Nike Co-Founder Phil Knight Leads $2+ Billion Offer for NBA’s Trail Blazers
Nike co-founder Phil Knight and Los Angeles Dodgers investor Alan Smolinisky have made an offer of more than $2 billion to purchase the Portland Trail Blazers. There’s only one problem, the team isn’t for sale.
The team is currently owned by the trust of late owner Paul Allen, who passed away in 2018. Allen’s sister, Jody, is the executor of his estate and now chairs both the NBA team and the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks, which her brother bought in 1997. The team has said it’s not for sale and NBA commissioner Adam Silver confirmed that, with an important caveat.
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“At some point it will be for sale,” Silver said while speaking at Game 1 of the NBA Finals. “This is a hugely a complex estate, and although it’s been several years, these things take time.”
The bid, which was unsolicited, comes amid speculation regarding the crown jewels of Allen’s estate. Recent news reports suggest that the Microsoft co-founder’s will says the teams must be sold, with the proceeds going toward his philanthropic efforts, but it’s unclear how or when that might need to happen.
Representatives for the Trail Blazers and the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation didn’t immediately return messages seeking comment. Neither did spokesmen for Nike or the Dodgers.
Should the team hit the market, the auction would be different than a traditional sale, where an existing owner has extensive discretion over who buys the franchise and for how much. In estate sales, the trust has a fiduciary duty to maximize the value of its assets, which generally means the team sells to the highest qualified bidder. This is currently happening with the sale of the Denver Broncos, who will likely fetch the highest price ever paid for a sports team.
Sportico valued the Blazers at $2.07 billion, ranked No. 14 in the 30-team league. Allen originally purchased the team in 1988 for $70 million.
Knight, 84, co-founded Nike in 1964, selling track shoes out of the trunk of his car. The company has since grown into one of the sports industry’s most recognizable and valuable brands. He’s worth $47.2 billion, according to Forbes.
Smolinisky is a principal at Conquest Housing, a private real estate developer. He invested in the Dodgers in 2019.
It’s unlikely that the Trail Blazers would relocate—the NBA is keeping the Seattle and Las Vegas markets available for expansion. Franchises there would fetch a multibillion-dollar fee.
(This story has been altered in the first, second and third paragraphs to clarify the team’s position and add Commissioner Silver’s statement.)
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