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In March, the NBA board of governors approved the sale of the Portland Trail Blazers to an investor group led by Tom Dundon, a billionaire who has owned the Carolina Hurricanes of the NHL since 2017. The Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup last month, but things aren’t going nearly as well for Dundon in Portland.
In May, Dundon came under fire for laying off around 70 people, including Casey Holdahl, who had been the Blazers’ team reporter for 18 years.
The Trail Blazers are undergoing another round of brutal layoffs, perpetuating the feeling in Portland that Dundon is more interested in saving money than operating a competitive team that’s connected to its community.
“After 19 seasons with the Blazers broadcast team, TV analyst Michael Holton has been let go, as well as statistician Tom Haberstroh, former ESPN legend and Blazers’ TV host Neil Everett, and TV host Jamie Hudson,” Maury Brown of Forbes reported Tuesday night, July 21. “Several other broadcasters’ contracts have lapsed, with deep pay cuts being expected in some places. The status of TV play-by-play man Kevin Calabro and radio play-by-play man Travis Demers is unknown, but both have contracts up for renewal.”
Brown additionally noted that “the cuts move beyond on-air talent,” with several employees in graphics and production expected to lose their jobs.
On Wednesday, July 22, The Athletic’s Jason Quick reported that Calabro’s contract expired on June 30, and he stepped away after receiving “a low contract offer” this week.
Holdahl commented on the layoffs, writing on X, “All incredibly hard working people who do the job because they love the work, the people and the team. Nobody was getting rich doing this. At this point I would hope we could dispense with the notion that this is at all about the quality or necessity of anyone’s work.”
Before news of the layoffs, Quick reported that the Blazers and the city of Portland are “very far apart,” as Dundon’s ownership group seeks public funding for Moda Center renovations — adding another dark cloud over the organization.
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