The saga over ownership rights to the Minnesota Timberwolves and the WNBAS’s Lynx that started back in 2021 has finally ended. Glen Taylor, the current owner of both teams, has agreed to transfer complete ownership of each team to the ownership group led by Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez.[1]
The two agreed to purchase the team in 2021 for $1.5 billion, but the structure of the deal was quite unusual. Instead of paying for the team upfront, Lore and Rodrigues were allowed to buy chunks of the team using installment payments.[2] The theory here was that over time, their ownership groups would slowly gain full control over the franchise. Although things had been going smoothly and payments were being made, the pair missed a critical payment that was due last March.[3] In response to this default, Taylor tried to get out of the agreement to sell the team. This move led to the parties entering arbitration in February to settle their dispute. A panel of three arbitrators ruled that Taylor had violated the terms of the purchase and sale agreement and it must go forward.[4] Taylor had the ability to appeal the decision of the arbitrators, but despite that, the sale still needs to be approved by the NBA Board of Governors.
When asked about the sale back in February, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver explained that he did not see any reason why the sale would not be approved, adding however that the league needed to follow the process.[5] It’s not entirely clear when the sale is going to be approved. The Board of Governors could vote at any time. They recently completed a two-day meeting in New York and likely won’t meet again until sometime this summer. However, they do not need to wait until their next formal meeting to give the sale their blessing.[6]
With new ownership likely to take over before the start of next season, all eyes will be on the new ownership group to see what moves are made. Last October, the team traded star big man Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks, but they have not seen the production they thought they would out of Julius Randle.[7] The Timberwolves are currently sitting at the number 7 seed in the Western Conference. At the conclusion of this season, Randle, Naz Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker will all be impending free agents.[8] With all the uncertainty heading into the offseason, will the new ownership be capable of building a championship worthy roster?
[1] https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/timberwolves-sale-marc-lore-alex-rodriguez-get-ownership-for-1-5-billion-as-glen-taylor-settles-dispute/
[2] Id.
[3] Id.
[4] Id.
[5] https://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/timberwolves-sale-alex-rodriguez-marc-lore-forward-ap-120416331
[6] Id.
[7] See supra note 1.
[8] Id.
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