Glen Taylor reportedly exploring sale of Minnesota Timberwolves
Glen Taylor is reportedly exploring the sale of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
According to Scott Soshnick of Sportico, Minnesota Timberwolves’ owner Glen Taylor has retained The Raine Group, an international bank, in an effort to explore selling the team
Per the report, there are already multiple bids, and a possible sale could be done within one calendar month.
Glen Taylor is reportedly looking for at least $1.2 billion for the team that he bought for just $88 million back in 1995. The Minnesota Timberwolves ranked last in attendance this past season and last made the playoffs two years ago (their only appearance in the last 15 years).
While it is not known who the apparent bidders are, there should also be uncertainty surrounding whether the team would actually stay in Minnesota under new ownership. Seattle has been pushing for an NBA team since the SuperSonics relocated to Oklahoma City in 2008. Again, it is unlikely that the team does move, though.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are coming off of a season which they maintained a bottom-3 record in the NBA, despite acquiring All-Star point guard D’Angelo Russell at the trade deadline. The Wolves also have a ‘franchise face’ in place with Karl-Anthony Towns under contract until 2024.
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Taylor is not well liked among Timberwolves fans, and has had his fair share of controversy in the past. Kevin Garnett, the inarguable best player in Minnesota’s history, said that he refused to let the Timberwolves retire his number so long as Taylor still owned the team.
UPDATE:
Glen Taylor told Jon Krawczynski of the Athletic that “People have inquired who are interested but they want to move the team. They are not a candidate. We’ve made that very clear.” He also noted that several other bids are being explored. Taylor seems committed to keeping the franchise in Minneapolis, regardless of who buys the team. Whether this remains true over the course of negotiations with other bidders will be interesting.
Kevin Garnett is among a group of interested investors, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The Minnesota Timberwolves began play in 1989 as an expansion team. They entered the league the same year as the Orlando Magic. This came nearly thirty years after the Lakers left for Los Angeles.