Blazermania: This Is Our Story

Guaranteed to delight NBA historians and Blazermaniacs a like, this release chronicles forty years of Portland Trail Blazers basketball with an amazing collection of anecdotes, rare photographs, and more.

Guaranteed to delight NBA historians and Blazermaniacs alike, this release chronicles forty years of Portland Trail Blazers basketball with an amazing collection of anecdotes, rare photographs, and more. Blazermania: This is Our Story captures the magic moments and behind-the-scenes stories that have unfolded in the four decades since Harry Glickman and his serendipitous raincoat first brought professional basketball to Portland. The book highlights great moments, reveals long lost anecdotes, and uncovers photographs from the vast archives of the Trail Blazers and The Oregonian. The book takes an in-depth look at an array of topics, including: - The birth of “Rip City” and the team’s rise to prominence. - Dr. Jack Ramsay’s arrival and the road to the 1977 NBA championship. - The career and legacy of Bill Walton, the mercurial, star-crossed center. - Clyde Drexler, Terry Porter, and the beloved two-time Western Conference champions. - A new tradition of excellence, led by Brandon Roy, Greg Oden, and LaMarcus Aldridge - The team’s biggest characters, overachievers, and winners. Learn how one of the NBA’s smallest cities was transformed into one of basketball’s foremost meccas, hosting 814 straight sellouts, 21-straight playoff appearances, three NBA Finals, as well as the NBA Draft and the historic 1992 Dream Team.

Award-winning writer Wayne Thompson, the team’s first beat writer for The Oregonian and a fixture on press row for more than 2,000 Trail Blazers games, explores the unique bond between the team, its fans, and the city of Portland. A senior writer for the Portland Trail Blazers, Thompson has written for such magazines as Time, Fortune, and The Sporting News, and is the former sports editor at The Oregonian.