Atlantica - 01.03.2001, Síða 36

3 4 A T L A N T I C A
moment thus far came during “Dance for Your Dinner”, a silly
form of diversionist entertainment sponsored by a local fast-
food Taco chain. Yep, that’s correct. Promoters plucked a few
random fans out of the crowd, luring them onto the court to
act like fools for food. The winner, a man so corpulent that he
should’ve been dancing for diet tacos, shook his roly-poly
“groove thing” at centre court. The once languid fans worked
themselves into a frenzy when this guy sketched towards the
lady referee who, being a good sport, momentarily danced
with the hefty fan.
You gotta love this game… It’s Fantastic!
The crowd finally responds to the real entertainment, once
the Blazers turn up the defensive pressure at the start of the
fourth quarter, showing the flashes of brilliance that make the
team one of the favourites to win it all. The Blazer players pick
apart the hapless Wizards like schoolyard bullies, the domi-
nation so complete that the team holds the Wizards to only 11
fourth-quarter points, en route to an 87–70 victory. The crowd
erupts into deafening chants of “Go Blazers!” The arena
shakes with applause.
Once the final buzzer sounds most of the crowd scrambles
for the exits, prepared to battle through the traffic jams
caused by some 20,000 screaming fans driving out of stadium
parking. The truly fanatical stay behind to watch the post-
game interviews on the court, momentarily satisfied that their
Blazers are back on the winning track, blazing a trail towards
the playoffs. And possibly a championship.
Edward Weinman is a staff writer.
The only person who seems to be in a good mood tonight
is Andy Frezza. No, you won’t find Frezza on any roster; he’s
the video game guy, and the loot he possesses will cheer up
the team, win or lose. A modern day Santa Clause, Frezza has
a box full of Sony PlayStation 2s. The company Frezza works
for supplies pro teams with games and machines (yeah, like
these millionaires can’t afford to buy their own toys). “A lot of
players want to get the games for their kids,” says Frezza,
standing with a buddy in the hallway of the locker room. “The
stores are just so crowded and they don’t want to wait in line.”
Oh… to play in the NBA.
TIP OFF
Here I am sitting in the press section during an NBA game. So
what if the Blazers have been struggling of late. So what if the
team is playing the Wizards, a cellar dweller. This is the NBA,
and, as the league’s marketing pitch says, “The NBA is
Fantastic”. The rallying cry for the NBA is also, “I love this
game”. Few in tonight’s audience are enjoying the Blazer’s
performance. As the third quarter ends, the crowd seems on
the verge of showering the team with tomatoes.
I’ve followed the Blazers ever since I was a small kid. I can
still name the starters from the championship team. Heck, I
even remember which two were vegetarians. So despite
tonight’s sluggish performance and the fickle fans, all is cool
in my world. Then again, my ticket was free.
The fourth quarter of this defensive struggle (a polite way to
say that both teams are a bit salty) begins with the Blazers
clinging to a 60–59 lead. For the fans, the most exciting
NBA
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