Valuation of $3.6 billion! Trail Blazers officially listed for sale: The boss s last wish will be used for charity

On May 14, the Portland Trail Blazers officially announced that the estate manager of the late team owner Paul Allen has officially listed the team for sale, and the proceeds from the sale will be used for charity.

NBA President Adam Xiao Hua has repeatedly stated in the past seven years that Allen passed away from cancer in 2018, and his will explicitly require the sale of the team "in due time". During this period, Allen's sister Jody Allen served as the team manager as the executor of the Paul Allen Trust. The statement also pointed out that the estate manager also owns 25% of the shares of the Seattle Seahawks and the Major League Soccer (MLS) Seattle Bayers, which are not within the scope of this sale. The Trust’s decision to sell the Trail Blazers is based on the impact of several key events in the past year. The NBA has reached an 11-year media copyright agreement with ESPN, NBC and Amazon with a total value of $77 billion. In 2024, the Trail Blazers sold the home stadium Moda Center to the Portland City Government for $1 and sold the land below the stadium for $7 million. Subsequently, the team launched a public-private partnership project to renovate the venue and its surrounding areas, and signed a new lease agreement until 2030. Earlier this year, the Celtics sold for a record high price of $6.1 billion, driving the valuation of all teams. Sports media Sportico recently evaluated the Blazers worth $3.6 billion, while Allen spent just $70 million when he acquired the team in 1988. Phil Knight, a billionaire, Nike founder and native Portlander, may be one of the potential buyers. It is reported that in 2022, Knight made an offer to the Trail Blazers. At the time of 87, he joined forces with Los Angeles Dodgers minority shareholder Allen Smolinsky to participate in the offer. The Trail Blazers announced their sale plans the day after the NBA lottery draw, which may have a different meaning. In this lottery draw, the Trail Blazers had an 18% chance of winning the top four picks, but eventually fell from the 10th pick to the 11th pick.

In terms of basketball operations, the Trail Blazers completed a contract renewal with head coach Billups and general manager Joe Cronin after the end of this season. This season, the Trail Blazers achieved a record of 36 wins and 46 losses, the best in four years, but have not made it to the playoffs since 2021. In 2023, Lillard, the team's trading star, officially started a comprehensive reconstruction. The Trust said that the team's sale process will continue until the 2025-2026 season, and has hired Allen Company and Hawking Luwei Law Firm to be responsible for related matters.