The Legacy of Abe Pollin

Yesterday was a sad day for the city as one of the great DC people passed away. Abe Pollin is credited with bringing the Wizards and the Capitals to DC. In addition he is also one of the great unheralded philanthropists in the city. Probably one of the great owners of all time. A lot of the other owners who get a lot of TV time get the time for the wrong reasons. Snyder, Jerry Jones and Al Davis get credit because they are always meddling. That Titans owner Bud Adams was on Sportscenter more times than any other owner for giving the finger to fans. WTF. Pollin meanwhile did it the right way. He wasn't loud in his actions but always decisive and powerful. He brought the Caps and Wizards to DC. He brought MJ here and fired him...both gutsy moves. And in an era where owners are too crabby to shell out their own fortune, this was a guy who single handedly built the Verizon Center. A $200 million facility with his own money. Not needing any help from the taxpayers who are way poorer than he is. That facility pretty much revitalized the Gallery Place / Chinatown downtown area of DC. He won his championship ring in the NBA with Wes Unseld as the Washington Bullets in the late 70's. And let's not forget that even when Baltimore put up money for a new facility to be made for the Wizards and Capitals, he still kept the team in DC for his adopted home. A true owner and a sad day as the end of an era is gone.