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Tom Dundon is on track to assume majority control of the Portland Trail Blazers before the end of this month, and in the first stage of the multipart deal Dundon’s group will pay for 80% of the team, Front Office Sports has learned.
A vote on the deal is not on the agenda for the NBA board of governors meeting scheduled for March 25, a source familiar with the matter tells FOS. But that is not expected to have any impact on the anticipated closing of the first tranche of the transaction before next month, two sources say. Team sales don’t need to be voted on during scheduled board meetings—a vote can be called at any time.
Dundon’s group will pay for the remaining 20% of the Blazers at a later date; FOS previously reported the deal would take place in stages, similar to Bill Chisholm’s acquisition of the Celtics.
Dundon, who also owns the NHL’s Hurricanes, reached his deal for the Blazers in August and announced it in September. The agreement values the franchise at more than $4 billion, meaning Dundon’s group will be putting up more than $3 billion by the end of the month. Dundon recently sold a minority stake in the Hurricanes, a deal sources previously told FOS was meant to raise cash for his purchase of the Blazers.
A representative for Dundon did not respond to a request for comment.
Staying in Portland
His intent to keep the team in Portland is something local lawmakers are also in favor of. The Oregon legislature recently approved $365 million in funds to renovate the team’s home arena, the Moda Center, where the WNBA’s resurrected Portland Fire will also play.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver visited Portland this month and highlighted the need for updates at the Moda Center, which opened in 1995.
“The Moda Center has become probably the oldest building in the league,” Silver said, adding that Portland has “lost out on some big events because this arena hasn’t been updated in a long time.”
The buying group also includes Marc Zahr, co-president of asset manager Blue Owl Capital, Portland-based Sheel Tyle, co-CEO of venture capital firm Collective Global, and the Cherng Family Trust, the family behind Panda Express.
The Cherng family’s involvement added a bit of drama to the announcement last year. RAJ Sports, an investment firm led by Sacramento Kings co-owners and siblings Lisa Bhathal Merage and Alex Bhathal, sued the Cherng Family Trust eight days after the deal was announced in an attempt to block its stake in the Dundon group.
The Cherngs were originally part of a RAJ-led group that was vying for the Blazers, according to the lawsuit. The two parties reached a deal out of court, facilitated by Dundon, and RAJ dropped its suit in October.
RAJ had been trying to add to a portfolio of Portland-based sports teams that also includes the WNBA’s Fire and NWSL’s Thorns. Bhathal Merage recently told FOSthat the failed Blazers bid is “still the big stinger, but it’s in the past.”
Dundon bought the Blazers from the estate of the late Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen, who before he died in 2018 mandated the sale of his sports holdings. In addition to the Blazers, Allen owned the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and a 25% stake in the Seattle Sounders MLS club. The Seahawks are currently for sale.
