It’s Not Goodbye, It’s See You Later
In the spring of 2006, I was a junior at Western Oregon University with absolutely no idea what to do with my life. The gut-check of the real world was looming large in my future and I knew I had to get serious about life. Play time was over. I talked to counselors, professors and mentors — all of whom suggested pursuing an internship.
After finally tracking down the advisor on campus said to have “connections”, reality smacked me right in the face. The only internship opportunity he could think of was at the Marquis Spas in Independence, Oregon. Not to knock Marquis Spas, but even at that age I knew I needed to find a field that I could become passionate about. Plus, that “connection” was closer to a maybe than it was a sure thing.
From that moment on I realized if you want something to happen in your life, you have make it happen yourself. Relying on others to carry the load in the pursuit of a dream will never get you where you want to be.
A lifelong sports nut that grew up memorizing box scores and league leaders, studying trends and reading every sports column in The Oregonian, my immediate thought was to try my hand in journalism. I found my way into a News Editor/Sportswriter role with the school’s paper, the Western Oregon Journal. From there I tracked down a sportswriting internship at Salem’s Statesman Journal for the fall, working under a respected editor named Jim Day.
After getting a glimpse of the media side in sports, I set my sights as high as possible and applied online for an internship with the Portland Trail Blazers.
It was almost like one of those things where you sign up for a chance to win a free $500 gift card from Amazon knowing in the back of your mind there’s no way you’re going to win. Seriously. I’d completely forgotten that I’d thrown my hat in the ring until March of 2007 when I received an email from Caitlin Volkman asking if I was still interested in the interactive marketing internship (yes, I’m really dating myself — the term ‘digital’ wasn’t even trendy yet). While I’d completely forgotten that I even applied, I’ll never forget exactly where I was, what I was doing, the computer I was on and the goofy email address I was using at the time I got the news.
I’ll always wonder what made Caitlin pick my name out of the stack of applicants.
I spent the next three months manning the digita — er — interactive fort. In those days that consisted of “creating chatter” and “starting buzz” on the team’s two social networks at the time: MySpace and iamatrailblazersfan.com.
It was the ideal gig; I was able to stay at school and work remotely, 70 miles south of the Rose Quarter. I had exactly one tour of the front office and only a handful of interactions with the head of the department at the time, a guy by the name of Dan Harbison. Even better, was that my roommates, who were also my best friends, would frequently leave on road trips with the basketball team, so I’d have an empty house with zero distractions for long periods of time.
As we approached the summer break and my spring internship was coming to a close, I applied for a handful of summer internships with the Blazers, trying to keep the lifeline open. A couple of weeks later I learned that I would essentially have a chance to continue my work with the interactive team, or, pursue a summer internship with the sports communications department. I asked my boss at the time, Caitlin, for her advise. Without hesitation she said, “do the communications one, you’ll love it.”
Enter Collin Romer. Collin and I met casually in his office and really just shot the breeze for about an hour. We talked sports, pop culture, stats, Portland, basically just a free-flowing conversation. That was my interview. And it was good enough to get the offer.
Five years my senior, but toting a boatloads more life experience, Romer taught me a lot about being professional, doing things right, attention to detail and quality standards.
There was a period of about a month where I was finishing the school year before diving into my new internship. During that time something historic happened: the Blazers won the 2007 NBA Draft Lottery.
I remember being at open gym, mid-game at Western’s Old PE building when I heard the news. Someone saw it on a TV in one of the offices and announced it to the entire gym. Everyone reacted with excitement and cheer. Then it hit me — wait, I WORK for the Blazers.
My first week on the job, Collin and his soon-to-be wife were on their annual tropical vacation. So I got my first bit of tutelage under a guy named Mike Hanson, who had decades of PR experience in both the NFL and the NBA. Little did I know at the time, but my first day in PR was the beginning of the end of Mike’s time with the Blazers as Cheri Hanson (no relation) was making a triumphant return back to the city where she started her NBA career.
My first official day as the PR intern was also Cheri’s first day as VP of Communications. For anyone that’s ever started a new job, you know how busy that first day is. Now, multiply that by ten, because Cheri was taking over a communications department that had just won the NBA Draft Lottery. I bet she worked 18 hours every day that first week. But, in true Cheri Hanson fashion, she felt it was important meet with the new intern on his first day.
I’ll never forget that first conversation, it went something like this: “So we’ll be sending you out to the Practice Facility tomorrow with Mike. Shadow him, learn from him, be a sponge.” She then handed me the list of players scheduled for pre-draft workouts and the third name down almost made my jaw drop. The name was Derek Raivio. Derek and I had spent hundreds of hours together at the Vancouver Hoop during our teenage years, working on our game, challenging the adults to 2-on-2 and watching Chicago Preps on the TV in the lounge. Now, after a decorated career at Gonzaga, Rav was beginning his professional basketball career the same week that I was (granted, in very different capacities).
I then asked Cheri why she took time to meet with me on her first day. I’ll always remember her response:
“You never get a second chance at a first impression — and you rarely get a second chance to make someone feel like they are a priority.”
Cheri then asked me why I wanted that internship. My response was as simple as it was simple-minded: “It’s the Blazers, I’m from Portland. I’d do anything to work here.”
In a very nurturing, but equally professional manner, Cheri responded: “My goal is that by the end of the internship, you for you to want to work in PR as much is you want to work for the Blazers.”
Talk about perspective.
That first summer was a riot. ESPN was out at the practice facility every single day. I got to see Kevin Durant’s full workout — even snuck a quick photo from my Motorola Razr. I then witnessed Greg Oden’s full workout. I met Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge at the Portland International Airport to greet both KD and Oden as they arrived in Portland for their workouts. Despite winning the NBA’s Rookie of the Year award a few months prior, Brandon introduced himself without a shred of ego.
As my summer internship was coming to a close, I told Romer that I wanted to keep my foot in the door with the Blazers. I’d left a good enough impression on him and Cheri that they offered me the season-long internship. Unlike the interactive marketing internship, though, this one would require a lot of time spent in Portland.
I would make the 1-hour, 15-minute commute to and from WOU and Portland every Tuesday and Thursday, as well as every home game. To help pass the time on those lonely I-5 drives, I positioned my laptop on the passenger seat where my peripheral vision would suffice as I made my way through every season of The Wire. (Mom, if you’re reading this, don’t worry. I only occasionally looked over at the screen.)
Towards the end of the 2007–08 season I was facing a crossroads. Graduation was approaching and so was the end of my internship. I begrudgingly applied for an entry-level PR gig with the Memphis Grizzlies and a few other teams.
Then, out of nowhere, a position opened up in Portland’s communications department. It was a coordinator position that would be split 50–50 between sports communications and corporate communications.
Coming out of a 15-month internship, I was a shoe-in, right? Wrong. Once again, reality hit me hard. I was one of 200 applicants that applied and had to go through several rounds of interviews just like all the other candidates.
As I approached the final panel interview there was a company-wide hiring freeze that would last for several weeks. Keep in mind, while my friends were traveling the world fresh after graduation, I was still interning full-time at the Blazers hoping it would pay off. There’s no words to describe the mental state that uncertainty and second-guessing does to a 22-year-old fresh out of college. Those were difficult times. I didn’t realize it until later, but I was a shell of myself. I was just going through the motions.
Finally in mid-August, the freeze was lifted and my final panel interview was scheduled. (I still remember the two employees that suggested I wouldn’t be a good fit for the position. Those things drive me. But anyway…) On September 1, 2008, I was presented with an offer letter for full-time employment with a $32,000 salary.
Eventually the 50–50 experiment, splitting time between corporate communications and sports communications, failed. It was too difficult to keep both sides happy while only being able to allocate half of my attention to each. My role was shifted to full-time corporate communications reporting to Bill Evans — a Cheri Hanson product from their days with the Seattle SuperSonics and Milwaukee Bucks.
The ensuing years involved several shifts in the org chart surrounding communications, corporate communications and community relations. Management was trying to find a good fit and I reported to no fewer than three different supervisors over that time including Alissa Moore, Traci Rose and one of the coolest SOB’s in the business, Jim Taylor.
The Rose Quarter was at the forefront of the sustainability craze in 2010, which meant there was plenty of corporate communications to go around. We became the first existing venue in the world to become LEED Gold Certified, we became the largest hub for electric vehicle charging along the I-5 corridor and we were consistently the NBA’s go-to for all things “Green Week”.
All of that was fun, and kept me busy, but my heart wasn’t completely into it. I missed the basketball side of things, and was drawn to all of the new emerging technology — especially social media.
However, the less-demanding duties of my role at the time allowed for immense personal growth. In 2011, I got married, bought a house and began a family with my partner in crime, Chrystal.
As monumental as 2011 was for my personal growth, the calendar year of 2012 was equally impactful for me professionally.
It all began on the day of the NBA trade deadline, when the team shipped Gerald Wallace to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for their 2012 draft pick — an asset that would eventually become the number six overall pick. Shortly after that, while Portland was hosting the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament, President Larry Miller announced the dismissal of head coach Nate McMillan during an impromptu press conference held in one of the conference rooms in our corporate offices.
You could just sense things were headed in a new direction.
A couple moths later, in June, Neil Olshey was hired as general manager and a complete overhaul of the culture was underway.
Just as fate would have it, neither Jim Taylor (who was now head of PR, Cheri was shifted over to Team Relations) nor Collin Romer were able to attend the 2012 NBA Draft in New York.
Next man up.
In anticipation of the draft, Jim had me attend pre-draft workouts and get familiar with our prospects (we also owned the #11 pick in the draft, so it was a busy month). I was tapped to do both the PR duties and the content-gathering duties throughout the four-day trip in NYC. I was advised to keep my eyes on two players in particular: Damian Lillard and Andre Drummond. That was merely a gut feeling that was passed along to me, not a tip of the hand.
While in New York, I followed the two of them around during community appearances, media availabilities and, eventually, on draft night itself.
Shortly after shaking David Stern’s hand, an emotional Damian Lillard left the stage, did an interview with ESPN and was then given a big hug from John Calipari (of all people) as he exited the arena bowl.
The next person to introduce themselves to Lillard was yours truly.
Dame was quiet and calm. You could tell he was extremely humbled. An outlier next to the 13 other guys in the green room, guys that had grown up on the covers of magazines, played in the McDonald’s All-American Game and under the bright lights of major college programs.
I took Dame through the media circuit in the depths of the Prudential Center, which included a Skype call back to a rabid fan base in Portland and a national media conference call.
Before I could even catch my breath, a very tall fellow by the name of Meyers Leonard came walking through the tunnel with a Trail Blazers hat on. I met him halfway, introduced myself and set up to gather some quick content. While he was just as emotional as Damian was, Meyers didn’t pass on the opportunity to call me out for my iPhone freezing while trying to get his reaction footage.
The 2012 draft was one of the highlights of my career. I still remember overhearing Tyler Zeller’s uncensored reaction to being traded, seeing Portland natives Terrance Ross and Terrance Jones embrace in the back room after being drafted and an incredibly emotional Doc Rivers — Austin Rivers exchange.
Back in Portland two months later, Olshey hired Terry Stotts as head coach and the regime that currently stands today was off and running.
Wedged in between Scotts’ arrival and one more big hiring, I had another unique opportunity on my hands. I was the PR guy teamed up with Bill Schonely to travel to Springfield, Massachusetts as he accepted the Curt Gowdy Award at the Basketball Hall of Fame.
To grow up listening to Schonz on the radio from the basement of my parents’ Parkrose home to becoming his right-hand man during the biggest weekend of his decorated career was nothing short of spectacular.
Hanging with the eccentric Schonely family tree throughout the weekend and rubbing shoulders with the who’s who among NBA lore isn’t the first story I tell folks from that weekend, though. That story goes like this: On the day of inductions, The Schonz decided he didn’t like the dress shoes he brought with him on the trip. He wanted a different color to pair with his navy blue suit. A thorough Yelp search revealed that the nearest shoe store was 30 miles south of us in Hartford, Connecticut. Bill, his wife Dottie and I loaded up in a Crown Vic and drove 45 minutes down I-91 to get my man a new pair of kicks. Look good, feel good, perform good.
It wasn’t more than one month after I got back from the Hall of Fame when Paul Allen named the new president and CEO of the Portland Trail Blazers and Rose Quarter, Chris McGowan. Despite all the glamour and incredible memories that came in the proceeding months, McGowan’s hiring was by far the most impactful thing 2012 brought to my career.
On opening night against the LA Lakers, I was asked to help show McGowan around the arena on game night. That duty would normally be reserved for someone much more senior than myself, but at the time that person was also entering his first season with the Trail Blazers. Another opportunity.
McGowan and I hit it off in a way I never could have imagined. Working with someone that high up in the company was previously unheard for someone in my role at the time.
Over the next several months, I was one of his go-to guys to get things done. That included showing potential new hires around the venue, giving my opinion on a variety of topics, helping increase his presence on social media, creating business operations updates, heading up our new VIP services venture and even project-managing an overhaul of the lobby in our front offices.
The 2012–13 season included yet another opportunity, as I was assigned as Dame’s PR guy at All-Star Weekend in place of Collin (Jim Taylor was assigned to the veteran LaMarcus Aldridge). Dame was so down to earth that he invited me and team reporter Casey Holdahl to hang with him in his hotel room that first day.
Two nights later, after he won the NBA Skills Challenge, I was walking the tunnel of Houston’s Toyota Center when I heard Dame call my name. He told me Kenneth Faried might use him to throw a pass during the Dunk Contest and wanted to know where he should go. I pretended like I knew what I was doing and took him, still in uniform, through the back hallway filled with suits to the opposite side of the court where we stood and waited for a few minutes before an NBA rep took over.
The following summer, I worked very closely with our head of corporate communications Michael Lewellen preparing for the biggest business announcement you’ll see in pro sports — an arena naming rights deal.
I entered the 2013–14 season without knowing it would be my last in PR — an incredible season that was capped off with The Shot against Houston.
On a drizzly May morning in 2014, McGowan called me down to his office, something that wasn’t uncommon at the time. He knew that I was growing out of my role in PR, I missed the basketball side of the business and had a knack for social media. He informed me that there was a headcount opening up in digital and the way the position was being restructured he thought I’d be a good fit.
On August 1, 2014 I began my digital career as Managing Editor of Digital Content for the Portland Trail Blazers and Rose Quarter. The guy I reported to had arrived the previous year after a successful career with the Columbus Crew of the MLS, an even-keeled midwest guy that I think of as an older brother, TJ Ansley.
The head of our department was a guy I’d read about in articles online, heard about in circles and only had brief encounters with up until that time. He was the man responsible for single-handedly changing the relationship between social media and sports, the snarky wit behind the infamous LA Kings twitter handle, Dewayne Hankins.
Underneath TJ, Dewayne and Chris, I was in an extremely favorable position to reshape the flow of content for the Blazers, tap internal and external resources to produce the best product possible and take advantage of the long leash provided to take risks. Top-down buy-in on social was very rare in the NBA at that time and we were able to do some really cool things.
From the 2014–15 season through the 2015–16 and 2016–17 seasons, we built a dream team of content creators that is unparalleled at the team level in American sports.
We touted the most dedicated beat writer in town, an extremely progressive graphic designer, a wizard of a video editor, an unworldly motion graphics guy, the best photographer in the state of Oregon a video production director that gave digital content a seat at the table and a workhorse of a utility player.
Behind the talents of those guys, under the direction of TJ and Dewayne and with the permission to push the envelope from McGowan, we were able to rack up back-to-back NBA Digital of the Year Awards and named the #1 NBA Team Twitter account two years running.
We’d reached the summit.
About a month ago, I was driving home from a game and saw an email pop up on my phone. Still southbound I-205, I opened the note to learn of an interest in my services from a digital content agency in San Diego called STN Digital.
I’d heard of their work before because the Atlanta Hawks used them, but wasn’t entirely familiar. After a Google search brought me to their eye-popping sizzle reel, I had to know more. Following a few email exchanges, we set up a phone call and immediately vibed. The founders, David Brickley and Brett Regan, share a lot of the same characteristics and interests as I do. Even after our phone call ran long, we exchanged emails about philosophy and strategy. Felt like a real good fit. They said they’d be in touch.
On a break during our quarterly all-staff meeting the following week, I got on a call with David and Brett. They shared the same “good fit” feeling and wanted to fly me down to get to know each other better in person.
Standing in the ADA section of the Moda Center looking down at the Winterhawks’ ice, I had a gut feeling that this was it. This would be my next career step. But I didn’t allow myself to believe it. The moment I stepped off the plane in San Diego two weeks later, I had another gut feeling: this is it, this is where I’m supposed to be. But still, I wouldn’t allow myself to fall for it. While leaving the STN office after meeting with the crew, that same feeling popped up again. Still, I told myself, keep your head down, continue to grind — Trail Blazers content is still first and foremost your priority.
As offers and contract negotiations, ensued, I still couldn’t let myself become attached. It would have been a huge disservice to my current employer — an employer that had given me 10 years full of opportunities.
It wasn’t until last Friday, March 24, after a verbal offer from STN, that I let the emotions pour over me. The first person I texted was Dewayne, whom I’d been very open with during the whole process. Then Chrystal and I called every family member to let them know it was a strong possibility we’d be relocating to California.
Dewayne was completely transparent with me about my trajectory with the Blazers. He gave me advice, told me personal stories and shared several quotes about career, family and work-life balance. You won’t find a better person to help with career success, honesty and growth. I’m truly blessed to have had the chips fall like they did over these past 10 years.
My last day as a Portland Trail Blazers employee will be April 1st.
My first day as an STN Digital employee will be April 12th.
After college, I learned that, yes, if you want to get something done you need to do it yourself.
But after looking back at my 10 years with the Blazers the one constant I can point to is taking full advantage of opportunity.
Make sacrifices, work hard, put the team first, and if a rare opportunity falls in your lap do it to the absolute best of your ability.
