The Oklahoma City Thunder may have set a template the Portland Trail Blazers are now studying, and that could shape where Portland’s franchise ends up next.
OKC’s arena situation moved cleanly. The city covered most of the cost for a new building that is scheduled to open by the 2028-29 season, and the near-billion-dollar project came with a 25-year lease that keeps the Thunder in place through at least 2050.
Portland’s path has been far messier. New owner Tom Dundon has already stirred things up in his first year, from cutting back on staff to moving on from Tiago Splitter after the team’s first playoff trip in years and handing Micah Nori an unprecedented one-year guaranteed deal as head coach. Now the bigger fight is over the team’s home.
The city wants the Trail Blazers to commit to a 20-year lease that would include renovations and upgrades to the Moda Center. Dundon and the team’s new leadership, though, are believed to want a brand-new arena and a deal where Portland would shoulder most of the cost. The current lease at the Moda Center runs out in 2030, which leaves the sides with limited time to reach an agreement, ideally before the end of the year.
That gap has fueled growing talk about relocation, with Portland now in serious danger of losing its NBA team if the arena dispute keeps dragging on.
According to The Athletic, the Thunder and Utah have become reference points for the Blazers as they evaluate their options. The report said, "A Blazers source said the team has been examining other recent arena deals in Oklahoma City and Utah," and "may start looking for a new deal in Portland - which might even include asking for a new arena in Portland."
For now, the Blazers and the city are still trying to see whether they can stay at the Moda Center and pay for upgrades there. The building opened in 1995, making it one of the league’s older arenas. But if the two sides remain far apart, the situation could turn quickly.
Seattle knows the feeling. A fight with a new out-of-state owner over arena funding can get ugly in a hurry, and that history is hanging over Oregon’s neighbors to the north as they try to bring the SuperSonics back someday.
In Other News...
Thunder Fans Have Even More Reason To Regret The Lu Dort Trade
The decision to move Luguentz Dort was always going to land hard with Thunder fans, but the reasons behind it make the sting a little sharper. Oklahoma City dealt a player who had become part of the teams identity primarily to create financial relief under the NBAs second apron rules, with Sam Presti confirming the move was tied to future flexibility rather than basketball fit alone.
What makes the whole thing linger is that Dort was not short on outside interest before the deal went through. A HoopsHype report said the Lakers, Nets, Raptors and Heat were among the teams that had expressed interest, which only underscores how valued he was around the league. For Thunder fans, that turns the trade into more than a cap-management move - it is also a reminder that a player they knew had a broader market, and that Oklahoma City chose the path it did anyway. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder Have Another Big Payday Decision After The Lu Dort Move
After moving on from Lu Dort, the Thunder are already staring at another key roster-and-wallet decision, and this one is aimed squarely at the guards who fit their long-term timeline. Reports suggest Oklahoma City wants to keep building around Cason Wallace and Ajay Mitchell, two young pieces who have helped shape the teams next wave behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Mitchell, in particular, has turned into the kind of value play every front office hopes to find, backing up his rise with strong production in the 2025-26 season and then raising his level again in the postseason. With Wallace and Mitchell both in the picture, the Thunders backcourt future is starting to take a clear shape, and the next question is how aggressively Sam Presti chooses to lock it in. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder Are Asking Chet Holmgren To Prove He Belongs In Their Future
The Thunder have already started trimming around the edges of their roster to keep the books pointed toward their young core, and that puts Chet Holmgren in a very specific kind of spotlight. Oklahoma City is clearly treating Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as the franchises long-term spine, which means the cost of keeping that group together will only rise as the years go on. Holmgren has done his part on one end, anchoring the defense and finishing near the top of the leagues individual honors on that side of the floor.
What still hangs over him is whether the offense catches up fast enough to make the financial bet feel as clean as the basketball one. The Thunder can live with growing pains from a young big, but they also need more than rim protection and promise if they are going to keep paying premium money for a title core. Holmgrens playoff struggles only sharpen that question, and with Oklahoma City already making hard choices elsewhere, his next offensive leap may say as much about the teams future as anyone elses. [Read more 🡒]