Rudy Fernandez officially signs with Portland

[Malinhion]

Yeah, with Bird Rights and Allen's bankroll the Blazers will have no problems resigning everyone.

[Milkdud]

I'm not going to go the route of some blazers fans and say "OMG Allen is SUPERRICH WE ARE KEEPING EVERYONE". But there is some history that shows clearly that Allen in the past has been willing to pay big time money to have a talented team. What could be different this time around is its keeping young talent as opposed to taking big contract vets (which I think is another positive endorsment to Allen paying up).

[SabasRevenge!]

It's not even that PA is by far the richest owner, the NBA has made it very difficult for FAs coming off their rookie contracts to leave without suffering a pretty significant financial hit.

Jerry Reinsdorf was able to keep his team together because he was making a ton of money off of MJ. Paying 30mil for MJ was a bargain for how much revenue he brought in. Many owners want their teams to be profitable, so they are more conservative with their spending. Some owners don't flinch at losing 50mil a year, but that would be a serious hit to other owners.

Paul Allen's team is his favorite hobby and making money isn't his primary concern. The Blazers aren't an investment for him. He spends more on boats. Historically, owners who have been reckless spenders have gotten themselves into a lot of trouble and don't really have anything to show for it. Before saying it's unfair, consider the San Antonio's and Chicago's of the league. An elite front office and excellent drafts are much more important than a rich owner. Kevin Pritchard has brought that to Portland.