Wyc ownership group planning to make Celtics available for sale

ThePrideofShiner

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Is this surprising? I don't pay attention to the ownership group.

View: https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1807823591125254247


Woj: BREAKING: The Boston Celtics majority ownership group — led by Wyc Grousbeck — is planning to make the franchise available for sale, sources tell ESPN. The investment group purchased the team in 2002. Massive development for one of sports’ most valuable properties.
 
patinorange

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lovegtm

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Holy shit. I guess they got the ring and can't handle the tax payments after this year.
 
RG33

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Is this going to be the Mark Cuban play? Get some big money investor to help pay the luxury tax the next few years while they retain control of team operations?
 
InstaFace

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Definitely goes against everything Wyc has been saying the last few years. or might, anyway.

Perhaps they're looking to sell a sizable minority stake in order to raise the cash necessary to sustain the tax payments for a few years. That would make sense to me.

Them thinking they've maximized the value of the asset and should get out before the bubble pops - that would seem bizarre to me.
 
ragnarok725

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RG33 said:
Is this going to be the Mark Cuban play? Get some big money investor to help pay the luxury tax the next few years while they retain control of team operations?
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Except that didn't last 6 months. Cuban doesn't control basketball ops there anymore.
 
moondog80

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My first question was "why"?

But he paid $360 million in 2002. Going to get what, 5 billion? I guess that explains it?
 
jon abbey

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Pilgrim

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I can’t really remember a basketball team being sold when it’s at a high point of its team-building cycle. They just won a championship, and should be a contender for the next 5 or so years. That’s a pretty crazy asset.
 
R

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Pretty wild, though it certainly is a good time to maximize their investment and they got banner 18.

Lux tax and future roster construction questions galore, but at least they got everyone signed first.
 
SemperFidelisSox

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The selling of a franchise can sometimes create a period of instability. The timing of this kind of sucks. Wyc‘s stake would be still be worth billions if he just waited a few years.
 
RG33

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DJnVa

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Maybe the thread title can be updated if it's just Wyc selling?
 
lovegtm

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Eddie Jurak said:
Well, if the new majority owner is willing to keep the checkbook open, then we are good.
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I assume they'd look for someone who is willing. This might be as simple as Wyc not being liquid enough to keep paying, even when the rest of the group is down to do it.
 
R

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Does anyone know what % Wyc owns? Couldn’t find it in a quick google search.

Maybe this means he’s not aligned with the rest of ownership re:lux tax and would rather cash out.

Might actually be good news in that case and the rest of the group is staying on.

Maybe Ballmer will sell the Clippers and come pay our bills in order to win a title :)
 
Red Averages

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This goes back to the discussion I was bringing up mid-season. Wyc is not actually liquid. I said the front office is very aware of this and had built in maximum flexibility such that if ownership told them they couldn't pay the repeater tax they could offload a lot of the salary within 2 years (this year being one). The negative cash flow was going to be tough for him to float. My suggestion back then was to have him sell some of his stake to Pags, who is a multi-billionaire to be able to do it.

The bullish take would be Wyc, is a big fan of the team, wants them to continue on for the next several years, but knew he couldn't afford it. So he allows that to happen and cashes out partial/all of his stake to allow it, at what is sure to be an extremely high valuation. The other owners (Pags) are fine doing it because they understand the position the team is in for the next few years.

Let's see as we get more details if he's staying on. Given his passion for the team I doubt he's selling in full and walking away.
 
The Social Chair

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Eddie Jurak said:
Well, if the new majority owner is willing to keep the checkbook open, then we are good.
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The learning curve is long for new owners. They are extremely impatient. The Celtics might look more like Phoenix right now if we had a new majority owner after the bubble.
 
Red Averages

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radsoxfan said:
Does anyone know what % Wyc owns? Couldn’t find it in a quick google search.

Maybe this means he’s not aligned with the rest of ownership re:lux tax and would rather cash out.

Might actually be good news in that case and the rest of the group is staying on.

Maybe Ballmer will sell the Clippers and come pay our bills in order to win a title :)
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I think his Dad actually owns most of it. The question would be if its the family selling, or Wyc, or the dad, or some other combination.
 
InstaFace

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Red Averages said:
So I think this goes back to the discussion I was bringing up mid-season. Wyc is not actually liquid. I said the front office is very aware of this and had built in maximum flexibility such that if ownership told them they couldn't pay the repeater tax they could offload a lot of the salary within 2 years (this year being one). The negative cash flow was going to be tough for him to float. My suggestion back then was to have him sell some of his stake to Pags, who is a multi-billionaire to be able to do it.

The bullish take would be Wyc, is a big fan of the team, wants them to continue on for the next several years, but knew he couldn't afford it. So he allows that to happen and cashes out partial/all of his stake to allow it, at what is sure to be an extremely high valuation.

Let's see as we get more details if he's staying on.
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You do seem to have some inside lines on ownership-level scoops, so if you hear anything that would characterize Wyc's move one way or the other, I'm sure we'd all be interested to hear it.
 
lovegtm

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The Social Chair said:
The learning curve is long for new owners. They are extremely impatient. The Celtics might look more like Phoenix right now if we had a new majority owner after the bubble.
Click to expand...
Afaict they aren't getting a new majority owner, however.

EDIT: sounds like they are!
 
ragnarok725

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RG33 said:
This article from June 6th says that Cuban owns 27% of the team still and is in control of basketball operations. Has it changed since, or is it wrong?

https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/sports/miriam-adelson-dallas-mavericks-mark-cuban/3561775/#:~:text=He sold the team earlier,in control of basketball operations.
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https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/40373806/nba-finals-2024-why-luka-doncic-kyrie-irving-mavericks-future-title-contenders
There is a clarity in the organizational flow chart that was murky in the past. Cuban, despite his claims after selling the majority share of the franchise midseason to the Adelson and Dumont families, no longer has control of basketball operations. Harrison reports to new governor Patrick Dumont, who is kept informed but has shown trust in Harrison to handle roster personnel matters. Dumont rewarded both Harrison and Kidd with multi-year contract extensions during this playoff run.
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It may be that they never had that kind of arrangement in the first place, and Cuban was just saying shit. I don't really understand how it could ever work this way - that the buck would ever somehow stop with someone who wasn't the majority owner.
 
InstaFace

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"Wyc remains as Governor until 2028" is a pretty great outcome for us compared to what could have been the case. He's gonna ride out the current lineup and championship window, and spend All The Tax Dollars, and then let new ownership figure out what to do 4 years from now.
 
wade boggs chicken dinner

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RG33 said:
This article from June 6th says that Cuban owns 27% of the team still and is in control of basketball operations. Has it changed since, or is it wrong?

https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/sports/miriam-adelson-dallas-mavericks-mark-cuban/3561775/#:~:text=He sold the team earlier,in control of basketball operations.
Click to expand...
Tim MacMahon reported that Cuban no longer has control of operations here: NBA Finals 2024 - Why Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the Mavericks have a future as title contenders - ESPN .

Nico Harrison reports directly to the Governor, who was installed when the new owner purchased the controlling stake.
 
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