PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – A new arena for the Portland Trail Blazers? That’s what NBA Commissioner Adam Silver hinted this week as the team is still up for sale.
In May, news the team was going up for sale sparked fears a new owner would come in and move the team somewhere else. This week, Silver told reporters it is the league’s preference the team stays in Portland, a city he said the league has had great success in.
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“One of the factors there is the city of Portland likely needs a new arena,” Silver said. “So that will be part of the challenge for any new ownership group coming in.”
Dwight Jaynes is a sports columnist who has spent decades covering the Blazers. He said the commissioner’s remarks made him pause.
“Anybody buying that team has researched everything, they know all about the arena situation,” he said. “They know all of that stuff. They didn’t need to hear that. But I think it was– it was a subtle way of putting some pressure on them and actually maybe raising the asking price a little bit.”
Jaynes said this also opens the door for Seattle, a city with no team but a new arena, to try and get the Blazers.
The Moda Center is among the oldest arenas in the NBA and has not undergone a major renovation. Last year, the City of Portland purchased the arena with plans to revamp it.
Elliott Kozuch, a spokesperson for the City of Portland, addressed Silver’s comments in a statement. He said, “Last year, the City Council approved a bridge agreement that secures the Moda Center as the team’s home through at least the 2029–30 season, while setting the stage for a major renovation of the nearly 30-year-old arena to create a state-of-the-art facility.”
Jaynes is not any less concerned.
“That’s not exactly a long-term agreement to keep the team in town,” he said. “It’s really short-term, actually, in the big scheme of things. And I think too, they had leases in other places and teams were able to buy their way out rather than spend lame duck seasons.”
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Since the team went on the market, Sen. Ron Wyden has been very outspoken of his desire for the team to stay.
In a statement he said, “As for the arena discussion, that’s not a new issue and I will keep working with the commissioner along with officials from both the Blazers and the city to ensure the Blazers stay in Portland. Simply put, I will keep working whenever with whoever to achieving that goal.”
Jaynes said he does not think it will make a difference.
“If somebody buys the team and wants to move it to Seattle, there will be nothing anybody can do to keep it back,” he said. “I don’t care, governor or mayor or whatever you’re talking about. They’re wasting their time… The other owners in the league are not going to vote against a franchise moving because they might want to move someday themselves.”
Jaynes said he knows of two groups in Portland getting involved in the sale process with the goal of making sure the team stays. Silver told reporters there are groups actively engaged with the estate of former owner Paul Allen, who are showing interest in buying the team, but offered nothing past that.
