Sen. Ron Wyden, an ardent fan of the Portland Trail Blazers, is taking proactive steps to sell the deep support Rip City has for the Blazers and that the team should remain in Portland.
On Tuesday, the Paul Allen estate announced that the Blazers were up for sale, seven years after Allen died in 2018 at age 65.
On Wednesday, Wyden sent a letter to NBA commissioner Adam Silver detailing the love he has for the Blazers and how much they mean to the city.
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Dear Commissioner Silver:
Portland, Oregon and the NBA have proven a winning combination since 1970 – with the city and our entire state teaming up to be a vital part of the NBA’s DNA for the last 55 years.
With Trail Blazers ownership announcing its formal sale process of the team this week, I write as Oregon’s senior senator proud to represent my fellow Trail Blazers fans to say there is no place in America with a deeper base of hoops support than in Portland and throughout Oregon.
I know because I was here in Portland that June day in 1977 when Bill Walton and Maurice Lucas led the Blazers past Philadelphia to win the NBA championship, setting off a tidal wave of Blazermania capped off with an unforgettable downtown celebration.
I know because Portland is synonymous for basketball fans wherever I go with the phrase “Rip City” coined by the late and legendary Bill Schonely because of his baritone voice booming with joy on the radio when Geoff Petrie, Clyde Drexler and countless other Blazers made a big shot.
I know from attending games at the Memorial Coliseum and more recently at the Moda Center where I left with my ears ringing at the enthusiastic roar of the crowd throughout the four-overtime playoff thriller in May 2019 when Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum willed Portland past Denver.
And I know because as I travel across the state for open-to-all town halls and other community meetings, I see Oregonians sporting Blazers gear who are hooping in Hermiston, shooting in Sherwood, rebounding in Roseburg and … well, you get the idea.
Simply put, since the Trail Blazers joined the league 55 years ago, our city and state have consistently embraced this storied franchise with passionate support. And Trail Blazers players likewise have inspired fans for generations as well as provided them a shared badge of honor as NBA fans to treasure and pass on for generations.
I’d also note there is widespread enthusiasm for basketball more broadly throughout our entire region, as the WNBA recognized last year when it chose Portland for a highly coveted expansion franchise in its growing league and in the fact that Portland will host the Women’s Final Four in 2030.
I deeply appreciate the fact that you know how much the Trail Blazers have contributed to the league’s growth since Portland joined the NBA for the 1970-71 season.
Please know that I stand ready to contribute however I can to continuing the long-established and successful partnership between Portland and the NBA.
Sincerely,
Ron Wyden
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The Blazers and the City of Portland agreed on a five-year lease extension for the team to play at the Moda Center through the 2029-30 season, and there’s been no indication that a new owner could attempt to move the franchise.
The sales process would last well into next season, or beyond.
-- Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook)