Ex-Sonics voice Kevin Calabro stepping away from Trail Blazers

Kevin Calabro, the former longtime voice of the Seattle SuperSonics, is stepping away from his job as the television play-by-play broadcaster of the Portland Trail Blazers, Joe Freeman of The Oregonian reported Wednesday.

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Calabro’s contract with the team expired June 30. Freeman reported Calabro said he and the team had discussions about a new contract, but he called the offers “subprime.”

“I feel great about it,” Kevin Calabro told The Oregonian of his decision to leave the Trail Blazers. “I was grateful to have one of 30 jobs in the league and work so close to my home in Seattle. I’ll always be a part of Blazers history. I made some great memories and some great friends.”

The decision comes during what’s been a messy offseason for the Trail Blazers following the sale of the team to new owner Tom Dundon, who also owns the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes. Dundon has enacted a series of cost-cutting moves, including laying off many members of the broadcast team, and butted heads with Portland city leaders over funding for renovations to Moda Center.

Calabro had been the team’s TV play-by-play voice since the 2016-17 season.

So, what’s next for the 70-year-old Calabro?

He has no plans of retiring.

“I’m not thinking about retirement,” Calabro said. “I’m thinking: ‘What’s the next project?'”

Freeman reported Calabro has “a couple conversations set up for next week” with NBA teams and could be open to freelancing or calling college games.

If Calabro were to remain a free agent over the next couple of years, perhaps a return home to be the voice of an expansion reincarnation of the Sonics could be in the cards.

The NBA is in the process of exploring adding expansion teams in Seattle and Las Vegas. During an interview with The Dan Patrick Show in June, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said if the league were to expand, it’s target is the 2028-29 season. At the NBA’s Board of Governors meeting last week, Silver said multiple groups have expressed interested in landing an expansion franchise in Seattle.

Calabro spent 20 years on the broadcast for Sonics games from 1988-2008. He initially called games alongside original play-by-play voice Bob Blackburn before becoming the team’s sole play-by-play voice in 1992 following Blackburn’s retirement. When the team relocated to Oklahoma City following the 2007-08 season, Calabro declined his contract option to remain with the team the following season.

In addition to his roles with the Sonics and Trail Blazers, Calabro has called basketball and football games for the Pac-12 Network and was the play-by-play voice of the Seattle Sounders FC during their first MLS season in 2009, among various other broadcasting roles. He also hosted The Kevin Calabro Show on Seattle Sports 710 AM.

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