Page 6 Portland Observer Thursday, June 29, 1978
Blazer ticket cost ¡aerease:
Is it justified?
Sports Talk
by Ron Syke«
What is the word on Bill Walton?
Depends, these days, on w ho’ s
asking the question and who’ s an
swering. D r. Robert Cook team
physician says all is well as can be
expected. Jack Scott, B ill’ s friend
and confident, says not. B ill, says
nothing.
For the past several months now
Mr. Walton has been “ simply out”
to the working press.
There has been rumor upon rumor
about the future playing status o f
M r. Bill . . . the question remains.
’ ’ W ill he play again?” I f the NBA
season was two months away, then
the answer would be “ n o .” A t
present Bill is somewhere in Oregon
soaking his sore fo o t, and s till
unable, supposedly, to put any
pressure on the foot. Blazer brass
aren’ t giving up on Bill Walton, for
surely he is the franchise, but Rookie
center-forward, Mychal Thompson’ s
stock is really soaring due to the un
certainty o f W alton’ s sore foot.
It is this w riter’ s belief that the
controversial article w ritten about
B ill’ s rare bone disease by a local
paper, just wasn't too far o ff.
The paper subsequently published an
apology and admitted that the writer
really had nothing to substantiate his
accusations.
Maybe not but there’ s some reason
why the foot is so slow in healing.
And that’s not just this injury, but
almost every injury that Bill suffers
takes a long, long time to heal. At
26, Bill Walton is on the downside o f
the h ill, not chronological, but
physical. Last year W alton played
by Bill Schaefer
fewer minutes o f any starting center
in the NBA.
In an e ffo rt to cut down on
Walton's injuries Ramsay employed
Bill fewer minutes then any starting
center in the N BA . . . but it ob
viously d id n 't w ork, and now the
question is, what w ill work?
Should be one interesting season
and. again, it w ill be successful.
Look fo r three new faces on this
years rooster. Thompson, Brewer
and possibly V illa n o va ’ s M ike
Herron. Herron would be a long shot
and if so would have to show more
promise than the veteran Larry
Steel.
Ex-G rant H i ace D arryl Motley
boarded a plane Monday morning
for Sarasota, Florida, and will begin
play in the G u lf Coast Rookie
league.
Darryl w ill begin as an outfielder,
but the young man really can play
any position.
Now I ’ ve witnessed many a ball
game in my lifetim e and have seen
quite a few ball players, and can
truthfully say that Mr. Motley is the
only player that I ’ ve seen that could
play all nine positions on the field,
and play them all superbly. I f this
young man doesn’ t play m ajor
league baseball . . . then mother
goose “ ain’t no” nursery rhyme.
A nd, then, there's Keith Rice,
6’ 5” , basketball player out o f Port
land’ s Washington High, who has
become the first Black player to
finish a season at BY L. M r. Rice is
happy . . . so be it. But, B Y U !!!
The Portland T ra il Blazers’
treasury w ill be enriched by almost
one-half m illion dollars during the
1978-79
N ational
Basketball
Association season because o f a
recently announced 50 cents across-
the-board increase in the cost o f a
ticket.
But is the increase justified?
Probably not.
Businesses that boost prices fo r
their products or services usually
ju s tify the increases because o f
dim inishing p ro fits in the tace o f
higher costs for labor and material.
They show, or try to show, the ab
sence o f a “ reasonable p ro fit" due
to cost factors.
But the T ra il Blazers are hard
pressed to poormouth their financial
picture, particularly after last
season’ s outstanding box office per
formance. The team enjoyed a
sellout for all 41 home games, an un
precedented achievement in the
NBA.
George Rickies, the Blazers’
business manager, refused to disclose
any in fo rm a tio n about the team’ s
balance sheet. “ Those figures are
our own,” he said testily. “ That’ s
something th a t’ s an internal com
pany matter.”
The two major cost items for the
Blazers are player and administrative
salaries and per diem air transpor
tation, Rickies said. The Blazers
travel first class but at the standard
rate, a club spokeswoman said, with
no special discount.
First class fares on domestic
airlines increased about two percent
last year, according to one travel
agency. But by hiking the price o f a
$4 standing room only ticket to
$4.50, the Trail Blazers w ill realize a
12.5 percent profit on those tickets
alone.
The newest increase in the cost of
Blazer tickets follows increases the
previous two years. Increases varied
from seat to seat during the 1977-78
season but in some instances the
boosts went as high as $1.50 a ticket.
Also, some ticket prices went up for
the 1976-77 season, Rickies said.
But Rickies said the increases were
justified.
“ Maybe we’re going to hire some
new guys, I don’ t know,” he said.
“ But whatever is being paid, we’ re
giving them (the fans) a finer, more
interesting basketball team to sup
port.”
Rickies did not deny that the Trail
Blazers made a “ reasonable p ro fit”
last season and added that the team
had “ reasonable assurances” that it
would operate in the black again
during the 1978-79 campaign. But he
refused to rule out another price in
crease next year.
“ Maybe we might run into a bum
year,” he said.
He said he had “ no idea” about
ticket prices for the 1979-80 season.
“ We hold meetings each season to
establish what our prices w ill be for
the coming season,” he said. “ We
have projections but we've got to see
the final figures firs t."
Students enjoy summer program
(Continued from Page 1 Column 3)
to make and throw away. It was
significant cu ltu ra lly, in that the
youngsters were guided in producing
an ancient African game that would
be entertaining for a long time. Also,
the volunteer craft director, Donna
G a ith e r, had showed them th a t
games do not need to be plastic
gadgets bought in shiny boxes.
These games were made w ith
decorated egg cartons and cherry
stones.
The lunch tables were crowded
with over fifty kids being served.
The staff was maintaining an at
mosphere of order and friendliness,
while a parent volunteer, Ms. Hazel
Polk, was giving motherly assistance
to some o f the younger participants.
Outside, after lunch and films,
some o f the children scattered to
their favorite games: four-square,
Get high interest with just $10(1
tether-ball, half-court basketball;
while others simply enjoyed watch
ing. Many were using the swings and
other play equipment in the play
yard which is part o f the Berean
C h ild Care program . One little
pretending m other was in the
playhouse, serving a plateful o f grass
to her "fa m ily ” . Rather than stand
ing around ju st supervising, the
teenage staff were involved playing
with the children.
Am ong other locations where
d is tin c tiv e summer recreation
programs also exist, are: M allory
Avenue C h ristia n C hurch, King
Neighborhood Facility, Urban 4-H,
Peninsula Park, and the Reading
Tree at Irving Park.
Portland fans gat their first look at the Blazer’s rookies Thursday night in an
ticipation of another exciting and winning season.
South African Ambassador
representative to give the rationale
for their policies towards Jews; when
America was fighting in Viet Nam
objectivity did not demand that Ho
C hi M in h be invited to send a
representative to address the United
States Congress about his perspective
o f the war in Viet Nam. It is felt that
in the case o f '.he South African Am
bassador objectivity is being used to
justify the unjustifiable.
(Continued from Page 1 Column 6)
Black Community feels it is an insult
to all Black people in the city for the
W o rld A ffa irs C ouncil and ¿he
Chamber o f Commerce to invite an
“ o fficia l” o f such a government to
our city.
As a result, a number o f very
prominent organizations have w rit
ten a letter to the W orld A ffairs
C o u n cil protesting the vis it.
Signatures to the letter were: the
NAACP (Portland branch); United
M inority Workers; Herb Cawthorne,
Director o f the Educational Oppor
tunity Program o f Portland State
University; Center for Community
M ental H e a lth ; Reverend Edsel
Goldson, St. Andrews Community
C hurch; N ick Barnett; P ortland
A ssociation o f Black Social
Workers; Black Educational Center;
N ortheast C o a litio n o f N eigh
borhood Associations and Fungai
Kumbula.
The W orld A ffa irs Council un
doubtedly feels this invitation has
been extended in the name o f objec
tivity. When America fought Ger
many, objectivity did not demand
that H itle r be invited to send a
It is very encouraging to see such a
wide variety o f Black organizations
and individuals uniting around the
treatm ent o f their Brothers and
Sisters in Africa. It is hoped that this
unity can be maintained to address
local issues that affect Black people.
AU these groups feel that until South
Africa recognizes all its people as
equal citizens, deserving o f equal
treatment and protection under the
law, it (South A frica) should be
ostracized from the international
community. That’s the only way to
bring about peaceful change. These
organizations strongly deplore the
high-handed actions o f the Chamber
o f Commerce and the W orld Affairs
Council in persisting with this visit
over aU their objections.
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