The estate of the late Paul Allen announced Tuesday that it has begun the process of selling the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers. A natural question to follow is whether the sale of the Blazers also means the Seahawks and a stake in the Sounders — both owned by the estate — will also be sold.
Paul Allen estate, which owns Seahawks, putting NBA’s Blazers up for sale
Short answer: yes, eventually. But not at this time.
The statement released by the estate clarified that the Seahawks and its 25% stake in the Seattle Sounders will not be part of this sale. And the Blazers being put up for sale doesn’t mean a move with the Seahawks or Sounders is imminent.
But eventually they will be sold, and the proceeds of those sales will go toward philanthropic efforts, which was always part of the plan with Allen’s sports holdings.
The sale is instead interesting for two other reasons, both relevant to Seattle fans.
• First, we get more insight into which billionaires are pushing for sports ownership. Nike co-founder Phil Knight was a front runner and had already made a previous attempt to bid on the Blazers, but in a statement Wednesday pulled his name from speculation.
“Five years ago, when I was a younger man, I had great interest in being a part of the Portland Trail Blazers franchise,” the 87-year-old Knight said in a statement per The Athletic. “However, at my current age, I can confirm that I no longer have interest.”
There were conflicting reports that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was reportedly a finalist in the recent purchase of the Boston Celtics. Might he bid on the Blazers, or, eventually, the Seahawks?
• Secondly, this is really more important short-term for NBA expansion. Seattle fans are desperate for a team, and the league has been breadcrumbing them for years, such as Tuesday with commissioner Adam Silver saying that he expects owners would discuss expansion in July at the Board of Governors meeting. Silver had made it clear that expansion conversations were previously taking a backseat to a new media rights deal (now secured), a reworked CBA (done), and the sale of the Celtics (now sold).
Finally! Real expansion talks will be underway. No more pesky Boston Celtics sale to delay that timeline — something Silver had very publicly made clear.
But wait… oh no…
Here comes another franchise for sale.
And another excuse for Silver and the league.
More: Sonics expansion could be hindered by Trail Blazers sale
We’re going to guess this leapfrogs expansion once again and becomes one of the league’s top priorities. Does it mean expansion can’t be a topic for July’s meeting? Of course not. But there’s very clear trepidation on the part of the league’s owners to expand (turns out billionaires don’t love sharing the pot) and a very clear “triage unit” of topics for the NBA. Regrettably, expansion still feels at the bottom of the list.
What you’re watching for now: updates. As many updates as possible about that July meeting, with the hope that formal expansion talks are positive, talked about by Silver (also important), and moving forward.
Tuesday: NBA commish drops another hint about expansion talks
