What Adam Silver's Statement Means for Blazers Future

The saga of the Portland Trail Blazers and renovating the Moda Center continues with more comments from NBA commissioner Adam Silver.

Silver was asked by Bill Oram of The Oregonian about the situation after a Board of Governors meeting on Tuesday. The city of Portland last month committed to spending $120 million on renovations, but an actual deal with owner Tom Dundon and the team still needs to be struck for the full $600 million of allocated funding from the state, county and city on how the money will be used.

The negotiations over these deals have become heated with the city asking Dundon to commit to a 20-year lease, a $3 million annual fee to recoup property taxes that the Blazers wouldn’t pay, a requirement to use union workers for the renovation and a few more asks. Dundon has been non-committal to those terms, believing Portland has a “stagnant business climate” and has pointed to the higher taxes that come with being in Oregon.

Adam Silver Comments on Blazers Future

NBA commissioner Adam Silver speaks during the 2026 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Silver wants to see the two sides find some common ground and start to have better discussions on how the money will be used.

“It’s my hope that we can lower the temperature honestly a bit in these negotiations,” Silver told reporters Tuesday.

“I had an opportunity to spend a significant amount of time with Tom Dundon while he was here in New York at our meetings. We did discuss the situation around Portland in one of our committee meetings with Tom. I think he was able to bounce ideas off other owners who have been through similar negotiations in other communities. I think there’s some lessons to be learned there.”

Ultimately, Silver has said throughout this process that he hopes to see the Blazers stay in Portland, and he doubled down on that belief as well Tuesday.

“I want to be very direct about it. I would see it as a failure if we did not keep the team in Portland,” Silver said. “I’ve spent a lot of time in that community over the years. They’ve shown amazing support for the Trail Blazers. They’re some of our best fans around the league.”

But the Pacific Northwest isn’t new to these heated kinds of discussions after Seattle lost the SuperSonics in 2008.

Silver is looking at both sides and also acknowledged his belief – and what he believes is the thought of many in Portland – that the Moda Center needs significant renovations.

“At the same time, now I speak for our WNBA team in the market as well, we need a state-of-the-art arena,” Silver said.

“I think by any objective measure now, the current building there is in the bottom measure of any arena in the league. I think everyone in the community acknowledges that not just for NBA and WNBA basketball, but for all the multi-uses of these modern arenas, concerts, conventions, graduations, you name it, the community needs the same thing.”

The two sides have until the end of December to come to a deal in order to secure the nearly $600 million in funding, or else the renovations would face delays ahead of the 2030 Women’s Final Four set to be in Portland, which has often been viewed as the first major event to showcase the remodeled arena.

Silver ended his answer saying the league and himself are happy to assist when needed in order to make sure the Blazers stay in Portland.

“But again, offering myself and the league office to assist all parties there,” Silver said. “As I said, we’ve had a great track record in Portland. No doubt in my mind it would be a failure if we weren’t able to accomplish a result that makes Portland basketball, NBA and WNBA, viable for the long term.”

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