Oregon expects to issue its first batch of recreational marijuana licenses Friday to an eclectic mix of entrepreneurs including longtime marijuana growers and others new to the industry like former Trail Blazer forward Antonio Harvey who still works for the franchise as a popular radio personality.

Among others in the state's newest crop of licensed pot growers: John Plummer, an owner of the trendy Doug Fir Lounge in Portland.

Harvey on Thursday told The Oregonian/OregonLive that he's informed the Trail Blazers of his family's plans to start a recreational cannabis business and that his contributions will be limited to that of an investor. He said his bosses asked him not to "flaunt" his role in the company.

"I don't partake in marijuana," he said. "I don't use any of the products. For me, this was a business opportunity and a chance to support my wife and her family."

The Trail Blazers declined to comment.

Harvey, 45, had stints with six NBA teams, and played for the Trail Blazers from 1999-2001. He joined the Blazers broadcast team to provide color commentary alongside Brian Wheeler in 2005 and has been with the team ever since.

Harvey and his wife, Jennifer Speer-Harvey, and brother-in-law, Daniel Speer, are on a list of eight businesses set to receive a license this week from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission for their marijuana production operations. Their business outside of Canby in rural Clackamas County - and their brand - is Terra Mater.

Speer-Harvey said her family has deep roots in the nursery business and welcomed the chance to branch out into Oregon's newly legal pot market. She said her family began preparing for the application process since last fall and filed the paperwork in January.

"We have worked very hard to get to this point," she said. "Our goal was to be among the first."

Harvey is the second Trail Blazer alumnus to enter Oregon's cannabis market. Former forward and NBA All-Star Clifford Robinson has said he hopes to start a marijuana business. He's already registered a name: Uncle Spliffy Sports Cannabis.

In addition to Harvey's business, the liquor commission plans to sign off on licenses for the following companies: New Breed Seed, Far Out Farms, Yerba Buena, Smokey Mountain Farm, Pacific Wonderland Craft Cannabis, Southern Oregon Cannabis Company and Loved Buds.

The commission is charged with issuing six types of marijuana licenses: researcher, lab, producer, processor, wholesaler and retailer. State officials have given priority to cannabis producers so stores can open with plenty of supplies later this year.

The agency has received 624 applications from cannabis growers. In all, the agency has received an estimated 906 applications.

When it comes to marijuana production for the recreational market, the state has created a tiered licensing system based on the size of the grow site and whether the marijuana is grown indoors or outside.

A Tier I license for indoor growers allows producers to cultivate up to 5,000 square feet of space. Tier II covers between 5,001 and 10,000 square feet of production.

For outdoor growers, a Tier I license allows cultivation of up to 20,000 square feet, a little less than a half-acre. Growers who hold a Tier II license could cultivate between 20,001 and 40,000 square feet or a little less than an acre.

The licenses expected to be approved on Friday are a mix of outdoor and indoor cultivation.

Plummer, an owner of the Doug Fir Lounge on Burnside and the East Chinatown Lounge in Old Town, as well as the downtown shoe store, Johnny Sole, is also expected to receive a license to grow recreational cannabis.

He said his farm, Pacific Wonderland Craft Cannabis, will be located on an organic vegetable farm in rural Clackamas County. The company's product will carry the brand Bull Run Craft Cannabis, he said.

The venture is Plummer's first into the marijuana industry. He called regulated recreational marijuana a "game changer" because of the tax revenue it can generate for the state and the jobs it will create.

"A lot of people don't realize how much money this is going to pull into the state," he said.

Laura Rivero, operations manager at Yerba Buena, a marijuana cultivation facility in the small Washington County community of Laurel, said the company's staff worked hard to submit a thorough application so they could receive one of the first licenses.

The company has grown quickly, she said. A year ago, it had only two employees. Today, it employs 13, all of whom receive health and dental benefits and paid vacations.

"It's very, very compliant, by the book and aboveboard," she said. "We are trying to be an example for other businesses in this industry."

Though the Riveros previously grew under the state's medical marijuana program, Laura Rivero said the state's new medical marijuana rules make it impractical to continue. She said Yerba Buena will focus exclusively on producing for the recreational stores.

"That is where the market is heading," she said.

-- Noelle Crombie