“Up 3-1 and you can just see the headlines, right? LAKERS COLLAPSE. It could have changed the course of the next 10 years.” — Mitch Kupchak, Lakers general manager
“It’s still a gut-wrenching loss. I still feel terrible.” — Bob Whitsitt, Trail Blazers general manager
Twenty years ago, before the Trail Blazers flew to Los Angeles for Game 7 of the Western Conference finals, Brian Grant remembers sitting in a room in the Rose Garden arena with teammate Jermaine O’Neal.
They were studying a large picture on the wall from the Trail Blazers’ 1977 championship parade through downtown Portland when Grant broke the silence.
“I remember telling Jermaine, ‘This could be us,’” Grant said. “’This right here, it could be us. It would be something incredible.’”
They were one victory from advancing to the finals, having won two in a row against the favored…
