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Portland Trail Blazers Organization Announces Major Layoffs and Pay Cuts

Ruben Estrada|
PORTLAND, OREGON - FEBRUARY 23: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers reacts from the bench in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons during their game at Moda Center on February 23, 2020 in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OREGON - FEBRUARY 23: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers reacts from the bench in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons during their game at Moda Center on February 23, 2020 in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)

As COVID-19 continues to shut down large portions of society, the Portland Trail Blazers have been forced to make significant budget cuts.

While the Portland Trail Blazers will be participating when the NBA returns in July, their arena remains empty, prompting the organization to make a large number of layoffs and salary reductions.

Reporter Joe Freeman of The Oregonian reported on Wednesday that the Trail Blazers laid off 15% of their workforce, totaling to an estimated 40 employees. All employees in a director position will receive salary cuts both within the organization itself as well as its arena operations company, Rip City Management.

Before the closure of arenas nationwide, the Trail Blazers were scheduled to play nine more regular-season games. Combining the revenue of ticket sales, previous concession numbers, and sponsorships, it is thought the Blazers organization will lose $2 million per game. While playoffs remained a question at the time of the season’s pause, the Blazers are potentially losing well over $20 million in revenue. Further, 22% of all season ticket holder revenue must be returned, compounding an already significant budget loss.

While neither the Trail Blazers nor the world as a whole has experienced something quite like the present, the 2011 NBA lockout provides some insight into the economic toll of lost games. Despite missing just one month of the 2011-2012 season, sports bars, hotels, transportation systems, vendors, and other industries were struck hard by the absence of professional basketball.

While the coronavirus and not an economic dispute has been the result of this financial crisis, the effects appear similar, with COVID-19 already running the risk of affecting ticket sales for the 2020-2021 season.

While the Portland Trail Blazers were seemingly economically stable before the season’s pause, it appears most major sports teams will experience dramatic financial issues in the coming months. At an estimated value of $1.85 billion, Portland boasts the most significant number of its market size. With this in mind, the hope is the organization finds a way to avoid further dramatic employee and salary cuts.

As players across the league test positive for COVID-19, fans are left to see if any more changes will come to the current season, set to return to play on July 31 in Walt Disney, Florida.