Are the Portland Trail Blazers and Seattle Seahawks for sale?
The owner of the Portland Trail Blazers and the Seattle Seahawks has reassured the public that these teams are currently not on the market.
The Seattle Seahawks and the Portland Trail Blazers are not for sale, according to the owner of the teams.
“As chair of both the Portland Trail Blazers and the Seattle Seahawks, my long-term focus is building championship teams that our communities are proud of,” according to a statement released by Jody Allen.
“Like my brother Paul, I trust and expect our leaders and coaches to build winning teams that deliver results on and off the court and field. As we’ve stated before, neither of the teams is for sale and there are no sales discussions happening,” she said.
Nike places bid for Trail Blazers
Allen’s statement comes amid reports last month that Nike founder Phil Knight and Los Angeles Dodger co-owner Alan Smolinsky had offered to buy the Trail Blazers for two billion dollars.
Shortly before Game 1 of the NBA finals, league commissioner Adam Silver had said that the Trail Blazers would be sold “at some point”.
Trail Blazers owner: No timeline for sale
The organization confirmed the offer, but Jody Allen said there is “no pre-ordained timeline” for the teams to be sold. A sale may eventually take place, but it is not certain how far into the future that would be.
“A time will come when that changes given Paul’s plans to dedicate the vast majority of his wealth to philanthropy, but estates of this size and complexity can take 10 to 20 years to wind down,” she said.
Allen got control of the franchises through a trust after her brother Paul, long-time owner of the teams, passed away in 2018. According to Forbes, the Trail Blazers were valued at $2.05 billion last year, which is the 13th highest amount in the NBA. The Seahawks were estimated to be worth $3.5 billion, which is 12th place in the NFL.