie year Petrie scored over 2,000 points and he would never average fewer
than 18.0 points per game.
Despite having such prolific scorers as Geoff Petrie and
Sidney Wicks, the Blazers posted losing records each of their first 6 seasons.
By the 1976-77 season, both Petrie and Wicks were gone and
had been replaced by a team centered around Bill Walton and Maurice Lucas. With
a core group of players that also included Lionel Hollins, Bob Gross, Larry
Steel and Dave Twardzik, the Trail Blazers made short work of their opposition
during a 14-5 run through the playoffs. In the NBA Finals of that year they met
up with a potent Philadelphia 76ers team that had Julius Erving, George
McGinnis, World B. Free and Doug Collins. Nevertheless, the Blazers emerged with
a 4 games to 2 victory over the Sixers.
In addition to 1977, the Blazers have made two more trips to
the NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992. These Blazer teams were led by Clyde Drexler
and Terry Porter. In 1990 they lost to Isiah Thomas and the Detroit Pistons. In
1992 the Blazers lost in 6 games to Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls.
The Blazers also advanced to the Western Conference Finals in
1991, 1999 and 2000. In 1991 Portland was defeated in 6 games by Magic Johnson
and the Lakers. In 1999 the Blazers - led by Rasheed Wallace and Isaiah Rider -
lost in 4 games to the San Antonio Spurs of David Robinson and Tim Duncan. In
2000, the Blazers - now with Scottie Pippen and Steve Smith - lost a great
series to Shaq, Kobe Bryant and the Lakers.
Throughout their history the Portland Trail Blazers have been
one of the most successful NBA franchises. In the 27 seasons between 1977 and
2003, the Blazers made the postseason 26 times, including 21 straight trips
between 1983 and 2003.
Since their first season, the Portland Trail Blazers have had
many notable players on their roster. Some of them have been:
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Ron Brewer (1979-1981)
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Dale Davis (2001-04)
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Clyde "The Glide" Drexler (1984-1994) Hall of Famer
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Kevin Duckworth (1987-1993)
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Lionel Hollins (1976-79)
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Jerome Kersey (1985-1995)
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Maurice Lucas (1977-79, 1988)
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Calvin Natt (1980-84)
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Lloyd Neal (1973-79)
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Jermaine O'Neal (1997-2000)
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Tom Owens (1978-1981)
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Jim Paxson (1980-87)
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Geoff Petrie (1971-76)
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Drazen Petrovic (1990)
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Scottie Pippen (2000-03)
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Terry Porter (1986-1995)
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Zach Randolph (2002-)
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Kelvin Ransey (1981-82)
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Isaiah Rider (1997-99)
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Clifford Robinson (1990-97)
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Arvydas Sabonis (1996-2001, 03)
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Steve Smith (2000-01)
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Damon Stoudamire (1998-2005)
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Rod Strickland (1993-96)
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Mychal Thompson (1979-1986)
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Kiki Vandeweghe (1985-88)
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Rasheed Wallace (1997-2003)
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Bill Walton (1975-78) Hall of Famer
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Kermit Washington (1980-82)
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Bonzi Wells (1999-2003)
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Sidney Wicks (1972-76)
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Lenny Wilkens (1975) Hall of Famer
The design of the Portland Trail Blazers novelty fabric consists of
black and red squares. Within the squares are jerseys, basketballs and
the Blazers' logo.
This Portland Trail Blazers fabric is licensed by the NBA and is for
individual consumption. Any other use of this NBA fabric is prohibited and
illegal. The Portland Trail Blazers cotton fabric is not suitable for children's
sleepwear.