The Trail Blazers have been sold after months of speculation.
On Wednesday, multiple outlets reported that Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon had agreed to purchase the franchise from Paul Allen's estate for more than $4 billion. Allen, a co-founder of Microsoft, purchased the Blazers for $70 million in 1988. He died in 2018 after a long battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. His will dictated that all of his sports holdings should be sold after his death.
The 53-year-old Dundon has been the majority owner of the Hurricanes since 2018 and was also an investor in the Alliance of American Football. He put $250 million into the project in January 2019, but the league suspended operations in April of that year. In addition to those efforts, Dundon is a significant investor in the growing sport of pickleball. He is part of a group that owns Pickleball Central.
Under Dundon's watch, the Hurricanes have won three Central Division titles and reached the conference finals three times.
The Celtics sold for $6.1 billion valuation in March, while the Lakers were sold for a record $10 billion valuation in June. NBA franchises are being sold for enormous prices, with the Trail Blazers being the latest.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Trail Blazers Sold to Current NHL Owner for More Than $4 Billion.