No. 30 headed for rafters

Twin ceremonies to honor Blazers Terry Porter and Bobby Gross

By kerry eggers

The Portland Tribune, Dec 16, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (1 Reader comment)

Terry Porter was point guard on the Blazer teams of the early ’90s, twice playing in the NBA finals with Clyde Drexler. Porter and Bobby Gross both wore No. 30, and each will be honored in separate events when the jersey is retired.

BILL BAPTIST / GETTY IMAGES

Of the players who have worn the red, white and black of the Trail Blazers during the team’s 39-year history, Bobby Gross and Terry Porter were hardly the ones who seemed most destined for immortality when they arrived.

After transferring from Seattle University, Gross wasn’t even a starter as a junior at Long Beach State. He came to Portland as a second-round draft pick in 1975.

The 6-3 Porter was a forward who sometimes guarded the opponent’s center during his time at NAIA Wisconsin-Stevens Point. The Blazers made him a late first-round selection in 1985.

Now, nobody in the future of the Portland franchise will wear their No. 30 jersey.

It’s being retired in a pair of ceremonies – at the Dec. 16 game against Sacramento for Porter and at the Dec. 18 game against Phoenix for Gross.

Gross, 55, was the starting small forward on the 1977 championship team. He played all but one of his eight NBA seasons in a Blazer uniform. Gross works in commercial construction and restoration and has made Portland his home for almost all of the past 33 years. Wife Cindi, a Portland native, and their children – Traci, 30, and Kristin, 26 – will be at the Dec. 18 ceremony.

Porter, 45, was the point guard on the great teams that reached the NBA finals in 1990 and ’92. He teamed with Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler in the backcourt. Porter turned to coaching after his 18-year (11 with Portland) playing career ended in 2002 and is now coach of the Phoenix Suns. Wife Susie and their children – Brianna, 16, Franklin, 13, and Malcolm, 11 – will attend the Dec. 16 ceremony.

Difficult team at first

A native of San Pedro, Calif., Gross says he turned down “hundreds” of scholarship offers to play with his older brother, Richard, at Seattle U. A coaching change was the biggest reason Gross left after a year and a half and transferred to Long Beach State, 12 miles from home.

During Gross’ two seasons at Long Beach State, the 49ers were banned from the postseason because of recruiting violations by ex-coach Jerry Tarkanian.

As a junior, Gross was a key reserve during Lute Olson’s lone season as coach, and the 49ers finished 24-2 and were ranked among the nation’s top five. As a senior under coach Dwight Jones, Gross was conference player of the year –and caught the eye of the late Stu Inman, the Blazers’ director of player personnel.

“Scouting wasn’t as sophisticated in those days,” Gross says with a laugh. “Stu told me he saw me the first time when he went to see somebody else.”

Gross arrived in Portland for the 1975-76 season, the last of Lenny Wilkens’ two years as coach. With stars Geoff Petrie and Sidney Wicks not getting along, Gross found things different from what he was used to in college.

“Everybody was out for themselves,” Gross says. “That was the feeling I got. It was a big shock coming from college. I don’t blame Lenny. He had a difficult group of players. With Sidney and Geoff … that was the root of most of the problems, those two guys.”

Blazer management and coaches thought enough of Gross to trade starting small forward John Johnson early in the season, opening room for Gross to play major minutes off the bench. The next season, coach Jack Ramsay came on board, along with seven new players, including power forward Maurice Lucas and guards Dave Twardzik, Herm Gilliam and Johnny Davis.

“The biggest thing was that Bill Walton was healthy, which he hadn’t been my rookie year,” Gross recalls. “He was the kind of player I wanted to play with – somebody who made everybody else better.”

Gross averaged 11.4 points on .529 shooting during the regular season, then stepped up his game in the postseason, averaging 17.3 points in the finals against Philadelphia. In Game 5, he scored a team-high 25 points to lift the Blazers to a road victory and a 3-2 advantage in the series.

“On that team, Bobby’s contributions were underappreciated,” says Ramsay, 83, an analyst for ESPN radio. “He was the consummate small forward. He could run the floor, he could defend, he was a great passer, had a good shooting touch, was extremely athletic, always played within the offense and had a great feel for the game.

“He was the key to us beating Philadelphia for the championship. I felt going into that series that he would score against Julius Erving, who was not a tenacious defender, tended to play off his man and roam the lane. Bobby just got open consistently and made a lot of big hoops for us.”

Late in Game 5, Ramsay says, the Sixers put on a run that closed Portland’s lead to four points. Ramsay called timeout and a play for Gross.

“Bobby came off a screen on the baseline, got the open jump shot and knocked it down,” Ramsay says. “That was pretty much the game.”

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