Worse in players and coaches..where are the "honorable" players of the past like: Vandeweghe, Kersey, Duckworth, Dudley, Drexler and Porter; and good coaches like Rick Adelman or P.J. Carlesimo?

I know that some of these players had off-court issues but they were not total disgraces.

I grew up loving basketball and the Blazers. I had Clyde Drexler posters and listened to the games on AM radio. Five years ago I realized a dream and had (as part of a group) Blazers season tickets. I’ve gone from ticket holder and diehard fan to this: A few weeks ago I turned down free tickets at a gas station and haven't a watched a complete Blazer game on TV for two or three years. Here's the problem: I hate most of the players. I don't know if there is much the team can do about it because I find that I hate most of the players in the NBA. This is a huge change for me. I loved the NBA my whole life. In the last five years, I can't stand it. The games suck. The players suck. The players lack guts, heart, skills, and work ethic. They don't all have to be choir boys - Jordan was a philandering gambling addict, Charles Barkley a barfighter, Karl Malone was as dirty as they come, even Dr. J. fathered a child with his mistress, Larry Bird had an illegitimate child, Walter Davis had a cocaine problem, Robert Parish was a domestic abuser - but I still could appreciate and like the game and most of the players. I can't now. The players are bigger a-holes. I hope that the league goes NHL on the players - lock them out, crack down on them. Ideally no guaranteed contracts, but I'll take shorter ones. Install an age limit or minimum qualification of 3 years college experience. I was with the players during the last lockout. As a union believer, and former union organizer, that is my natural inclination. But I can't do it anymore. These guys aren’t workers being exploited – its rich guys vs. rich guys, and the rich guys who write the checks care at least some minuscule fraction more about the fans than do the players, because they at least realize we are the source of revenue. The players don’t. As to the Blazers, they should let these expiring contract guys walk and build over time (unless they can unload Randolph and keep Abdur-Raheem) through the draft. Stoudamire is not an asset - yeah I know he's having a good year, kind of like when he was in Toronto wining 20 games. He's great on losing teams. Zach and Darius are punks. Maybe Zach can grow into the game; I might take that risk. Reuben is a rapist. As long as he’s on the team, I’m not in that building. Oh, and Maurice Cheeks can't coach. He's a nice man who has gravy trained that national anthem thing as far as it can go; it’s time to face facts. It’s funny, I still care somewhere deep in my mind because I still pay attention and hope – I read the articles, listen to sports radio, and wish things could change. But they won’t, and I still won't go to a game.

Hey Duke- I had the great experience of spending an entire day with Clyde last month. Long story short: I'm in the food business and so is his family. He's introducing a line of Drexler barbecue sauces and he's contracting with the same manufacturer I use in Lake Oswego. An international food show was held in SF last month and our mutual manufacturer had a booth down there and was showing all of our items. So we spent an entire day in the booth with three others. It was quite a day to say the least.

I had forgotten about how much fun it used to be to watch the Blazers, but every person who came up and asked Clyde for his autograph said the same thing about how great it used to be to watch basketball and that he was part of what made it so much fun. All those games came back to me, and yes, those were great times, gathering with friends and family, getting out the microbrews and chips, and getting so emotionally involved in the games that we either cried with joy or total disappointment. But even when the Blazers lost, we still loved them to death.

I have a question.

What happens to Rose Garden bonds held by the TIAA-CREF pensioners if Paul Allen sells the Blazers to an owner in another city (or moves it himself)?

Are there barriers in place (other than the NBA ownership) that could prevent such a move?

Just wondering.