PORTLAND — Welcoming a familiar face back to the Rose Garden is one thing, but this might be pushing it.
Tickets for Saturday’s Blazers game against the Bobcats feature a picture of Joel Przybilla dribbling a basketball — in a Blazers uniform.
Turns out there was no great strategy behind the image as the tickets are made months in advance. Even so… “It’s a little ironic, isn’t it?” Przybilla said.
After spending nearly seven seasons in a Blazers uniform, the center was traded to the Bobcats two Thursdays ago alongside Dante Cunningham, Sean Marks and two protected draft picks in exchange for Gerald Wallace.
Perhaps a bit reluctant about the move initially, Przybilla has since grown enthusiastic about his situation in Charlotte.
Why? An endorsement from the greatest basketball player of all time certainly helps.
“Michael Jordan was the first person I talked to, and he told me that he wants me to play here,” Przybilla said. “Who would say no to that?”
Przybilla is known for his tough-guy persona on the court, never shy about getting an opponent’s face for some not-so-light-hearted smack talk. Blazers coach Nate McMillan predicted he’d be the same way Saturday , but LaMarcus Aldridge said, “No, he wouldn’t do us like that.”
So who’s right?
According to Joel, it’s LA.
“I wouldn’t do that. No, not with anybody on that team,” Przybilla said. “Even though we’re trying to get a win, I respect those guys. I have a great relationship with them.”
One thing Przybilla hadn’t thought about was the ovation he’d receive from the Rose Garden crowd upon checking into the game. Although when it was suggested that it would likely be quite boisterous, he downplayed the idea.
“You think? I don’t know,” he said.
It was huge.
Whole arena on its feet.
