Logo design: Five parallel red lines slant right and upward from the bottom and curve left to meet five parallel white lines that curve downward and leftward from the top. It is supposed to represent trails being blazed.
On February 6, 1970, the NBA board of governors granted the Blazers franchise, after the Blazers paid $3.7 million to join the league. In that year, the Buffalo Braves and the Cleveland Cavaliers also joined the league. The team was based around Geoff Petrie, a first round draft choice, and the 6'10" (2.08 m) tall LeRoy Ellis, whom they picked up in the expansion draft. Their first season the Blazers finished with a 29-53 record, which although generally poor was the best out of the three new teams to the NBA. The next year, the Blazers won only 18 games, but rookie Sidney Wicks was named Rookie of the Year of the NBA. The Blazers did not beat their first season's record until they drafted Bill Walton from UCLA.
Recent franchise history
After nine years as president and general manager, Bob Whitsitt announced his departure from the Trail Blazers on May 7, 2003, stating that he was retiring to focus his attention on the Seattle SeahawksNFL team. However, he had been the subject of continuous criticism from the team's fans and both the local and national press for team performance on the court, as well as player legal troubles off the court. The Blazers announced Steve Patterson as team president June 18, 2003 and announced that John Nash would become general manager on July 15.
Overall, Portland's first two decades in the league were marked by consistent play, periodic brilliance, and ardent fan support, and were an admirable contribution to the annals of basketball.
Portland entered the NBA Finals as the underdog to the Philadelphia 76ers, led by Julius Erving, the spectacular forward who was reinventing the game with his gravity-defying slam dunks.
Portland posted a 45-37 record in 1980-81 and appeared to be headed in the right direction, but the season had its bumpy patches.
Portland's playoff road to the Finals was fairly easy considering that they were not the top seed in the Western Conference.
Portland could not figure out how to stop the Sixers' attack and if the Blzaers were going to have any shot at winning the title, the time to make their move was now.
Portland fans held their breath as Philly threw up a flurry of shots in an effort to force overtime.
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