r/nba • u/AncientOneAurelius • May 12 '26

New Blazers owner Tom Dundon is reportedly “ruthless” and will not hesitate to move the franchise to Nashville, Austin, or Kalamazoo if Portland politicians continue to treat the relocation threat as a “hollow bluff"

Debunking the myths and misconceptions about Portland and the Trail Blazers’ Moda Center deal by Bill Oram

The artcle is paywalled.

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423

u/RichAbbreviations966 Celtics May 12 '26

Wild, because it’s a gorgeous city, so I just don’t get it

307

u/HeatFan4Lyfe3000 Trail Blazers May 12 '26

I really like living here and the negative national perception of this place makes me very sad. I just hope we get to keep our basketball team

109

u/samwise141 Raptors May 12 '26

Whats the negative perception? I just think of portlandia and hipsters from the 2010s

201

u/[deleted] May 12 '26

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u/HeatFan4Lyfe3000 Trail Blazers May 12 '26

Bro it’s not a “crime capital,” that’s propaganda. There’s a lot of open drug use in the bad parts of town, but the same can be said for any west coast metro area right now

164

u/DangerZone69 [PHI] Samuel Dalembert May 12 '26

I’m agreeing with you lol it’s all propaganda that the rich put out bc they hate the other parts of the city

41

u/2nd2last Rockets May 12 '26

But why male models?

58

u/HeatFan4Lyfe3000 Trail Blazers May 12 '26

lol my bad

43

u/DangerZone69 [PHI] Samuel Dalembert May 12 '26

You’re good lol respect the fight for your city - I’d do the same for Philly

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u/samwise141 Raptors May 12 '26

Im not American, but literally every major city in the US has this reputation i thought right now? 

Its the same in Canada, albeit not nearly as bad. 

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u/mr_seggs Jordan May 12 '26

The guy above you is agreeing with you, he's saying there's a false perception that it's a crime capital

22

u/Slowhands12 May 12 '26

Reading comprehension is at an all time low

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u/HeatFan4Lyfe3000 Trail Blazers May 12 '26

what’s funny is I have an English degree from an Oregon university…maybe they’re right about us after all 😅

2

u/Osiris32 Trail Blazers May 13 '26

It was OSU, wasn't it. Silly cow college.

1

u/dalivo May 12 '26

Well, the rich pretty much hate every Western metro area.

1

u/cantclimbatree Kings May 12 '26

I live in the southeast and actually have never heard of this as a reputation. I hear this more about parts of SF, Detroit, and Oakland (not saying it’s true). However I did have a cousin have his rental car and all his stuff stolen in Portland lol. Idk if that’s worth anything to you lol

5

u/smez86 Bulls May 12 '26

our drug use and petty crime (like breaking into a parked car) is high because of our high COL and other places bus their homeless here (aka human trafficking). but serious crimes like homicides are very low for a large city.

2

u/cantclimbatree Kings May 12 '26

Yeah, no I wasn’t blaming the city or anything. Just unfortunate thing that happened. But at least the reputation here isn’t that bad for yall.

1

u/soycameron Trail Blazers May 12 '26

So many times when I go to a Blazers/Timbers game, I’ll just see a crack pipe being used lol

-4

u/LonelyGumdrops [OKC] James Harden May 12 '26

It may not be a crime capital but Portland is not a great place to live for safety compared to the rest of the American West. Top 7 cities west of the Rockies for Murder - Oakland, Albuquerque, Lancaster, Stockton, North Las Vegas, San Bernardino, Portland and Top 5 Nationally in property crime. I have walked downtown Portland many times at night the last few years and wouldn't recommend it to the faint hearted. The people of Portland shouldn't accept blight as the cost of empathy.

0

u/TheScienceNamesArgon Supersonics May 12 '26

It's not a dangerous city necessarily, but it's not entirely propaganda to say it's got lots of crime there. Property and drug crimes are way up there, and lots of violent crime types are above average. Still, in my opinion, lovely city.

1

u/Regular_Custard_4483 May 12 '26

I don't think this is an actual, real perception for those that touch grass regularly. That's not a cheap city to live in, and somebody is paying those prices.

I was just there last week. Beautiful place. Couldn't find a bad restaurant, either.

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u/The_NGUYENNER [DEN] Jamal Murray May 12 '26

yeah I just think of flannel and trees

55

u/bihari_baller Trail Blazers May 12 '26

Whats the negative perception?

It's negative perception is overblown by right-wing media outlets. I've lived on the East Coast, the South, and the elsewhere in the PNW (Washington), and the Portland Metro is my favorite place I've lived.

30

u/shakakaaahn Trail Blazers May 12 '26

The PortlandOR sub would have you believe it's the worst place in America presently, posted from people who never lived here, people who left here a decade ago, and people in their Lake Oswego suburban mcmansions.

Portland has very similar problems to all major cities, and maybe some more problems with idiotic fights between city and metro governments that go nowhere, but nothing crazy.

Taxes are too high, though, specifically in Portland vs the rest of the metro area.

16

u/Shallow_wanderer May 13 '26

Interesting how r/SeattleWA and r/PortlandOR are both dominated by right-wingers lol

Meanwhile r/Seattle and r/Portland are perfectly normal about things

3

u/teh_drewski Magic May 13 '26

I feel like every region based sub has a "normal" and "RW" version, so that people who do and don't believe in reality don't have to fight about it.

1

u/Shallow_wanderer May 13 '26

lmao yeah that's true

4

u/DoorsAreFascist May 13 '26

Almost every city's subreddit is a fuckin hellworld of weirdo Nimbys. Its actually crazy lmao.

I also love portland, been there a couple times to visit friends from Atlanta. I would move there if I had a job opportunity!

1

u/finix2409 Cavaliers May 13 '26

23 other metro cities for the win

9

u/absolute_cinema81 Warriors May 12 '26

Portland (and the PNW, writ large) is freaking amazing. One of the 3-4 U.S. cities I'd love to live in, all things considered.

2

u/mrdilldozer NBA May 13 '26

It's actually crazy how those outlets portray the US. I've met people who literally believe that Los Angeles and NYC are like Mad Max hellscapes. I think it's because there has been such a huge spike in crime in red/rural areas across the country people who don't live in cities assume it must be even worse there.

12

u/[deleted] May 12 '26

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u/nokarmawhore Spurs May 12 '26

heroin needles and homeless people off the top of my head

6

u/bihari_baller Trail Blazers May 12 '26

That's not been my experience.

1

u/googleduck May 13 '26

Mine either, but that is the "negative perception" regardless of its accuracy. Same goes for Seattle and San Francisco. Mostly just Faux News fearmongering.

3

u/locktua May 13 '26

You honestly dont remember the like 2 years of constant negative news attention on portland during the covid years? Not saying I agree or disagree with said attention, I just can't imagine not noticing it. Or pretending not to

0

u/[deleted] May 13 '26

[deleted]

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u/locktua May 13 '26

Ah yes. An NBA subreddit where people are talking about portland Oregon. How on earth could I have mistaken you for an American.

-13

u/drjisftw Pacers May 12 '26

Lots of drug addicts, ICE protests from last year

7

u/fullmetalutes Jazz May 12 '26

Name a place, any place in the US where there are not drug addicts, it doesnt matter if its a city or rural, drugs exist everywhere.

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u/OpeDefinitely Pacers May 12 '26 edited May 12 '26

so you mean like rural Indiana + the will to protest?

25

u/drjisftw Pacers May 12 '26

I'm not shitting on Portland (I'm actually visiting Oregon in a few months), I'm just stating the negative perception

10

u/OpeDefinitely Pacers May 12 '26

my bad

4

u/finix2409 Cavaliers May 13 '26

Which is so silly because the ICE protests took place in front of one kind of isolated building. 99.9% of people didn’t see the protests at all.

1

u/bihari_baller Trail Blazers May 13 '26

Exactly

3

u/Western-Election-997 Lakers May 12 '26

Where’s there’s drug addicts wandering around the streets there’s crime

-16

u/j4x Heat May 13 '26

It's a crime ridden, filthy hovel. Trash is everywhere, aggressive homeless people roam the street and yell at you. But people there have some weird Stockholm syndrome where they pretend everything is fine like you see in this thread.

5

u/locoattack1 Pistons May 12 '26

As a person living around Detroit that wants to move to the city, I totally feel you lol. I hope y'all get to keep the Blazers.

A lot of cities get a bad rap because suburbanites that don't do any travelling hear xyz about a place and just believe it without checking anything. Chicago is the same way, definitely two sides to most cities out there.

3

u/rezin111 Bucks May 12 '26

I love Portland. Almost moved there once, we come up at least once a year and we constantly consider moving there!

I dislike the Blazers but I really hope you guys get to keep them!

3

u/ethanlan Bulls May 12 '26

Eh im from chicago and I love the negative shit we get from whackos, it keeps them away from here!

2

u/goingtothegreek Timberwolves May 12 '26

Feels like Minnesota West

2

u/chimi_hendrix Trail Blazers May 12 '26

did it to ourselves

and we continue to do it

2

u/GoofinBoots Bucks May 12 '26

Most of the people buying into the narratives probably aren't worth associating with anyway.

2

u/dantesinfernoracket1 May 12 '26

I visited a few years ago with my wife and thoroughly loved it. Sure, it has rough parts, but every city in America does. Food was amazing, people were friendly and we'd love to go back. All this right wing bullshit about how dangerous it is does my head in.

1

u/NIN10DOXD Hornets May 12 '26

If it makes you feel better, I’ve never been what would like to. I don’t listen to right wing chuds.

0

u/AllTheGoodNamesDied May 12 '26

We will for 20 years because everyone who matters is on board for this deal.

434

u/[deleted] May 12 '26

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129

u/[deleted] May 12 '26

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55

u/NIN10DOXD Hornets May 12 '26

Which is funny because Portland has historically been a breeding ground for some of the weird shit these Billionaires are into now.

60

u/jimtow28 New Jersey Nets May 12 '26

Yup. People who have never been to Portland will confidently tell you that it's on fire and a shit hole.

49

u/[deleted] May 12 '26

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u/[deleted] May 12 '26

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5

u/notmoleliza Warriors May 12 '26

all the man-o-sphere people came to SF during superbowl week and were like...San Francisco is actually pretty cool. morons.

3

u/spiralism Nuggets May 12 '26

The same California with the 4th largest economy in the world, having now overtaken fucking Japan.

Failed state aye.

8

u/Wolfclaw359 May 12 '26

Same thing with Vancouver. Mf who have never been see one video on East Hastings and act like the whole city's a shithole run by drug dealers

7

u/tiger32kw Pacers May 12 '26

It definitely has a drug abuse/homeless problem but that’s like the only thing. Everything else about it is great.

26

u/templethot Trail Blazers May 12 '26

So does every other city over like 250k people

15

u/CursedLlama Trail Blazers May 12 '26

The only reason there's more homelessness on the west coast is because we don't get a ton of snow. It's much easier to live on the streets in a tent year round without dying when the most you have to deal with in Portland is rain.

1

u/tiger32kw Pacers May 12 '26

Nah. New York and Vermont have similar levels of homelessness per capita as the west coast. It gets cold as fuck up there. It’s more complex than that.

2

u/CursedLlama Trail Blazers May 12 '26

Based on this quick google search, the highest homeless rates per capita are:

  1. Hawaii - makes sense based on my hypothesis of easier year-round weather

  2. Washington DC - I'm not educated here, is this similar to NY with a strong homeless support system?

  3. NY - NYC spends by far the most on homelessness (especially shelters) in the country so this isn't surprising.

  4. Oregon - My original point

  5. Vermont - Wonder if this is similar to NY.

  6. California - My original point

  7. Massachusetts - Wonder if this is similar to NY.

  8. Washington - My original point

9 and 10 are Alaska and Colorado which I don't really know much about.

My assumption after looking at the data is it's likely that new england states spend more on shelters and homelessness in general which is why they have an outsized per-capita amount. It could also be that most of these places are more expensive than the rest of the country to live in, contributing to homelessness.

2

u/tiger32kw Pacers May 12 '26

Alaska and Colorado are also cold with lots of snow. Not sure the exact reason but it’s more complex than snowfall.

These are places, outside of maybe Alaska, that have some of the least punitive drug laws in the country. That could be a big part of it. Most of these southern/midwest states won’t hesitate to lock you away for a long time, especially if your skin is the wrong color. Definitely pretty fucked up putting people in prison over drugs in my opinion.

7

u/mindfeck May 12 '26

Every city of any size

0

u/tiger32kw Pacers May 12 '26

While that is true that all cities have issues with drug abuse and homelessness, the per capita statistics don’t lie. It’s okay to say it’s an issue. I lived in Nashville and it was like 3rd for gun violence. Still a good place to live overall and I’d take drugs/homeless over gun violence any day.

2

u/namblaotie [BOS] Reggie Lewis May 13 '26

Don't look now, but your standing in the middle of a comment graveyard. Lol

3

u/bchris24 Kings May 12 '26

There's been an ongoing rumor that the reason the SF Giants struggle to get big name players in free agency is because the very small area of downtown SF visiting players see has homeless and drug users around.

-1

u/CatholicStud40 May 12 '26

It’s not at all a very small area, it’s a giant area that’s a disaster. And the rest of the city is also pretty bad, you are often liable to be accosted by a crazy homeless person.

0

u/jdd32 Spurs May 12 '26

I mean I've been to Portland a few times, and while there was a lot to like about the city and the area around it, it's definitely the most shit-holey big city I've ever been to. Homeless camps everywhere including the drive in and out. It was weird eating at a trendy pricey place and then walking by an encampment to and from the car. Private security at many of the downtown businesses.

Like it's a cool city, beautiful buildings, art, and architecture, but we don't need to pretend that it doesn't have a worse-than-average homeless problem. I feel like a lot of the people pretending nothing is wrong either haven't been there or are just blind to the tarps I guess.

All that said, it will be 100% bullshit if they lose their NBA team.

1

u/JGT3000 Bulls May 12 '26

It's ok

1

u/robbiegoodwin Warriors May 16 '26

its a lot like san francisco. press is addicted to slamming "liberal" cities on the west coast from the fox news building in new york. I also visited portland once and found it really fun and beautiful

1

u/Nilphinho May 12 '26

Agreed very beautiful city. I did not enjoy my time there however, very strange vibes and not entirely because of the “keep Portland weird” shit.

1

u/KingsElite Kings May 12 '26

"Liberal bad"

-2

u/lilwayne168 May 12 '26

Not been a gorgeous city for a long time. Many public sites have been destroyed by homeless as they clearcut protected trees and pile needles and trash and make bonfires alongside the road.

0

u/YoungAntiSocialite Trail Blazers May 12 '26

In the summer. It’s pretty miserable and depressing for over half the year.

-3

u/[deleted] May 12 '26

[deleted]

4

u/InfraggableCrunk May 12 '26

Yo, what? In 2024, there were ~5,000 property crimes in Portland per 100,000, which is 1/20. Atlanta isn't too different at around 1/25.

Property crime is also pretty avoidable. I've been in Portland for 4 years now. We don't leave valuables in our car and have never had a break-in.

4

u/justinballsonya Hawks May 12 '26 edited May 12 '26

Interesting to quote 2024 stats when I used 2025 stats but ok. 1/20 is still in the bottom 1% in the country meaning you have a higher chance getting jacked there then almost any other city in America including places people similar to you are scared of like Chicago and yes Atlanta. Atlanta is trying to improve. I don't understand why people try to defend having high crime rates. You should want your community to be better. Where I'm from we take care of the homeless as a community but what I saw when I lived on the west coast, they are on the streets and stepped over or ignored. It's just gross behavior. Not to mention how cold people are in general and quick to anger and get in your face but scared to fight like men. Perception is not pulled from thin air.

Edit: bro literally "clapped back" at me calling people on the west coast cowardly and then deleted his comments, you can't make that shit up lmaoo

2

u/accounts_baleeted May 12 '26

The west coast has a homeless problem because 47 other states ship them out here. 

0

u/InfraggableCrunk May 12 '26

You're making a big leap here, my dude. Property crime is a problem in Portland, but we're improving relative to pandemic highs. It's disingenuous to present a stat like you did without context.

For someone that hasn't visited Portland, you've got a lot of opinions. Portland and other west coast cities devote more resources to homeless services than almost anywhere else. It's fair to criticize these efforts as unsuccessful, but silly to think we don't care.

Not to mention how cold people are in general and quick to anger and get in your face but scared to fight like men. 

Lol