NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers fire newly hired announcer Braiden Bell after racist, misogynistic posts resurface
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The team said Bell’s past comments violated organization and league policies and acknowledged its hiring process “did not meet our own bar.”
The Portland Trail Blazers fired newly hired play-by-play announcer Braiden Bell just hours after announcing him for the job after racist and misogynistic posts from his teenage years resurfaced. KGW reporter Devon Haskins found the old posts while reporting on the hire.
OPB reported that the Blazers introduced Bell shortly after noon on Oct. 1 as a new voice for the next chapter of the team’s broadcasts. Haskins contacted the team for comment before publication. Several hours later, Portland said Bell had been fired.
The posts dated to 2012 and 2013, when Bell was 15. They included derogatory remarks about Asian people and women. The team said the comments violated both organization and league policies.
The Trail Blazers said they have “zero tolerance for racist, sexist, or harmful comments.” The organization also acknowledged problems with its hiring process, saying it “did not meet our own bar.”
Bell, now 29, had been hired to replace longtime broadcaster Kevin Calabro. He previously called games for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, the G League’s Valley Suns, Cal Baptist and Arizona State.
On Oct. 2, Bell apologized publicly on X. He said the posts were written 14 years ago and “have no reflection of who I am today.” Bell also said he regretted the harm caused and apologized to anyone hurt by his words.
The Braiden Bell firing later drew scrutiny of the reporting itself. The Desk reported that TEGNA, KGW’s parent company, opened an internal review into how the station handled the story and whether its editorial processes were followed. TEGNA had not publicly confirmed the review when The Desk published its report.
The Blazers said they will continue searching for a broadcaster who reflects the team’s standards and makes everyone in “Rip City” feel welcome and safe across the organization and community.