NBA approves sale of Minnesota Timberwolves to Alex Rodriguez, Marc Lore
Retired baseball star, e-commerce mogul now own 20 per cent stake in organization
The first increment of the $1.5 billion US sale of the Minnesota Timberwolves to e-commerce mogul Marc Lore and retired baseball star Alex Rodriguez has been formally approved by the NBA.
The Timberwolves issued a statement Wednesday confirming the transaction and welcoming Lore and Rodriguez to the organization. The deal, which also includes the WNBA franchise Minnesota Lynx, was first reached between current owner Glen Taylor and Lore and Rodriguez this spring and was structured to begin with an initial transfer of a 20 per cent stake in the club this year.
Lore and Rodriguez will then have the right to purchase additional 20 per cent shares in 2022 and 2023, when they would become controlling owners of the two basketball teams.
Lore expressed his excitement Wednesday in a Twitter post.
"As a middle schooler, I dreamt about owning a sports team — and today I'm so humbled to be a part of the NBA and WNBA family," Lore said.
The 80-year-old Taylor purchased the Timberwolves in 1994 for $88 million to keep them from moving to New Orleans. He told reporters when the negotiations with Lore and Rodriguez began that the franchise remaining in Minnesota was a condition of the sale.
