What now? Ownership, etc

[beast blazer]

Amoung those who were bidding for the Clippers:

David Geffen
Oprah Winfrey
Larry Ellison

Ha! That would be pretty cool if Oprah bought the blazers.

 

[illmatic99]

This is what Quick had about Kolde from 7 yrs ago.
https://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/index.ssf/2011/06/trail_blazers_owner_paul_allen.html

To some, Kolde has too important a role, especially considering his basketball background. The former executives describe Kolde's basketball knowledge as rudimentary at best.

"Bert has tremendous influence on Paul, often to the detriment of the organization," Patterson said.

This is a bit chilling:

Health and the future

Further complicating the Allen basketball model has been his health. In November of 2009, he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, a form of blood cancer. Although he has been clear of the cancer since October of 2010, the illness clearly impacted Allen. In a "60 Minutes" interview that aired in April, Allen noted that a motivation for writing his memoir was to see it published before he died.

Postman said Allen has told him that his illness - his second bout with cancer - has tested his patience in varying degrees. For one, it accelerated his desire to write his memoir. But on the other hand, it has caused him to slow down and value spending time with family and friends. But Postman said Allen told him his illness had no impact on the way he runs the Blazers.

So in the coming months, Allen will look for his third general manager in three years, presumably with a better understanding of what he wants and what he believes will work in Portland. And if the next hire doesn't pan out? He says he will keep trying until he gets it right.

"He understands that change can be hard for fans," Postman said. "They get loyal, not only to players, but to coaches and managers, and they worry about what looks like disruption. And he understands that. But he also understands that fans want a championship, and if they see strong action taken by someone who has shown a proven commitment to making it better, he believes they will get on board.

It's really frustrating that Quick is now behind a paywall at the Athletic. He prolly has more insight into the workings behind Vulcan than anyone outside the organization itself.

 

[Orion Bailey]

Ha! That would be pretty cool if Oprah bought the blazers.

I dunno. Chi already has two baseball teams. Maybe she will want them to have to NBA teams as well.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

A Paulson/Kobe partnership would be very interesting.

 

[illmatic99]

A Paulson/Kobe partnership would be very interesting.

Do they have the $ if it's just the two of them? Their combined net worth still prolly won't be as much as the potential purchase price (~1.3 B)

 

[Mediocre Man]

It's really a testament to the people involved with the whole process of the Rose Garden. That facility is still in really good shape and has stood the test of time very well. Compare it to the arena in Phoenix that was built around the same time and in need of major repairs or a new one and the redoing of Key Arena around the same time as well and I'm not too worried about it. Most casual fans or non-fans I've talked to couldn't believe it when I said that the Moda Center was that old.

I also think the new arena/stadium issues are something that a lot of cities are unwilling to provide too much money for. That problem isn't just unique to Portland. People have realized that it shouldn't be their responsibility to help out these owners that are worth billions.

Vegas or Seattle

 

[hoopsjock]

Vegas or Seattle

I'm not sure what you are saying by naming those cities, is it that they would provide public funding?

Vegas is a unique situation where they are basically just taxing visitors instead of residents.

Seattle lost the Sonics because they were unwilling to give more money for an arena.

 

[Mediocre Man]

Great article

“An NBA source said Tuesday the league has no interest at all in the Blazers relocating to Seattle, shooting down one of the early rumors that surfaced after Allen died Monday of non-Hodgkins lymphoma at age 65. The Blazers’ lease with the City of Portland at the Moda Center runs through at least 2025, the team is making money — unlike struggling franchises in Memphis and New Orleans — and the league also is uninterested in repairing its image in Seattle by hurting another Northwest city.”

Ding ding ding

Technically jinxspeed is an NBA source because he sang the anthem. So is The HCP

 

[Mediocre Man]

I'm not sure what you are saying by naming those cities, is it that they would provide public funding?

Vegas is a unique situation where they are basically just taxing visitors instead of residents.

Seattle lost the Sonics because they were unwilling to give more money for an arena.

Now they have one

 

[Rozay]

Now they have one

They can take the grizzlies or pelicans word is those teams lose money

 

[hoopsjock]

Now they have one

Vegas has a new arena but it wouldn't be owned by whomever buys the Blazers. Why move a team from a city you own the stadium to a city you wouldn't?

As for Seattle, we'll see about what happens with a redone Key Arena. It's been redone before and hasn't worked out very well. Once again, the building wouldn't belong to the new owner.

 

[illmatic99]

https://www.forbes.com/nba-valuations/list/

Only one team lost money last year, and that was the Cavs who lost 6.2 mil. Everyone else is in the black, showing us all how good of a shape the league is in. However, 22 teams made more than the Blazers who only pulled in a paltry 25 mil last year. On an investment worth 1+ billion, a 2% return on investment is pretty terrible. Even revenue is around middle of the pack. And this is why the Vulcans will sell the team, and this is also why we will continue to miss PA and his penchant for spending.

 

[Rozay]

https://www.forbes.com/nba-valuations/list/

Only one team lost money last year, and that was the Cavs who lost 6.2 mil. Everyone else is in the black, showing us all how good of a shape the league is in. However, 22 teams made more than the Blazers who only pulled in a paltry 25 mil year. On an investment worth 1+ billion, a 2% return on investment is pretty terrible. Even revenue is around middle of the pack. And this is why the Vulcans will sell the team, and this is also why we will continue to miss PA and his penchant for spending.

I don’t get it when people say the new owners won’t spend money. If we have cap space are you saying the new owners who are billionaires won’t sign key free agents? Again, even if we have cap space? After spending a billion plus on a hobby their clearly interested in they won’t enjoy their new toy?

 

[illmatic99]

I don’t get it when people say the new owners won’t spend money. If we have cap space are you saying the new owners who are billionaires won’t sign key free agents? Again, even if we have cap space? After spending a billion plus on a hobby their clearly interested in they won’t enjoy their new toy?

Very few owners will spend 10+ mil to get a first round pick, and even fewer will throw caution to the wind to spend to win as Paul did in the early 2000s. He ran this team like it was in a big market for much of his tenure.

Why do you assume that a new owner will treat this team like a hobby instead of a business?

 

[hoopsjock]

https://www.forbes.com/nba-valuations/list/

Only one team lost money last year, and that was the Cavs who lost 6.2 mil. Everyone else is in the black, showing us all how good of a shape the league is in. However, 22 teams made more than the Blazers who only pulled in a paltry 25 mil year. On an investment worth 1+ billion, a 2% return on investment is pretty terrible. Even revenue is around middle of the pack. And this is why the Vulcans will sell the team, and this is also why we will continue to miss PA and his penchant for spending.

The value of the Bucks rose 37% in one year. Now stuff like that isn't guaranteed to happen and won't have that big of a jump every year but NBA teams are a pretty safe investment for a rich person to make. It would be almost impossible to lose money in the long run.

Besides, the numbers for how much a team makes in a given year are so skewed anyway. The numbers are made to look like they are just barely getting by.

 

[blue9]

the Blazers who only pulled in a paltry 25 mil last year

Would've doubled that had they not signed Turner/Meyers.

 

[hoopsjock]

Very few owners will spend 10+ mil to get a first round pick, and even fewer will throw caution to the wind to spend to win as Paul did in the early 2000s. He ran this team like it was in a big market for much of his tenure.

Why do you assume that a new owner will treat this team like a hobby instead of a business?

I think there is some middle ground here. With the cap rules we can probably assume that a new owner wouldn't be willing to spend GS level luxury tax but I'd also assume that most owners would be willing to spend up to the tax line. If the $10 million for a draft pick is referring to Varejao, the team was below the salary floor at that point and were going to have to pay some of that money anyway.

I would love for a Mark Cuban type owner who is relatively young, energetic, and instantly becomes one of the teams biggest fans and wants to win. I won't hold my breath for someone like that but we just won't know how to answer these questions for awhile.

 

[GrandpaBlaze]

Dennis Rodman would be a better fit than Kobe for Portland.

And his good friend Kim Jung Un

 

[BonesJones]

https://www.forbes.com/nba-valuations/list/

Only one team lost money last year, and that was the Cavs who lost 6.2 mil. Everyone else is in the black, showing us all how good of a shape the league is in. However, 22 teams made more than the Blazers who only pulled in a paltry 25 mil last year. On an investment worth 1+ billion, a 2% return on investment is pretty terrible. Even revenue is around middle of the pack. And this is why the Vulcans will sell the team, and this is also why we will continue to miss PA and his penchant for spending.

That will rise with the new jersey patch. The Laker games in Portland alone will probably bring in another $2M. An extra home playoff game brings in another $1.5M.

 

[oldmangrouch]

I think there is some middle ground here. With the cap rules we can probably assume that a new owner wouldn't be willing to spend GS level luxury tax but I'd also assume that most owners would be willing to spend up to the tax line. If the $10 million for a draft pick is referring to Varejao, the team was below the salary floor at that point and were going to have to pay some of that money anyway.

I would love for a Mark Cuban type owner who is relatively young, energetic, and instantly becomes one of the teams biggest fans and wants to win. I won't hold my breath for someone like that but we just won't know how to answer these questions for awhile.

One "tell" to keep an eye on: will Vulcan maintain the status quo, or will they move to shed payroll/assets. That will give us a hint as to what type of potential buyers are out there.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

One "tell" to keep an eye on: will Vulcan maintain the status quo, or will they move to shed payroll/assets. That will give us a hint as to what type of potential buyers are out there.

Status quo = team is likely staying
Aggressive salary dump = team may move

 

[hoopsjock]

One "tell" to keep an eye on: will Vulcan maintain the status quo, or will they move to shed payroll/assets. That will give us a hint as to what type of potential buyers are out there.

It will definitely be interesting. I'm not convinced that the loss of assets it would take to shed payroll is worth it long term compared to just letting the bad contracts run out in two years.

I was convinced if the team was doing well this year that Allen would let Olshey go deeper into the tax. Now it may be a situation where Olshey is forced to not be a luxury tax team because Vulcan doesn't want that expense. They better make that decision quick though because once Sacramento uses their space it will become way more difficult to get under the tax line.

 

[blue9]

One "tell" to keep an eye on: will Vulcan maintain the status quo, or will they move to shed payroll/assets.

Those are different things? Seems to me most of our moves ever since the Crabbe/Turner/Meyers debacle has been shedding payroll and assets.

 

[Orion Bailey]

Those are different things? Seems to me most of our moves ever since the Crabbe/Turner/Meyers debacle has been shedding payroll and assets.

due to salary cap issues. Not ownership finance issues.

 

[Rozay]

Very few owners will spend 10+ mil to get a first round pick, and even fewer will throw caution to the wind to spend to win as Paul did in the early 2000s. He ran this team like it was in a big market for much of his tenure.

Why do you assume that a new owner will treat this team like a hobby instead of a business?

You can’t even buy 1st round picks like that anymore I believe anyways..

You say Paul spent crazy in the early 2000s yea he did. That’s true but the recent collective bargaining agreement control much stricter how owners spend now. It’s more controlled and regulated.

I love Paul Allen too but anyone can admit for awhile now he’s spent within the cap pretty reasonably. The owners will do the same.

 

[oldmangrouch]

Those are different things? Seems to me most of our moves ever since the Crabbe/Turner/Meyers debacle has been shedding payroll and assets.

I'm not refering to marginal guys like Crabbe or Vonleh. I'm talking about something like dumping CJ for expiring deals, or giving someone Collins just so they will take Leonard off our hands.

 

[e_blazer]

Interesting read in the Washington Post on the Seahawks' and Blazers' futures after the passing of Paul Allen. Not too much new, but a good summary:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/spor...ory.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.e8b948a7ca0f

 

[Rozay]

Also we’re at the top of the list for getting MORE pro teams for a reason.

Think of it this way, if Portland didn’t already have an NBAteam it would be second only to Seattle for the best place for it.

 

[illmatic99]

I would love for a Mark Cuban type owner who is relatively young, energetic, and instantly becomes one of the teams biggest fans and wants to win. I won't hold my breath for someone like that but we just won't know how to answer these questions for awhile.

Cuban is too into politics for my taste

 

[hoopsjock]

Cuban is too into politics for my taste

I didn't say Cuban himself and I'm not talking about anything outside of basketball like politics. I just want a passionate owner who roots for the team as hard as he does.