The Portland Trail Blazers are in the middle of negotiating with the city of Portland. They are trying to get the city to pay for all of the renovations needed for their arena. New owner Tom Dundon continues to do things cheaply.
There have been rumors that if there can’t be an agreement reached, the Blazers would move out of Portland. That would take the only team in the Pacific Northwest away. The NBA doesn’t want that to happen, as they value the relationship the team has with that section of the country.
One NBA pundit is imploring the NBA not to let it get that far.
GettyPortland Trail Blazers owner Tom Dundon talks. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
Zach Lowe Wants the NBA to Keep the Trail Blazers in Portland
On the latest episode of the Zach Lowe Show, Lowe wants the NBA to make sure that Dundon doesn’t move the team.
“Portland is an awesome NBA market with some fun history. The NBA needs to not f– this up. Do not let this guy come in here and hijack this franchise and remove it from Portland, and leave the Pacific Northwest naked of NBA teams until Seattle comes in. “Portland’s an awesome market, their fans are better than this, they don’t deserve this.”
It seems that even national pundits don’t want the Blazers to leave Portland. Dundon seems hellbent on getting what he wants, and he would certainly threaten to move the team in order to get it. The NBA would prefer that the Trail Blazers stay in Portland, though.
The rest of the NBA owners voted to allow Dundon to buy the team. That could end up backfiring if the Blazers move somewhere else. Portland has supported the team for decades, and they are some of the most loyal fans found anywhere in the NBA.
GettyPortland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard shoots the ball. (Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images)
The Blazers Should be a Good Team Next Season
No matter what happens off the court, the team should be good next season. After making the playoffs this past season, Portland should be ready to take a bigger leap. They make a bold trade for Ja Morant, which gives them a glut of players at the point guard position.
Deni Avdija was a first-time All-Star, and he should only get better. Portland won’t have the ball in his hands as much, though. Damian Lillard will return fully healthy, which gives them another bona fide scorer and deep shooter. That is something that they lacked this past season at the guard spot.
If Portland does have success on the court this season, everything that Dundon has done so far will look justified in his mind. It doesn’t help Trail Blazers fans that the Hurricanes just won the Stanley Cup Finals, as Dundon owns that team as well.
It doesn’t look like negotiations are close between Portland and the Blazers. This could drag on for a while, and it could get messier.
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