A Few Notes Ahead of Opening Night

The Trail Blazers tip off their regular season in about three hours in Sacramento. A few quick notes before then:

• On Wednesday morning, Joe Cronin made yet another hire in what has been an almost year-long remaking of the front office. The team announced that BJ Domingo who spent the last year working for USA Basketball after several years as a scout with the Bucks, was joining the organization as director of player personnel. Cronin said in the release that Domingo will "help bolster our global scouting efforts," which has been a focus not only with the hiring of Mike Schmitz as assistant GM but also with several hires of full-time international scouts.
• The Kings' No. 4 overall pick and Summer League MVP, Keegan Murray, is ruled out tonight for the season opener after spending the past few days in health and safety protocols.
• The Blazers today announced a few additions to the Moda Center concessions offerings for the coming season. Most notable among them, to me, is Ranch Pizza. A big upgrade over Sizzle Pie, which I've never been a huge fan of.
• My buddy Dane Delgado has a very cool company called Matchstick Golf, which specializes in ball markers. This week, he released a new marker with Brian Grant's face on it, for those of us who grew up in the '90s. I bought one and I don't even play golf. You can buy yours here.
• Also in the realm of Blazers-related products made by friends of mine, Trillblazin have announced a new shirt that will be available exclusively at the Moda Center on Friday for the home opener against the Suns. I won't buy it because I have a personal policy of not wearing shirts with the logos of the teams or players I cover as a journalist, but you should. It will sell out.
• Nassir Little gave is adamant that he's taller than his listed height of 6-foot-5 and has enlisted a few of us in the media to investigate. Stay tuned.
• If you missed it earlier today, I published an overview of what my coverage here is going to look like this year. I'd highly encourage you to get a paid subscription. I have a lot of big things planned.