<p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">The NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved the sale of the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">Transferring the franchise from the estate of the late Paul Allen to a group led by Dallas billionaire Tom Dundon and closing the only ownership era the club has ever known.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">The deal is valued at approximately $4.25 billion USD (around $6.4 billion AUD).</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">A staggering rise from the $70 million USD (around $105 million AUD) Allen paid when he bought the Blazers in 1988 as part of the fortune he built co-founding Microsoft.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">It is the highest price paid for an NBA franchise at the time of sale.</p><h2 style="margin-bottom:4pt;margin-top:18pt;">&nbsp;</h2><h2 style="margin-bottom:4pt;margin-top:18pt;">Dundon's Background and the Buying Consortium</h2><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">Dundon, 54, built his personal fortune in subprime auto lending as co-founder of Drive Financial, which was later renamed Santander Consumer USA and which he departed in 2015.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">He is best known in sports as the majority owner of the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">A franchise he transformed from one that had missed the playoffs for nine consecutive seasons into a side that qualified every year from 2019 to 2025 reaching the conference finals three times</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">His buying consortium includes Portland-based investor Sheel Tyle, co-founder of investment firm Collective Global; Marc Zahr, co-president of Blue Owl Capital; and the Cherng Family Trust, the family office of the co-founders of Panda Express.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">The transaction is structured as a two-part deal, with Dundon's group acquiring 80.1% of the franchise by March 31 and the remaining 19.9% to close no later than September 1, 2028.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">NBA Commissioner Adam Silver backed the incoming owner directly. "He's a go-getter," Silver said.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">"He's got a great reputation from having led a turnaround in the NHL. He has enormous passion and spirit."</p><h2 style="margin-bottom:4pt;margin-top:18pt;">&nbsp;</h2><h2 style="margin-bottom:4pt;margin-top:18pt;">Stadium Future and the Road Ahead</h2><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">The approval follows a significant win for the franchise's long-term Portland presence.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">Oregon's state legislature in early March approved $365 million USD (around $547 million AUD) in Moda Center renovation funding, resolving questions that had gathered around potential relocation.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">Since Allen's death in October 2018, his sister Jody Allen had managed the estate and overseen the team's operations.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">All proceeds from the sale are directed to philanthropic purposes as required by Allen's will.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">OPB and ProPublica separately reported that Oregon's Department of Justice had investigated companies Dundon led or invested in.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">And in 2020 Oregon joined a multistate lawsuit against Santander Consumer USA over predatory lending practices that resulted in a $550 million settlement covering more than 265,000 borrowers.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">On the court, Portland sits at around 38-38 heading into the final stretch of the 2025-26 regular season, with Damian Lillard back at the club following his return last year.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">The Blazers travel to face the Los Angeles Clippers on March 31.</p><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-bottom:12pt;margin-top:12pt;">The same day Dundon's controlling 80.1% stake formally closes and a new chapter in the franchise's history officially begins.</p>