Blazers Reject Announcer Braiden Bell's Reinstatement Request

After being hired and fired the same day due to resurfaced racist and misogynistic tweets that he posted as a teenager, Braiden Bell, now 29, requested for the Portland Trail Blazers to reconsider its decision and reinstate him on Monday night. The Blazers' response?

"We stand by our statement issued last week and have no further comment at this time. We wish Mr. Bell the best."

NBA insider Chris Haynes first reported Bell's request.

"Braiden is not asking anyone to excuse what he wrote," Arnie Herz, counsel to Bell, said. "He has owned it, without excuses. What he is asking is whether a boy's words from fourteen years ago should outweigh everything the man has done since. If that is the standard, there is hardly a person in any organization in America who could meet it. Accountability means owning what you did and showing who you have become. Braiden has done both."

Why Was Braiden Bell Fired?

Detailed view of the Portland Trail Blazers logo against the New Orleans Pelicans. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Bell's counsel attempted to appeal to Portland's past in granting second chances. The Blazers notably signed registered sex offender Ruben Patterson in 2001. According to Herz, Bell proposed working with the team in community and educational programming. More specifically, Bell wanted to do outreach work with the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, along with organizations that support women and girls in sports — the demographics most impacted by Bell's tweets.

Through Herz, Bell also asked for the backlash directed toward Devon Haskins, the KGW reporter who broke the story, and John Tierney, KGW's news director, to end. The two received criticism for their reporting, especially when users online found offensive tweets from Haskins.

They both reportedly removed their contact information from their X profiles. Haskins eventually deleted his account entirely. TEGNA, which owns KGW, launched an internal review of the reporting, according to TheDesk.net's Matthew Keys.

Bell's counsel concluded its request with a call of action to the NBA. Addressing the current trend of individuals, especially in media, losing their jobs to past social media posts, Bell's counsel urges the league to consider four points "before ending a career" — the age of the person at the time of the post, how long ago the post was, a consideration of their behavior in adulthood and whether they have taken "genuine responsibility."

“Zero tolerance sounds strong, but applied to childhood it becomes a standard no one can meet and no one actually believes in," Herz said. "The NBA has led on social issues before. It can lead here, from moral absolutism toward a culture of accountability, compassion and understanding,”

The Blazers will now continue their search to find a new play-by-play announcer.

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