An arbitration panel on Monday ruled 2-1 in favor of Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore in their quest for a controlling ownership stake of the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves and the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx.
The NBA Board of Governors need to approve Rodriguez and Lore before the deal is formalized. Current owner and chairman Glen Taylor described himself as “disappointed” by the decision in a statement Monday evening.
NBA owners previously approved the sale in 2021, early on in what’s become a nearly five-year saga.
Rodriguez, the longtime MLB star, and his business partner Lore agreed to buy the teams for $1.5 billion in 2021. Originally purchasing a 20 percent stake, they had three future options to build up their stake to a majority ownership but Taylor suddenly pulled the teams off the market.
Taylor claimed that Rodriguez and Lore had missed a payment, and the duo shot back that Taylor was experiencing “seller’s remorse” as the valuation of the Wolves and Lynx skyrocketed. Forbes estimated the Timberwolves’ value at $3.1 billion last fall.
The case went in front of an arbitration panel earlier this year, and they have now ruled that Taylor is contractually obligated to sell the agreed upon stakes to Rodriguez and Lore at the initial valuation of $1.5 billion. According to Sportico, the duo still owes about $942 million.
“We will review the decision thoroughly prior to making any further comment,” Taylor’s statement continued. “We would like to express our sincere appreciation to Timberwolves and Lynx players, staff and loyal fans for their support.”
“We are extremely pleased with today’s decision,” Rodriguez and Lore said in a statement to ESPN. “We look forward to working with the NBA to complete the approval process and close this transaction so that we can turn our attention to winning championships in Minnesota for our incredible fans and the Twin Cities community.”
–Field Level Media
