Portland Trail Blazers Fire New Announcer Braiden Bell Hours After Hiring

A very short hiring

The Portland Trail Blazers made a major blunder this week. The NBA team hired Braiden Bell as their new play by play announcer, only to sack him on the exact same day. This swift decision came after inappropriate social media posts from his teenage years resurfaced online.

The franchise released a statement on Thursday to announce his dismissal. They stated that the team has zero tolerance for racist, sexist, or harmful comments. They added that the posts made by their newly announced broadcaster were in clear violation of team and league policies, as well as their values and expectations.

What was in the posts?

The offensive comments were reportedly written in 2012 and 2013, when Bell was around 15 years old. In some of the posts, Bell wrote that he was not racist but Asian people pissed him off. Other posts contained misogynistic language.

The Trail Blazers apologized to their fans and Rip City for the situation. They admitted they did not meet their own standards during the hiring process. They stated that everyone who is a part of Rip City should feel welcome and safe, and they promised to do better with their next hire.

Bell, who is 29 years old, previously worked for the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and G League's Valley Suns. He was supposed to replace longtime announcer Kevin Calabro, who had held the role since 2016. Calabro left the team in July after receiving what he described as a subprime contract offer. The Trail Blazers' owner, Tom Dundon, has made several cost cutting moves that have faced criticism. Dundon also insisted that only public money should be used to pay for a 600 million dollar makeover of the team's arena, the Moda Center.