Trail Blazers fire new announcer hours after hiring him over social media posts he made as a teen
Braiden Bell was let go on Thursday shortly after being hired; the team says it has 'zero tolerance for racist, sexist or harmful comments'
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The Portland Trail Blazers fired new play-by-play voice Braiden Bell mere hours after hiring him Thursday, the team announced. Bell was slated to replace longtime broadcaster Kevin Calabro in the role, but after hiring him, the Blazers discovered racist and misogynistic posts on his existing social media account. Bell is now 29 years old, and the posts came when Bell was a teenager in 2012 and 2013. The Blazers released the following statement:
"The Portland Trail Blazers have zero tolerance for racist, sexist or harmful comments. Social media posts made by our recently announced play-by-play broadcaster are in clear violation of team and league policies, as well as our values and expectations. Therefore, we will not be moving forward with this broadcaster.
"The play-by-play role carries a long legacy of excellence, on the broadcast and in character, and we hold that standard without exception. We did not meet our own bar in this process, and for that we apologize to Blazers fans and to Rip City. We believe strongly that everyone who is a part of Rip City should feel welcome and safe and we will make sure that our new broadcaster reflects these values. We will do better."
The tweets were initially found by news outlet KGW, which did not find any offensive tweets once Bell became an adult. From 2015 on, his account focused almost exclusively on sports. Bell's account was private as of Friday night.
Prior to accepting the Blazers job, Bell has been the play-by-play broadcaster for the Phoenix Mercury and the G-League's Valley Sun. The Blazers were already overhauling most of their television operation this season, with Calabro among many veteran broadcasters not retained by new owner Tom Dundon.
Portland will need to find a new play-by-play voice with less than three weeks remaining before the 2026-27 season begins. The Blazers open their season at home against the Phoenix Suns on Oct. 21.
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