Braiden Bell

Introduction

Braiden Bell is an American sports play-by-play announcer whose tenure as the television voice of the Portland Trail Blazers lasted only hours. On October 1, 2026, the Trail Blazers announced that Bell, 29, would replace long-time broadcaster Kevin Calabro for the 2026–27 season; that same evening, a report by Portland’s KGW television surfaced misogynistic and racist posts from Bell’s X account, written in 2012 and 2013 when he was around 15 years old, and the team announced it would not be moving forward with him.

Background Information

Bell graduated from Arizona State University in 2019 and built his broadcasting resume in the Phoenix area: he called games for Cal Baptist and Arizona State on ESPN+, worked as play-by-play voice of the Phoenix Suns’ G League team, and later held the same role for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury. He was set to begin the Trail Blazers job the following week, working alongside color commentator Lamar Hurd and sideline reporter Brooke Olzendam, on a broadcast team that had recently lost Calabro, who told The Oregonian he was leaving after being given a “subprime” contract offer amid a round of layoffs under owner Thomas Dundon.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Allegations. The claims in this section describe offensive social media posts that KGW’s reporting surfaced and that the Trail Blazers acknowledged in announcing Bell’s firing. The posts were never denied by Bell, never the subject of any legal process, and never adjudicated in court — they are old social media posts, not criminal charges, and Bell has made no public statement about them.

According to KGW’s report, which the New York Post and USA Today cited, one of the Trail Blazers’ own journalists spotted the posts and contacted the team for comment before the firing was announced. Among them was a post dated December 9, 2012, reading: “I’m not racist at all.. But not gonna lie.. Asian people piss me off! Hahaha #Honest.” Another, from weeks earlier, read: “Gotta give a shoutout to all the big girls out there and those closet w—s.” And a third, from February 13, 2013, read: “We got a slut alert on aisle 10.” The posts used slurs targeting women and, in the December post, disparaged Asian people.

KGW’s reporting noted that it had not discovered any offensive posts from Bell’s adult accounts — the objectionable posts all date from 2012 and 2013, when he was roughly 15 years old. As of late Thursday night, according to the New York Post, the posts remained visible on Bell’s X account. Bell, set to start his job the following week, had made no public comment on the report; the team announced its decision hours after announcing his hire.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The Trail Blazers moved within hours. “The Portland Trail Blazers have zero tolerance for racist, sexist, or harmful comments,” the team said in a statement. “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 statement added: “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 apology — for the team’s own vetting failure, not just the posts — was an unusual public admission that the process had broken down.

The speed drew attention: national outlets from USA Today to the New York Post covered the firing within hours, noting that Bell’s stint as the team’s newly announced television voice was over almost as soon as it was public — hours from announcement to termination. The New York Post’s main X account flagged the firing to its followers minutes after its article went up.

Current Status

Bell is no longer employed by the Trail Blazers, and the team has not named a replacement broadcaster. There is no indication of any further professional consequence beyond the termination itself, and no criminal or legal dimension exists — the entire matter is a personnel decision over decade-old social media posts written as a minor. Bell has not publicly responded, and as of this writing the posts remain on his account. His long-term broadcasting career — he is 29, with G League, Mercury and ESPN+ experience — is not publicly known to have been affected beyond this firing.

Impact on Their Career/Life

The firing cost Bell, hours into his dream job, the highest-profile role of his career: lead television play-by-play voice of an NBA franchise, a seat that had just been vacated by a nine-year veteran. At 29, he loses the platform at the moment it was announced, publicly, with the team’s statement and national coverage attaching the controversy to his name. Whatever redemption arc may exist — the posts are those of a teenager, not an adult — the episode is now the first search result attached to his name, and the Trail Blazers’ apology assures fans the team “will do better” in vetting its next hire.

Sources

• New York Post, “Trail Blazers fire broadcaster — on same day hiring was announced — after racist, mismisogynistic posts emerge: report,” Christian Arnold, Oct. 1, 2026 — source
• USA Today, “NBA team fires broadcaster hours after hiring him over racist social posts,” Scooby Axson, updated Oct. 2, 2026 — source
• @nypost on X, trigger post, Oct. 2, 2026 — source