Hours after his dream job vanished, the new play-by-play voice addresses the teenage social media posts that triggered his immediate dismissal and an organizational apology to fans.
Braiden Bell has spoken publicly for the first time since the Portland Trail Blazers fired him Thursday, issuing an apology Friday for offensive social media posts that resurfaced shortly after his hiring.
“I am deeply sorry for the language that I used on Twitter,” Bell wrote on X. “These tweets, while wrong, were written by me 14 years ago while I was only 15 years old and have no reflection of who I am today.”
Bell added that he did not take lightly any harm caused by the posts.
“I regret this being my first impression to many of you online, but I can take solace in knowing that the people who truly know me understand that this is not the kind of person I am,” Bell wrote. “Again, I’d like to apologize to anyone who was hurt by my words and will continue to always treat people with kindness and respect.”
Portland announced Bell as its new television play-by-play broadcaster Thursday, naming him as the replacement for longtime voice Kevin Calabro.
The hiring appeared to end a search that had stretched into training camp.
Just days earlier, Blazer’s Edge cited longtime Portland media member Kerry Eggers in reporting that Bell and Sacramento Kings broadcaster Kyle Draper were the two finalists for the opening — with Bell considered the favorite.
Bell brought experience across several levels of basketball. He previously called games for California Baptist and Arizona State before handling play-by-play duties for the Phoenix Mercury and Valley Suns, the Phoenix Suns’ G League affiliate.
Though his time in Portland ... never reached a game.
Hours after the move became official, KGW reported that one of its journalists had discovered old posts from Bell’s X account containing racist comments about Asian people and misogynistic language directed toward women. The posts dated to 2012 and 2013.
Portland announced later Thursday that it would no longer move forward with Bell.
“The Portland Trail Blazers have zero tolerance for racist, sexist, or harmful comments,” the organization said.
The team also acknowledged its own shortcomings in the process.
“The play-by-play role carries a long legacy of excellence, on the broadcast and in character, and we hold that standard without exception,” Portland said. “We did not meet our own bar in this process, and for that we apologize to Blazers fans and to Rip City.”
Bell briefly made his X account private following his dismissal before posting Friday’s statement.
Portland now heads back into a search it appeared to have completed — this time with the regular season drawing closer.
