A PROMINENT NBA team has sold for $1.5 billion just days after the sale of the iconic Los Angeles Lakers.
The NBA has finally approved a team sale that was among the longest of its kind.
Jeanie Buss owned the Los Angeles Lakers and sold the NBA for $10 billion in a stunning development last week[/caption]
Minnesota Timberwolves star center Rudy Gobert seen being guarded by Lakers’ Rui Hachimura during the first round of the 2024-25 NBA playoffs[/caption]
Last Wednesday, it was announced that the Lakers, the NBA’s most famous franchise, sold for $10 billion.
After owning the franchise for 46 years, the Buss family sold its majority stake to the Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter, and Jeanie Buss will continue her governorship of the team.
And another NBA organization has decided on a new chapter.
The NBA approved the $1.5 billion transfer of the Minnesota Timberwolves and WNBA‘s Minnesota Lynx from Glen Taylor to entrepreneur Marc Lore and MLB legend Alex Rodriguez.
The pair is set to take on majority control of the franchise that Taylor owned for more than 30 years.
The ownership decision that Taylor tried to stop last year received an unanimous vote from the 30 NBA team owners.
The deal was originally signed in 2021 and is expected to go through after experiencing four-plus years of disputes.
Among the disputes was that Taylor alleged that Lore and Rodriguez missed an important payment deadline and sought to keep control of the two teams permanently, a matter that went to an arbitrator who ultimately ruled in favor of the two.
There will be an introductory news conference for Lore and Rodriguez next week in Las Vegas at the NBA Summer League.
Lore and Rodriguez will be co-chairmen on the board, as Lore will be the Timberwolves governor, and Rodriguez will be alternate governor, with the roles reversed for the Lynx.
“Today marks a momentous milestone for us, and we fully recognize the great responsibility that comes with serving as stewards of these exceptional franchises,” Lore said in a statement.
“We are committed to building an organization that sets the standard for excellence, is universally admired, and rooted in pride that spans generations.”
The Timberwolves have been highly competitive recently, earning Western Conference Finals each of the past two seasons.
The franchise, led by rising star Anthony Edwards, lost to the eventual NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder this past season.
The Lynx, meanwhile, has a more successful history as they’ve won four WNBA titles and appeared in seven conference championships, including in 2024.
MLB icon Alex Rodriguez, front, and billionaire entrepreneur Marc Lore, right of Rodriguez, are officially the Timberwolves’ majority owners[/caption]
Both teams reside in Target Center in Minneapolis.
They are now owned by Lore, whose net worth is estimated by Forbes at $2.9 billion.
He is the CEO of the New York-based meal delivery company called Wonder.
And Rodriguez is a retired 14-time MLB All-Star who has built a business career on real estate investment and development.
Lore and Rodriguez watch a Timberwolves game last December[/caption]
He earned more than $450 million in salaries during his 22-year baseball career.
