Portland Trail Blazers lay off more than 70 people: Reports
KGW • • sports
Key Points:
- The Portland Trail Blazers laid off over 70 employees as part of a business restructuring aimed at positioning the organization for long-term success, confirmed by team president Dewayne Hankins.
- Among those affected was Casey Holdahl, a beat reporter who had covered the team for nearly two decades, expressing gratitude to fans upon his departure.
- The layoffs follow an ownership transition in March, when Tom Dundon took over from the late Paul Allen's estate, amid scrutiny over cost-cutting measures perceived as frugal.
- Controversial decisions under Dundon's leadership included not sending media staff to road postseason games, limiting hotel checkouts, and replacing playoff T-shirt giveaways with towels, which have drawn criticism from fans and media.
- Dundon apologized for excluding two-way players from the playoff roster and defended other cost-saving moves as efforts to manage expenses and learn fan preferences, citing differences between NHL and NBA fan engagement.