NEW YORK — The NBA board of governors approved the sale of controlling interest in the Portland Trail Blazers from Paul Allen’s estate to a group led by investor Tom Dundon on Monday.
The league said in a statement it expected the deal to close this week. ESPN previously reported it was for $4 billion. In March, the Boston Celtics sold for $6.1 billion.
Dundon’s group includes Portland-based Sheel Tyle, the co-founder of investment firm Collective Global; Marc Zahr, co-president of Blue Owl Capital; and the Cherng Family Trust, the family office and investment firm of the co-founders of Panda Express. Earlier this month, Dundon sold a portion of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes to three new minority owners, a transaction reportedly worth $332.5 million for 12.5% of the team.
Dundon bought a stake in the Hurricanes in 2017, became the majority owner in 2018 and took sole possession of the club in 2021. He is chairman and managing partner of the Dallas-based firm Dundon Capital Partners.
The approval of the sale of the Trail Blazers comes after the Oregon Legislature approved funds for the renovation of the Moda Center in early March. The measure gives the state joint ownership of the 30-year-old arena with the city and provides a mechanism to secure $365 million for the building’s renovation. It also allayed fears that new ownership might move the team to another city.
Allen’s estate announced in May that it had begun the process of selling the Trail Blazers. The billionaire co-founder of Microsoft, who died in 2018 at age 65 from complications of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, originally bought the Blazers in 1988 for $70 million.
Allen also owned the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and a minority share of the Seattle Sounders in MLS.
Since his death, Allen’s sister, Jody Allen, has served as chair of both the Blazers and Seahawks and is a trustee of the Paul G. Allen Trust. Paul Allen stipulated in his will the eventual sale of his teams, with the proceeds to be given to philanthropic endeavors. Allen’s estate announced it began the process of selling the Seahawks in mid-February, about two weeks after the team won the franchise’s second Super Bowl championship.
