At least three dozen Portland Trail Blazers staff members were laid off Tuesday morning in a sweeping shakeup on the business side of the franchise, days after the NBA Board of Commissioners approved the team’s sale to a group led by billionaire Tom Dundon.
The cuts landed before noon Tuesday and, by 2 p.m., no WARN notice had been sent out in advance, even though such notices are generally required when a layoff reaches 50 or more employees. People familiar with the organization told Willamette Week the number of departures could be as high as 40, and could reach all the way up to the senior vice president level. Other reports on X said the total may have been upwards of 70 employees. The team had not publicly commented on the restructuring by the time of the report.
Dewayne Hankins said the move was part of a broader plan to prepare the organization for what comes next. In a statement, he said the team made a difficult decision to restructure several business areas “to position the organization for the future,” adding that “these changes impacted talented people who have helped shape the Trail Blazers over many years.” He also said the team’s focus was on supporting those affected through the transition and positioning the organization for long-term success.
That message arrived with extra weight because the sale itself was only approved nearly two months earlier, and the new ownership group already faces questions that go beyond payroll. The franchise was bought by investors led by Dundon, who also owns the Carolina Hurricanes, along with Portland-based Sheel Tyle, Marc Zahr and the Cherng Family Trust. The layoffs have sharpened attention on whether the new owners are committed to keeping the team in Portland and how any renovation of the Moda Center will be financed.
Among those hit was Casey Holdahl, who had worked with the team for more than 18 years. Hankins said the organization was grateful for the contributions, leadership and care those employees showed every day for the team, its fans and the Portland community. For now, the bigger question is not whether the Blazers are changing; it is how deep that change will run, and whether Tuesday’s cuts were the start of a wider reset under the new ownership group.
