For around the last eight months, the Minnesota Timberwolves fanbase has been constantly monitoring the team's ownership situation. When Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore agreed to purchase the franchise along with the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx back in 2021, fans were excited about the prospect of a young new ownership group taking over for the long-tenured Glen Taylor.
We knew from day one that this was going to be an abnormal ownership transfer, given that the team was set to be sold incrementally rather than all at once. From everything that the public had seen, it appeared at the beginning of 2024 that the Timberwolves would belong to Lore and Rodriguez in short order.
But from there, an unexpected bump in the road came. Taylor made a statement alleging that the two prospective new owners did not make key payments on time, and that the team would no longer be for sale. Rodriguez and Lore disagreed about the terms of their agreement, and an entire complicated legal process ensued.
In order to resolve their dispute, the two sides of this issue have engaged in mediation, culminating in binding arbitration sessions this past week. We knew that these sessions would be of significance to the final ownership outcome, but it was still rather unclear when exactly we would get a resolution. Now, The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski has stepped in to provide clarity.
The Timberwolves ownership arbitration hearings concluded last week. Now the 3-person panel deliberates. I’m told that the expectation is it could still take a few months before a ruling. So don’t expect anything anytime soon.
— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) November 11, 2024
Krawczynski: Arbitration concluded, final ruling to come
According to Krawczynski, the trusted and tenured Timberwolves reporter, arbitration did in fact conclude this past week. From here, the three-person panel is set to deliberate, and the final outcome could still "take a few months before a ruling." Krawcyznski notes that we should not expect any formal announcements to be made anytime soon.
So, what we have here is the beginning of the final step of this process. While it may seem like another no-answer report, we can now know that we are in the end stages of resolving this long and tiresome ordeal.
The players and coaches have of course not allowed this matter to distract them from their business on the court, but it is still something of a distraction for the organization to constantly have this situation hanging over their heads. Regardless of the outcome, it will be best for this to be put in the past sooner rather than later. Ideally, Wolves fans will know before the end of the season who the new team owners will be.