Page 6 Portland Observer. August 11, 1982
J
Unless there are some changes in
mind that are being kept secret, the
Portland Trailblazers are seemingly
doomed for last place in the mighty
Pacific division.
As o f n o * only Seattle appears
concerned w ith keeping pace with
the W orld Champion Los Angeles
Lakers.
Seattle has signed former A ll-P rc
David Thompson, and th a t’ s a
move that will surely help
Portland’ s drafting and trading
policies leave a lot to be desired. For
years they seeemd to only stand pat
while drawing their usual 12,666
fans to each contest.
The one question that is kicked
around the most is that some people
seem to think that management
(Blazers) is content and w ill not
spend money as long as the loyal
12,666 continue to show up.
James Green, Blazer fan, thinks
the ownership can’ t feel the beat
and perhaps local ownership would
be better.
Larry Weinberg, Blazer owner,
has stated repeatedly that he would
spend the money to purchase any
qua lity players available to the
team.
Weinberg says this but his actions
in the past have proved quite to the
contrary.
Portland has long needed a big
man, and wasn’ t A rtis G ilm ore
available? Didn’ t San Antonio sign
him to a big contract? Just have to
wonder where Mr. Weinberg’s purse
strings were then.
Sure we would like to believe him
when he says money is not an ob
stacle, but his past actions w ill not
allow us to.
How can he ju s tify trading a
bona-fide first round draft choice,
Kelvin Ransey, for a second-round
journeyman? W as it salary?
W hy did he trade one o f the best
power forwards in basketball,
Maurice Lucas, when it was
common knowledge that Luke was
asking to renegotiate? Money again.
Is Portland money conscious?
“ I think they are," on fan chor
tled. "W hy else would they let play
ers like Lucas, Lionel Hollins, and
Moses Malone get away?"
‘ ‘ I d o n ’ t care what they s a y ,"
Lou Harris confides. "The real an
swer is in the money. From a pure
business standpoint I can under
stand what they’ re doing, but how
long are the fans going to put up
with a mediocre team is the question
here.”
There are many reasons that Port
land does so badly in the draft but
the main one is believed to be mon
ey.
It seems that Portland brass will
use a first round selection to draft a
second round player.
The player becomes awed at being
selected so high that he’ s happy to
sign the dotted line A point in case
is Lafayette " F a t ” Lever, P o rt
land's number choice and the I Ith
overall pick in the 1982 pro draft.
Lever stands 6-3, 175 pounds. Lever
played four years at Arizona State
and in 113 games shot .450 from the
floor, had 453 rebounds, and shot a
respectful .752 from the charity
stripe. He had 444 assists and aver
aged 16.1 points per game. A ll good
figures but hardly good enough to
warrant a high first round selection.
Lever will be easy to sign.
Last year it was V irg in ia ’ s Je ff
Lamp, who became the latest in a
long line o f Blazer mistakes. Like
Lever many N B A scouts thought
Lamp would be available on the sec
ond round.
Portland raised more than a few
eyebrows when they made him a
first round choice.
W hat seems to amaze us ail is that
management is constantly expelling
the need for a big man but their last
five first round selections have all
been guards. And the beat goes on.
Portland w ill certainly finish in
the basement if they enter the com
ing season with the likes of: Peter
Verhoeven, Mike Harper and Peter
Gudmundsson. These guys just
aren’t now, and never will be, NBA
players.
And add to that list M r. Lamp.
This writer w ill never understand
how some could consider Lamp as
having a lock on making this team.
It certainly was no, based on his
rookie year’s performance, where at
times Jeff even doubted himself as
to whether he could play in the
league. Sure, he’ s having a good
year in the Los Angeles summer
league, bu, then one has only to ex
amine the personnel down there to
arrive at a true evalution o f the rea
sons why.
The Blazers sent five veterans
down and two o f inc five. Michael
Harper and Darnell Valentine, were
actually used as starters during the
regular season. No other team in the
league would bother to send down
even one player of that caliber.
Portland is making the name
L. A. rooke league a misnomer.
And aren’ t firs , round d ra ft
choices supposed to help immediate
ly? Not according to Stu Inman.
Stu, when talking o f Lever, says,
“ We expect that ’ Fats’ is a year or
two away.” One could hardly be ex
pected to attribute that statement to
the 11th best player drafted in the
entire U .S.A. And would be even
harder for one to think that a team
finishing as low as Portland, a team
that missed the playoffs, could a f
ford the luxury o f drafting for the
future when help is needed urgently
and right away. One would expect
teams like L .A ., Boston and Phila
delphia to fo llo w those lines. It
would appear that someone is living
in the past. Perhaps someone should
remind those powers that be that the
"W alton gang” is gone and that the
futue is now at hand. And someone
should remind someone tha, J e ff
Lamp can’ t learn foo t speed and
that he can go to the L .A . rookie
league for ten years and would never
learn to keep up with the Norm Nix
ons and Gus Williamses o f the
league.
It appears likely that the eighth
wonder o f the world is upon us.
Or could you believe the next
wonder o f the boxing world?
Dwight Braxton at 5-6 and 174
pounds sim ply destroyed the 6-3
former lightheavy champ Matthew
Saad Muhammad. Braxton took it
to Saad and clearly destroyed him
with stinging jabs and a ferocious
body attack. In the third round the
champion set his opponent up with
a bea u tifu l com bination to the
body, then winged in an overhand
right that decked the ex-champ. We
had Braxton p itching a shut-out.
For a fighter that never fought as an
amateur Braxton is remarkable.
His fig ht w ith WBC champ
Michael Spinks should be a dandy.
And the prediction here is that no
light-heavyweight around can with
stand the punishment o f Braxton.
Jerry Cummings, the DePaul All-
American, is serious about joint the
Athletes in Action. Mr. Cummings
is very religious and one day plans
to become a minister.
Bat right now he’ s one heck o f a
basketball player and San Diego
owner Donald Sterling should use
every means possible to sign the
young man. Word has it tha, Cum
mings will play for the religious or
ganization if he's no, signed by Sep
tember 1st.
Fish known as sea horses are unique in the world;
they are carried and given birth by the male, and not
the female.
•
The city of Buffalo, N.Y., was not named after the
buffalo, but from the mispronunciation of the French
word "belle fleuve," meaning "beautiful river."
•
Some historians feel that Daniel Drawbaugh —and
not Alexander Graham Bell —should be credited with
inventing the telephone Drawbauah lost his claim
before the U.S. Supreme Court by 1 vote.
s
We do not do business with South Africa
American State
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Michael Dokes, ranked No. I by
the WBA, is planning to sue the or
ganization if it goes through with
the now-planned match between
Randy "T e x ” Cobb and Mike Wea
ver. Maybe Dokes should sue Wea
ver. That w ill probably be the only
way anyone will ge, him into a ring.
And look for Sugar Ray Leonard to
resume his boxing career. People
w ill scoff and say he doesn't need
the money, etc.
But really now how many o f us
could turn down ten million dollars,
and for what reasons?
Stay Physically
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Braxton—Superman o f the ring
DWIGHT BRAXTON
by A l McGUberry
He is 5-6, 175 pounds. He is full
o f fury and is a modern day warrior.
He comes to fight, to demolish, to
destroy his opponents. His name is
Dwigh, Braxton.
He reminds me o f a small Joe
Frazier only filled with more emo
tion and hate. You can see it in his
eyes. He comes to fight not to play.
Why not! He comes from the
street where every day to survive is a
struggle. Most o f his life has been
spent in prisons. He has a mission,
this man named Braxton. It is to be
the light heavyweight champion o f
the w orld. I tru ly believe he w ill
make it.
Last Saturday, August 7th,
Dwight climbed into the ring to de
fend his newly won title against the
form er champion, Matthew Saad
Muhammad at the Spectrum in
Philadelphia, Penna.
Saad is no easy prey. He had de
fended his title eight times; seven
ended in knockouts. They say his
loss to Braxton was a fluke. He has
been a great champion and was fa
vored to beat the mighty mite Brax-
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The crowd in the Spectrum was
only 6,700. Everyone fel, Braxton
would fall quick and the fight would
be over. The odds-makers fel, that
Braxton wasn’ t ready fo r the big
time. Saad had twice the amount of
fights and had fought men of great
er skills than Braxton’s opponents—
so why spend $25 to see a mis
match?
But maybe not in P hilly but all
over this land fight fans can relate to
Braxton.
Here is a guy who has never had a
chance. He has been knocked,
kicked and humiliated all of his life.
Here was his once-in-a-lifetim e
chance to make it big. He was no
Olympic champion like Sugar Ray.
He has no T.V. contracts. A ll he has
is the will to win and nobody, yes no
body w ill stop the money wagon
from coming to his door. To beat
him you have to kill him, and that’s
what the fans want to see.
So the fight began. The bell just
sets this man Braxton in another
w o rld . He becomes superman—a
real live Rocky. He was all over
Saad. He fought like he was pos
sessed. My, oh my! He was going
for the money. Saad could no, con
tain this mass o f fury.
A t the end o f three rounds o f
head and body shots Saad gave up.
Why not? Who can defend against
the wind? The gods seem now to
smile on the mighty mite.
This fight is just the beginning for
Braxton. He w ill have the unifica
tion fight with Michael Spinks—you
know, Leon’ s baby brother. This
w ill really draw big. The winner o f
this bout w ill be the king o f all the
light heavyweights. Each fighter will
be given over a million dollars.
I have no doubt what will happen
with the money on the line. I believe
with all the national exposure. Co
sell and all, this guy will not change.
He will charge at the bell and throw
punches every minute o f every
round. Can Michael contain all this
pressure? W ill Supermamn pu, on
his act again fo r us starved fight
fans? Gee whiz, I wish it was on to
day. I can’ t wait—how about you?
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