BLAZER BOOSTER CLUB NEWSLETTER MAY 2021 UPCOMING DATES: May 18-21 Play-In Tournament May 22–July 22: 2021 NBA Playoffs May 22 or 23 Zoom meeting ITEMS IN THE NEWSLETTER: DATES BLAZER KEN PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE “ZOOM SOCIAL” PLAY- IN TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE HOW TO REACH OFFICERS BLAZER KEN by CHAD DOING Ken Schroeder, known by everyone as "Blazer Ken" is the biggest Trail Blazers fan I have ever met but most importantly, he was a great friend. I first met him face-to-face back in 2010. I was doing morning radio for 95.5 The Game in Portland, Oregon with Dwight Jaynes. One morning we received a call from security that there was a man in the lobby who wanted to meet the "Godfather" and said his name was "Blazer Ken." Dwight and I went down to the lobby and brought him up to the studio where he stayed for the remainder of the show. That day forged a friendship between Ken and I that lasted for more than a decade. He would call me often inviting me to watch games with him, to go out for dinner, or to visit him for a cup of coffee. Ken was full of joy and had a tremendous love of people. He could talk with anyone and never hesitated to try and convert strangers to Blazermania. Ken was a man of faith and loved Jesus. He was always so kind to me and never once did he have anything bad to say about another soul. I will remember him most for the many conversations we had on the radio over the years. He would call me on my daily talk show, during my Blazers pregame show and during the 5th Quarter following each Trail Blazers game. He loved the Trail Blazers, but I think it was the connection he shared with Blazers fans in Rip City that he enjoyed the most. There will never be anyone else like Blazer Ken. He was unique in so many ways. Everyone told me I was so kind to spend time with him and show patience when he would call into my show. The truth is, he gave me so much more than I ever gave him. Blazer Ken will be missed forever. I loved him with all of my heart. PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE: Hopefully, all of us (and families) have continued to stay healthy and safe. Blazer Trivia about the 1989-90 Blazer Western Conference championship team (answers at end of newsletter) A. Name the 5 players who sometime in their careers made an NBA All-Star team. B. Name the player who made the All-NBA 3rd team one year, but never made an NBA All-Star team in his career. C. Name the player who currently is an NBA assistant coach More thanks to Sharon for putting together this and past newsletters. Also, thanks to Marja and Debbie for their monthly Zoom sessions. What great ways to maintain communication until the pandemic is over. The NBA play-in rules for teams 7-10 are discussed below. Hopefully, the Blazers finish 5 or 6. 1. If they end up and then get eliminated in the play-in, they do retain their lottery pick. However, because of their Covington trade with Houston (which basically gives our earliest non-lottery first-round pick to the Rockets), the Blazers' first-round picks for the foreseeable future would continue to be tied up and unavailable to use in trades. 2. If the Blazers make the actual playoffs this month, they lose their first-round pick to Houston, BUT all their future picks become available to use in trades Blazer upcoming unrestricted free agents: Carmelo Anthony, Blevins, Giles, Hollis- Jefferson, Kanter, Leaf. Blazer players who can opt-out and become unrestricted free agents: Derrick Jones Jr, Norman Powell ZOOM Hey Boosters let's zoom----Let’s Get Together for our 4th Blazer Booster “Happy Hour” via ZOOM . Marja Yingling will again be hosting this event on ZOOM and will send out a ZOOM invitation link for those that RSVP to Sharon Branning by Wed., May 12. The “Happy Hour” date will be the weekend of Sat., May 22 or Sun., May 23, depending on which day the Blazers will play their game. The “Happy Hour” will be the day the Trailblazers don’t play a game. If the Blazers play Sat., May 22, we will have the Blazer Booster “Happy Hour” on Sunday, May 23 at 4pm. If the Blazers play Sun., May 23, we will have the Blazer Booster “Happy Hour” on Sat., May 22 at 4pm. **** If the Blazers are out for the season, we will zoom on Saturday, May 22 at 4:00pm and cry together. Here’s what you need to do: 1. RSVP to Sharon ([email protected] or 360-260-9951) by Wed., May 12 2. Download the “FREE” ZOOM program by googling, “zoom.us” on your computer or iPhone. Click on “Sign up, it’s free” and follow the steps. Then you are all set. If you don’t have a computer, you can join the “Happy Hour” over the phone, by dialing a specific phone number with the invitation link. 3. You will receive a ZOOM invitation link for the Booster “Happy Hour” a few days before May 22 or May 23 via email from Marja Yingling. 4. If you are not familiar with ZOOM and how it works, email Marja at [email protected] or call 503-659-1663 and she will set up a practice session a couple of days before the “Happy Hour” date to allow you to get familiar with ZOOM before we meet for “Happy Hour”. This is a wonderful way to see everyone, reconnect with other Blazer Boosters from our club, and a way to have fun! HOW THE NBA PLAY- IN WORKS In both conferences The last day of the NBA regular season is scheduled for May 16. The play-in will begin May 18 and end May 21, with the first round of the NBA playoffs tipping off May 22. There will be six total games involving eight teams as part of the play-in tournament, split up between the two conferences. The teams that finish Nos. 1- 6 in each conference will be guaranteed playoff spots, while team Nos. 7-10 in the standings will enter the play-in. Any team that finishes worse than No. 10 will be in the lottery. Since there is a chance for teams to finish with an uneven number of games played due COVID-19 complications, the NBA will use winning percentage to determine the standings. Here's how the games will work: Game 1: The No. 7 team in the standings by winning percentage will host the No. 8 team, with the winner earning the No. 7 seed in the playoffs. The losing team gets another chance in Game 3. Game 2: The No. 9 team will host the No. 10 team, with the winner moving on to Game 3. The loser is eliminated and enters the NBA draft lottery. Game 3: The loser of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 matchup will host the winner of the No. 9 vs. No. 10 matchup, with the victor grabbing the No. 8 seed in the postseason. The loser of Game 3 also enters the lottery. This means that the teams with the seventh highest and eighth-highest winning percentages will have two opportunities to win one game to earn a playoff spot, while the teams with the ninth highest and tenth-highest winning percentages need to win two straight games to advance. MAY SCHEDULE FRIDAY MAY 7 7:00 LA LAKERS SATURDAY MAY 8 7:00 SAN ANTONIO MONDAY MAY 10 7:00 HOUSTON WEDNESDAY MAY 12 6:00 @UTAH THURSDAY MAY 13 7:00 @ PHONEX SUNDAY MAY 16 TBD DENVER Blazer Trivia Answers: A. Clyde Drexler, Kevin Duckworth, Terry Porter, Cliff Robinson, Buck Williams B. Drazen Petrovic C. Mark Bryant (Phoenix Suns) INFORMATION ON THE BLAZER BOOSTER CLUB: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlazerBoosterClub Email questions or concerns [email protected] .