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Sunday, January 21, 2001
Drexler to be seventh Blazer honored
Associated Press
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PORTLAND, Ore. -- More than 2½ years after his playing
career ended, the Portland Trail Blazers announced Saturday they
will retire Clyde Drexler's jersey number.
A banner with Drexler's No. 22 will go up in the Rose Garden
during a ceremony March 6.
"If there was one player that ever typifies the Portland Trail
Blazers, for me it would Clyde Drexler -- 'Clyde the Glide' on the
court, and in the way he handled himself off the court," Portland
president Bob Whitsitt said during a news conference before the
Blazers' game against Sacramento.
The relationship between the two men has been strained in recent
years. Whitsitt traded Drexler to the Houston Rockets in a
cost-cutting move on Feb. 14, 1995, and Drexler went on to get his
only NBA title later that season.
Drexler retired in 1998 after 15 NBA seasons, and last year the
Rockets retired his jersey, prompting Portland fans to wonder why
the Blazers hadn't yet honored the greatest player in franchise
history.
Whitsitt said he wanted to make sure Drexler wouldn't come out
of retirement.
"I talked to him before the season, and the first thing he said
was, `Are you asking me to play?' " Whitsitt said.
"I said, `Do you want to?' He said, `No, I'm retired.' I said,
`Good, that's what I wanted to talk to you about.' "
Drexler led the Blazers to their last NBA Finals appearances, in
1990 and '92. He's the Blazers' all-time leader in 10 major
categories, including points, rebounds and steals. He's second in
assists. In his 11½ seasons in Portland, he averaged 20.8 points
and 6.2 rebounds.
He was a 10-time All-Star, and in 1996 was named one of the
league's 50 greatest players. He retired after 3½ seasons with the
Rockets and was coach at Houston, his alma mater, for two seasons.
The other Blazers whose jerseys have been retired are Bill
Walton, Maurice Lucas, Geoff Petrie, Dave Twardzik, Larry Steele
and Lloyd Neal.
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