Thursday, word started spreading that Portland Trail Blazers owner Jody Allen has spurned star player Damian Lillard over concerns about the way the NBA franchise was run. It took all of one day for that rumor to be undone, by Lillard himself.
The rumor came from a New York Post hit piece on Thursday that firmly tried to paint Allen as a bad owner who has done a terrible job. Amongst other purported issues, a source told them that she refused to return Lillard’s calls.
“Damian wanted to sit down and have a conversation with Jody about the team and she didn’t return his call. Then he tried to email her. Eventually, she just never responded and put him in touch with Bert,” the source alleged. “When you own a team, there are critical key decisions to make and you should be the one involved in making the decisions.”
On Friday, Lillard effusively denied the rumor, even saying that Allen “always” takes time to speak with him.
Damian Lillard to @YahooSports on report that Portland Trail Blazers owner Jody Allen refused to take his call: pic.twitter.com/PMQqncIwWg
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) July 8, 2022
“I’m not sure where that story came from,” wrote Lillard. “Every time I’ve ever reached out to Jody, she has always taken time to speak with me. I never sent an email or none of that. I have a great relationship with management and ownership. My agent, Aaron Goodwin, speaks with ownership and management on a regular basis. This is a non-story.”
Furthermore, Lillard’s agent, Aaron Goodwin, also refuted the charge.
“That never happened,” Goodwin told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Friday. “We have a great relationship with Allen.”
“I saw the article,” Lillard told The Oregonian on Thursday night. “Every time I’ve reached out to her, it’s never been a problem.”
It certainly feels like the NY Post article came from a camp interested in discrediting Allen, who has recently said that there are no plans to sell the Trail Blazers and the Seattle Seahawks, though left the door open for a sale in the future.
