Closing Bell

Trail Blazers President & CEO Chris McGowan "has stepped down" after nine seasons with the franchise and "has been replaced by" Chief Commercial Officer & Exec VP Dewayne Hankins, who will now serve as President of Business Operations. McGowan, an SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree in '12, said that he "officially resigned on Nov. 1 and that his contract was up." He "plans to pursue other opportunities." Hankins, who joined the Blazers in '13, "helped land the team’s corporate sponsorship deal with StormX" and "played a role in negotiating the franchise’s new television deal with Root Sports" (Portland OREGONIAN, 11/12). 

It is "unclear if the move is related to the investigation" into Blazers President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey for "allegedly creating a toxic, hostile work environment" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 11/12).

The Patriots are among the teams that bid for sponsorship and media rights in Germany under the NFL’s plan to open foreign markets to club businesses. That’s among the topics discussed by team Owner Robert Kraft in an interview with former Patriots player and German broadcaster Sebastian Vollmer, which will air Sunday in Germany on ProSieben, the German media rightsholder for the NFL, said Patriots VP/Communications Stacey James.

ProSieben is making the Browns-Patriots game in Foxboro on Sunday its game of the week, and has sent a crew to cover the game live, James said. In the interview, Kraft tells Vollmer of the team’s desire to play a game in Germany. Kraft has said similar things to Vollmer before. But his comments take on new significance in light of the league’s ongoing development of a Germany game --which could happen as soon as next year -- and team-based international program.

Nineteen NFL teams submitted 28 bids to various foreign markets, with most interest coming in Mexico, the U.K. and Germany. If selected, the Patriots would be among several teams to have rights in Germany. Teams will find out as soon as next month who’s won which countries.

AAC Commissioner Mike Aresco said that he "will 'vigorously' oppose" a CFP expansion model that 'protects' Power Five leagues." Aresco confirmed reports that an alternative 12-team CFP model was discussed last week that provided automatic access only to the champions of the Power Five leagues and the highest-ranked champion from the Group of Five. But Aresco said that such a system "keeps the 'caste system' in place." Aresco: “This branding is very harmful to us. It’s as if we play in a different division.” A separate 12-team model was proposed in the summer that would include six guaranteed spots for the highest-ranked FBS conference champions regardless of autonomy status (AP, 11/12).

Anyone who receives a COVID-19 vaccine this Saturday at Fiserv Forum will get the chance to take a "picture with the Bucks championship trophy." The focus of the vaccine clinic is "on children ages 5 to 11," and on offer will be "pediatric Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines." The clinic also will "offer first, second and booster doses of Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines." Another vaccine clinic will be held on Dec. 4 to "administer second doses." People who return to complete their vaccine series "will be entered to win one of two family four-packs of tickets for that night's game" against the Heat (Milwaukee JOURNAL SENTINEL, 11/12).

This is an excerpt from SBJ's upcoming Nov. 15 issue.

Through Week 9, the approximate halfway point of the new 17-game schedule, the per-game average NFL attendance has increased by just 0.4% to 66,921 per game, according to SBJ Atlas analysis. That’s only 273 fans per game better than 2019, which marked a 15-year low for the league. With colder weather arriving, teams falling from playoff contention and the pandemic not yet over, the league could wind up with its fourth straight year of declining total attendance (2020 is not included in this analysis).

Among the reasons for concern to date: A majority of the league’s teams -- 19 of 32 -- have seen their average home attendance decline from 2019. More notably, the increase in the leaguewide top line is heavily driven by the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders moving into new, larger venues a season ago. The Chargers, for instance, traded a temporary home at a 27,000-seat venue in Carson, Calif., for 71,500-seat SoFi Stadium.

Read the full story.

Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones joined the HBO show "Back on the Record with Bob Costas," which airs Friday night at 11:00pm ET, where he discusses Jon Gruden and other topics. Jones was asked about Gruden's racist comments in emails to former WFT President Bruce Allen and whether his views were more widespread across the NFL. Jones emphatically said there is "not that type of issue prevalent in the NFL, and I can speak to that directly." Other guests on the season finale of "Back on the Record" include Candace Parker (SBJ).

Fitch Ratings has affirmed the A- ratings of the NBA’s debt instruments, which total $7.6B. That rating outlook is stable (Fitch Ratings).

The Jaguars named Justin Sievert their new General Counsel. Sievert had previously been Chair of the sports and gaming practice at the Miami law firm Vela Wood. He replaces Cassie McBride, who left the Jaguars for the same title at the Sharks in July (Ben Fischer, SBJ).

CBS Sports' college basketball schedule tips off Friday with three games on CBSSN, beginning with the Veterans Classic at the U.S. Naval Academy. CBS Sports has plans for more than 280 games across CBS, CBSSN and Paramount+ this season, including the inaugural HBCU All-Star Game, which will take place on the Sunday of Final Four weekend live on CBS at 4:00pm ET(SBJ).

The Pistons and payment firm Zelle will launch a custom video series showcasing Pistons players and their personal experiences with money management and digital banking safety (Pistons).

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“I look at things a little bit differently in terms of how to allocate dollars and when you allocate dollars and things of that nature. And [Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer] has a lot of perspective that I don’t have and things that I’ve learned from him, and so there has been ample opportunity for me to ask a question or say something and just say, well, hey, here’s my perspective on this type of thing, and it’s been really helpful for me” -- Cubs GM Carter Hawkins, on how his perspective can help the organization (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 11/12).

NHL Network has created a new promo spot based on Oilers C Connor McDavid’s Nov. 5 goal against the Rangers. The spot features the live reaction of personalities Tony Luftman, Bruce Boudreau and Mike Rupp as they watch McDavid’s goal on "NHL Tonight."

10% -- Percentage of all Hurricanes ticket sales that were group sales through the first five home games of the season at PNC Arena. In '19-20, that number was 16.5% (SPORTS BUSINESS JOURNAL, 11/8 issue).