CJ mccullem autograph: to dear Portland

Dear Portland ,

Do you know how I know this news is true ？

Not by woj The news of the bombing , Neither shams. I am not loved by my relatives and friends 100 Multiple text messages wake up . There is no drama , I actually know it will happen .

Although this business alliance can sometimes be crazy and cold , But in this deal , Everything is public 、 Transparent and honest . This is the bond between me and the pioneers . We know , Although this chapter is very beautiful , But the end is coming .

To my buddy Chris - Hayes * Compliments , But I have to tell the inside story myself . For me personally , Only in this way is it correct .

* notes ：ChrisHaynes, The United States MSNBC Sports commentator .

Portland News

It's really interesting , Because the night before the deal was reached , Damian and I （Dame） In the dressing room , We are joking and chatting , Just when I was going to the steam room , My phone rings . If you know me , You will know that I always turn on do not disturb mode . If it weren't for the deadline , I just put the agent in my address book “ Take special care of ” in , In this way, his phone can be connected at any time .

So when the phone rings , It's like the ringtone in the horror movie . Everyone stopped . I looked down at my cell phone , Found him .

Then Damian looked at me like that ：“ Oh, shit , Is that it ？ Did it really happen ？”

We've been talking about rumors about the deal , This is like a joke to us , You know what? ？ We have talked about in the past （ Many times ） This topic has become a hot topic , because （ Gossip ） There are too many , We won't be immersed in it .

My reaction was ：“ wait a minute , Let me see what happened . I'll probably be back soon .”

I came out into the corridor , The agent told me , Negotiations with New Orleans are under way , But the transaction has not been completed . He told me to hurry . So I walked back to the dressing room , say ：“ Not yet ！！！ I'm still in here , brothers ！”

《 The Wolf of Wall Street 》 The stem of the little plum , You know what ？“ I *** I won't leave ！！！ My performance continues ！！！”

We are all laughing , After all, what else can we do ？

Obviously , When I left the stadium that night , I know it may be the last time we are together . however , Be able to leave according to your own wishes , Instead of receiving... In front of everyone （ Officially traded ） Telephone , Or someone called me out during training , That's good . It all happened in a perfect way . My family has a child more than a month old , So my wife and I have only a few hours of deep sleep . The next morning 6 spot , We get up and feed the baby . Tell the truth , The atmosphere at that time was very suitable , Even a little poetic . This city we love deeply , Sit in the home you built , The sun has not yet risen , And I was half asleep holding my son . All dads know why this moment is difficult to describe in words .

At this moment , My phone rings .

At six in the morning , You already know who it will be .

I got through , It's my agent . He told me , The deal is officially finalized , I'm going to New Orleans , Is true . The news may explode in a few minutes , So be prepared .

I remember sitting there with my wife , The little guy is very calm , Everything in the house is quiet , My cell phone hasn't exploded yet , We just look at each other , like ：“ wow , ok . So what to do now ？”

This is not just business . Portland is home . You can't stay in one place 9 Years without being affected by it . I'm not talking about basketball , It's your heart . I don't even know how to say goodbye to you . The night the deal was finalized , I went to our training hall , Take all my shoes from my cupboard 、 Orthosis and everything . And these people are not there . That's a very unrealistic feeling , Because I'm not sure how quickly they packed things . But when I walked in , They have taken my nameplate off the cabinet , And everything . Our equipment manager has arranged everything , And wrapped it for me in front of my cubicle .（ Thank Eric and Corey , I will miss you .）

You can't stay in one place 9 Years without being affected by it . I'm not talking about basketball , It's your heart .——CJ- McCollum

My plan is to leave a signed shirt on the chair in front of everyone's locker , But when I was with security 、 Staff and （ Over there ） After everyone who makes every day in Portland so special , I really don't have a shirt left for the young people in the team , Then I had to send “ I owe you （I.O.U.）” SMS . You know, , When you have so many brothers in the team , You have to place an order to buy more jerseys , It's true .（ To my friend ToddForcier Pay tribute to , The best strength coach in the League ！ When I was there 3 month 31 When I see you again on the th , I'll bring you a shirt and 30 Chicken nuggets . Don't worry ！！！）

In a way , I'm really happy that no one is around at this time , I can have a final look at my locker , See everything in your eyes . Because I think , If I see my teammates at this time , Then I may be at a loss . It's interesting , When Damian finally came in , When I saw the shirt on his chair , He texted me saying ：“ blamed , brother , You really make me cry ！”

We can't make Damian cry . Children can't see these . It's like seeing Dibo * Cry .

* notes ： Dipo - Samuel , American football players （ The figure below ）.

What you must understand is , Damian and I have really grown up together in this place . It's crazy in retrospect , But I remember , In my first year in the League , Whenever we play away , We often take a bath as soon as possible after shooting practice in the morning , Put on the team's sportswear , Then go directly to the mall . No nap . No security . Nothing there? . Like two children playing truant . We will be in San Francisco 、 Houston or somewhere Galleria Shop in the department store for hours , Casually enter a store , Of course, this is before getting big money , So we are shopping in medium-grade shops . We will say , Give me that. , I'll take it at a 30% discount . We will definitely go and have a look Macy Department stores , May order a glass of smoothie , Maybe a pretzel .

I still remember the rookie year , I'm special 、 I especially want a watch , But it's too expensive for me . Our price is about threethousand dollars , But I'm very afraid of going bankrupt after buying it . So I always walk into the store , Talk to the person at the counter , And then go out . At that time, the mentality was probably like , Next time , Next time , Next time . Then Damian said ：“ brother , Take that damn watch , You're in NBA ah .”

I think ：“ brother , I don't want to be in 20 Years later, it appeared in some E:60 platform * In the documentary of ！！”

* notes ：《E:60》, yes ESPN An American sports news program broadcast .

therefore , I saved my travel expenses for two months , With this money, I paid half the cost of the watch . I still remember walking into the store , I was very nervous when I handed the card . Laugh if you want , But that watch means a lot to me , I must still have it . It reminds me of a certain period when I was a child , For this game 、 This city 、 All these are strange times .

Damian and I once wandered the street for hours, but no one could recognize us , Although at that time we were wearing a full set of Blazers' uniforms . Sometimes we go back to the hotel , Just carry a pile of shopping bags , Jump on the bus to the stadium . The old men and women in the car will look at us , It's like saying ： please .

Interestingly , When I recall it now, I will think , How can we go straight to play that night after three hours of non-stop shopping 35 Minutes of play ？ This seems unimaginable now . I need to take a nap in the afternoon now . I need to meditate 、 Stretch and recover . Think about how much has changed since then , It's crazy . Now after shooting practice , Damian and I just keep talking with our son FaceTime conversation . But when you are young , Life is a movie , It's like living in a dream .

I remember Damian was first recognized , And I was still unknown for some time . My mind is like , dude , When will someone come for me ？ That must be cool . When can I see someone wearing 3 Children in Jersey No ？

In the second season , I still haven't started . I clearly remember the day when I told Damian ：“ dude , I will never start here . Why did they choose me ？ I don't understand .”

Then Lillard used a “ Are you out of you mind? ” Look at me with your eyes —— You can imagine his expression . He said ：“ What are you talking about ？ brother , Sooner or later, we will control this backcourt together , We will stay here for a long time , We will change this place . You'll see .”

I just said ：“ Whatever you say , But I didn't see .”

He just repeated ：“ You'll see .”

Time came to the playoffs that year , I got... In the game against Memphis Grizzlies 33 branch . Damian ran over to me after the game and said ：“ You see ？ Did you see? ？ What did I tell you ？” He didn't laugh , Just look at me face to face ,“ We can play together , We will control all this ！”

He has such a vision . I don't know how he saw it , But he did .

Without my teammates , None of this makes sense , It's just business . And over the years , I have a group of incredible teammates . No - Williams , Earl - Watson ,D- Wright , Evan - Turner , No - Huckles , Chris - Kaman . Shabaz （- Napier ）, LaMarcus - Aldridge . I can keep talking .

Of course , And the crossbow machine （ Nurkiki ）. I will never forget the crossbow machine .

Bosnian brothers of my life .

I will never forget him 2019 Suffered leg fracture in , Trapped on the sofa at home , I always send him FaceTime Make sure he's okay . But one day , I decided to visit his house . When I came in , I only heard some from the TV room “ talk nonsense ”, He switched the channel to sports center and other programs . And I said ：“ brother , Don't mind me , This is your home . What do you usually watch , We'll see what we want .”

He said ：“ Are you sure you want to see what I usually see ？”

I said, ：“ Yes , Why not? ？”

Just then , I was Amway's Bosnian TV station . Of course , We are not talking about the kind with subtitles , It's a pure unedited webcast from Bosnia . There were many performances , dude . I think it should be called Bosnian soap opera , But it's also a bit like comedy ？ There is a handyman , He is after a young woman , This is probably the main plot . But then they will flip the plot , Put on some crazy dramas .

I kept asking the crossbow machine ：“ ok , So he is a mechanic now ？ He wants to try to be with her , still …？”

I think this is a serious scene , Then the crossbow machine began to laugh , Look at me , It's like saying ： see , Interesting ？ This guy is crazy .

And during that time , The expensive foreign breed cat of crossbow machine wanders in the house , And he drank his daily habit 7 To 10 Cup of coffee . This is the overall style when you go to the crossbow machine house . He rolled the cat and told me ：“ You must buy a smart pet dog camera , I'll buy you .”

（ He really bought it .）

After I was traded , When I call the crossbow machine , When I told him I had left a shirt on his chair , He said ：“ Oh , I already have one .”

I ：“ what ？？？”

He said ：“ Yes , I stole one from the equipment room after your last game .”

My teammates , This is what I think at this moment . Not those victories and defeats . Just my teammates . When I write this article , These are the memories that flashed through my mind .

Yes , Of course , I also think of one summer when we were in Las Vegas , Damian and I get up at six in the morning for training , Sleep only four hours a day . I thought of the perfect barrier set by the crossbow machine for me . But tell the truth. , Now the memories that come to my mind are all little things , Just like the memory of watching Bosnian TV channel with crossbow machine that day .

There is a year of Thanksgiving , Damian's father invited me to their house for dinner , Made me a cow tail . For the first time, I tasted the real Oregon Pinot Noir , It's with Tim - Fraser is in a wine shop . I tasted volcanic soil for the first time , It's in Oregon Ringside Steak house *. After each game , I'll be there Departure The restaurant * having dinner , Sit at the same big table every night . When I'm sweating in the traffic , It was during the rookie years that ad asked me to buy him KrispyKreme Doughnut time . That time in Los Angeles , Ad asked me to buy him chicken wings , Gave it to me. 500 dollar , And told me not to tell Wes （ Wesley - Matthews ） And Nick （ Nicholas - Batum ）, So I can also get money from them （ You are the real MVP, A De ！）. After the training, I received D- Wright's text message , Above said ：“ Go downstairs , New people . I'll take you to eat .”（ Now I'm the one who takes care of the new people .）

* notes ：Ringside Steak house 、Departure The restaurants are all local restaurants in Portland .

Such little things .

After being swept away by warriors in the West battle , When I first returned to downtown Portland , I don't know what the atmosphere of this city will be like . Countless people came , Their reaction was like ：“ well , I just want to say , Thank you . It was a great game . We love you all ！”

Well, I mean , We were swept away , But that whole summer in Portland , We still haven't paid for a dinner . This represents a good atmosphere . People are very grateful that we can turn the team around . For me, , This is the charm of Portland . People don't think of me as just a basketball player , They see me as a member of their community .

For me, , This is more than just a shirt , A team . This is my home . I get married here 、 Brood , I started my personal career here . I took root in the wine shop here . Part of me will stay in Oregon forever , Especially my community work . I'm excited about the next chapter of my life , But don't worry , My heart is still eternal *.

* notes ：DiCaprio Refers to Hollywood star Leonardo - dicaprio , here CJ Quote his masterpiece 《 Titanic 》 A classic sentence .

This is more than just a shirt , A team . This is my home .——CJ- McCollum

I will never leave here ！！！

This statement is not accurate , But this is always my second hometown .

That morning , When we get information about the transaction , When we sit there thinking about the next step , Everything is still calm . I told my wife ：“ Do you know what the coolest part is ？ This is not an ugly breakup . This city has been treating us well , We're separated , But the relationship is still harmonious . Really? , What else can you ask for ？”

I want to go to New Orleans , This is the real thing that can eliminate the sting . As a pure basketball player , I'm very happy to be with Cain 、 brandon - Ingram 、 Volanchunas and all these young people play together . I really feel that I have brought enough professionalism and full preparation , because 9 In the last two years of my career , I've seen everything about this alliance . I was DNP too , Also cut down 50 branch , I have been suspected , Be exaggerated , Participated in the tiebreak , Scored the winning goal , Also missed the kill . When you were new in the League , You don't know what you don't know —— Please accept the words of this passer-by who once walked around in the mall . I think I can bring a lot of wisdom to New Orleans . As a person , I'm very excited to be moving to this city , Watch some football games at super dome .（ But my son is still on the way to becoming a Cleveland Brown fan , I apologize .）

After all the rumors and speculation , Finally, the problem was solved perfectly . There is no dramatic bridge , No nonsense , In full professionalism , What else can I ask for ？

To everyone in Portland ——

To my teammates , To this team , To the fans , To the entire Portland community …

thank you , thank you , Thank you very much .
Thank you from the bottom of my heart .

I will continue to pay attention to you in another place .

Our bond is so deep . It goes beyond language , More important than victory , More important than what happens on the pitch . For me, , It is the laughter of nine years 、 Pain 、 heart-broken 、 Happiness and spiritual growth . It's all I have .

At the end of that day , When I look back on all this , Looking back on how far we have come as a team , You'll find it crazy . In a small ball Market , In the corner of the West Coast , We created a lot of excitement , Created many memories . We remain loyal , Speak for this city with sincerity every day .

I will always be proud of it .

Maybe we haven't reached our final goal . This is basketball . it is life .

But damn it , If we didn't try , How do you know if we can do it ？ Is that so? , Jennifer .

Love you ,

CJ