In the June Gameops.com Interview
we look at this tribute in two very different situations. We
are joined by Trailblazer Operations Staff (Joe Bivona
and Todd Bosma) and the former Vice President of Communications
for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Charley Frank.
This season the
Blazer retired the 8th player jersey in team history when
the honored the career of former Trailblazer Clyde Drexler. Joe
Bivona and Todd Bosma join us to discuss the ceremony and
their presentation for the Portland fans.
Gameops.com: First
lets talk about why you retired the number....was this
motivated by tickets sales, as a community relations
event, or was it just Clyde's time.
"We
wanted to make this a great evening for Clyde
Drexler, make it a great evening for our fans
and make it a great evening for our owner, Paul
Allen." |
-Joe
Bivona
Portland Trailblazers |
Bivona/Bosma: It
was pretty much Clyde's time. Houston jumped on it
and they retired his number a while back, but we have a
policy not to retire a number until a few years after the
player retires.
As far as the
date, we just looked for a mutually agreed upon date when
all parties could do it, so it really wasn't a ticket sales
tool. We sold out every game this season so there
isn't much we do that is driven by selling tickets per
se. [Editors note: although it should be pointed
out it happen to be a Tuesday night vs. Vancouver].
Gameops.com: How
many players are hanging in the rafters now and how is
that decision vetted out?
Bivona/Bosma: Back
in the 80's they retired a lot of players, and they have
tried to make it a bit more selective. A lot of
the players up there now were inducted for their efforts
during the Championship year in 1977. It really
is a decision made by upper management and (owner) Paul
Allen.
Gameops.com: Did
you do any premium item giveaway that night?
Bivona/Bosma: We
did a limited edition numbered lithograph for every fan
in attendance. It was a very nice poster.
We
also sold limited edition t-shirts that night at the
merchandise stands, that said "Clyde's Night" and
his career stats on the back. A portion of the
sales were donated in Clyde's name to a local charity.
Gameops.com: How
were those sales?
Bivona/Bosma: We
sold out of the shirts before the game started.
Gameops.com: As
for the presentation itself, can you walk through what
you did?
Bivona/Bosma: There
were really three angles that we approached this from. We
wanted to make this a great evening for Clyde Drexler,
make it a great evening for our fans and make it a great
evening for our owner Paul Allen. We designed
the festivities around those things.
We
started out the evening with a pre-game reception. It
was an opportunity for Clyde, his former teammates, friends
and family together along with Paul Allen.
There
is a lot of pride in this city for the Blazers, so we
thought it was important to bring back as many former
players as possible. We alos invited everyone who
has had their number retired previously by the team. Clyde
also had some special requests. This reception
was private.
At
halftime we decided to invite selected teammates, all
players who have had their number retired, as well as
Paul Allen out with Clyde for the ceremony.
In
a rather gracious gesture our current management invited
back the former owner and former president. So
we had Blazers management past and present there to honor
Clyde.
We
thought we really had just about everyone a fan could
want to see. We really felt the more the merrier
on the court.
Gameops.com: Talk
about the actual presentation at halftime.
Bivona/Bosma: This
is relatively standard for these types of presentations. We
turned the lights out and played a 3-minute career retrospective
of Clyde. Clyde then took the court to a standing
ovation, then our MC, Steve Jones who was also a teammate
of Clyde's, introduced the VIP and Clyde's family. Then
Paul Allen spoke and we presented gift.
Each
of the presenters had a gift to present, including a
framed jersey, a commissioned piece of artwork, and a
custom ring. Paul Allen then also presented Clyde
with a street sign for the road next to Memorial Coliseum
which was renamed Drexler Drive. That took Clyde
by surprise.
Finally
we presented Clyde with two banners that were signed
by over 20,000 fans, raised his number to the ceiling
and then Clyde spoke to the fans for about 6 minutes.
Gameops.com: So
you had an extension on the halftime?
Bivona/Bosma: Yes,
we had contacted the league and asked them for a halftime
extension for the presentation.
Gameops.com: How
about in-game, did you do anything during the time-outs?
Bivona/Bosma: During
the first half we had a count down the top-5 Clyde plays,
which were voted in the weeks leading up to the game
on Blazers.com. We had video flashbacks and some
former teammates, who couldn't be there for the ceremony,
taped messages for Clyde.
Gameops.com: How
often do the Blazers retire numbers?
Bivona/Bosma: This
was the first since the late 80's.
Gameops.com: Anything
unexpected pop up or any advice for teams working on
something like this?
Bivona/Bosma: Rehearse
until it hurts. We did it 3 times the afternoon
of, but I would do it once more if I could have. It
also would be a good idea to run it once a couple days
before, since if anything large would have gone wrong
in rehearsal we may not have had time to correct it.
Gameops.com: How
about staffing?
Bivona/Bosma: It
was our regular staff plus, we had a host for every VIP,
which was really helpful. We had staff volunteers
for each one to help keep track of everyone.
Gameops.com: And
post game?
Bivona/Bosma: We
had a post-game reception where everyone had the chance
to unwind and talk. It also was a chance for the
current Blazers to stop and say hello to Clyde.
Gameops.com: How
was the feedback?
Bivona/Bosma: The
night was very well received and all the feedback was
extremely positive. We also had great television
coverage and we covered it on our web site as well.
While the Blazers celebrated
the stellar career of former Blazer Clyde Drexler, the
Minnesota Timberwolves honored a player under very different
circumstances last year. In Part Two of the Gameops.com
Interview we discuss the somber memorial presentation made
to honor Timberwolf Malik Sealy who lost his life in a
tragic automobile accident at the end of the 1999-2000
season. Joining us is former Timberwolves Vice President
of Communications Charley Frank.
Click
here to go to Part Two of the Gameops.com Interview
Video
tribute, 57-second silence part of ceremony
Darryl
Kile Death Story - How the teams dealt with it in-game
Blazers.com
Bio of Todd Bosma
Portland
Trailblazers
Minnesota
Timberwolves
Gameops.com
Focus Charities
- Jersey
Numbers Factoid
Yankees were the First to Make
Uniform Numbers Permanent
In
1929, the New York Yankees became the first team to make
numbers a permanent part of the uniform. Other teams
quickly adopted the idea and, by 1932, uniform numbers
became standard for all teams. The initial distribution
of numbers on the Yankees was made according to the player’s
position in the batting order. Therefore, in 1929, leadoff
hitter Earle Combs wore #1, Mark Koenig #2, Babe Ruth
#3, Lou Gehrig #4, Bob Meusel #5, Tony Lazzeri #6, Leo
Durocher #7, Johnny Grabowski #8, Benny Bengough #9,
Bill Dickey #10 (Grabowski, Bengough and Dickey shared
the catching duties). (From yankees.com)
