Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon agrees to buy an NBA team
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Tom Dundon reached tentative agreement to purchase Portland Trail Blazers
- Ownership group includes executives from Blue Owl Capital and Collective Global
- Trail Blazers expected to remain in Portland after estimated $4B sale
Tom Dundon, owner of the Carolina Hurricanes of the NHL, should soon be an NBA owner.
Dundon in a text message on Wednesday to the News & Observer confirmed a Sportico report that he has an agreement to buy the Portland Trail Blazers from the estate of the late Paul Allen, the Microsoft co-founder who also owned the Seattle Seahawks.
Sportico’s valuation of the Trail Blazers is $3.6 billion, which ranked No. 23 among NBA teams. ESPN reported the deal at $4 billion.
Sportico reported the team, once sold, would remain in Portland. It reported, based on unnamed sources, that the ownership group would include Marc Zahr, co-president of Blue Owl Capital; and Sheel Tyle, co-CEO of Collective Global.
Dundon, who has expressed an interest in bringing Major League Baseball to the Triangle, became majority owner of the Hurricanes in January 2018 — his first venture into major league sports. He later acquired full ownership of the team from Peter Karmanos Jr. in June 2021.
The Hurricanes, in a statement released Wednesday, said Dundon was in the process of buying the Trail Blazers and excited about the opportunity, adding, “This will not impact the Carolina Hurricanes, and Tom still wants to bring Major League Baseball to North Carolina.”
The sale must gain approval from the NBA board of governors before Dundon’s group takes ownership.
Allen first bought the Trail Blazers in 1988 at a price of $70 million. The man who joined Bill Gates in starting the Microsoft Corporation died in October 2018.
The Paul G. Allen Estate announced in June that the NBA team would be put up for sale. The team said it was Allen’s wishes that proceeds from the sale of his sports holdings be given to philanthropy.
Dundon, a Dallas billionaire, invested $70 million and took control of the financially struggling Alliance of American Football developmental league in February 2019. The league shut down in April 2019 and filed for bankruptcy.
Under Dundon’s ownership, and with Rod Brind’Amour as head coach, the Hurricanes have reached the Stanley Cup playoffs for the past seven seasons. Dundon has allowed management to spend to the salary cap and there are sellout crowds for each game at Lenovo Center as the franchise has prospered and its valuation increased.
The franchise was valued at $1.3 billion in CNBC’s 2024 NHL valuations, 27th in the league.
Lenovo Arena is undergoing a major renovation, and there are plans for an entertainment district to be built adjacent to the arena — a request from Dundon during lease negotiations.
This story was originally published August 13, 2025 at 12:34 PM.
