BLAZIN TV | ARTISTS | MUSIC | VIDEOS | NEWS | MIXTAPES | STORE

News

Lacob, Guber have deal to buy Warriors

By: espn.comPosted On: 07/15/2010 5:12 P

Golden State Warriors owner Chris Cohan reached an agreement Thursday to sell the franchise for a record $450 million to Boston Celtics minority partner Joe Lacob and Mandalay Entertainment CEO Peter Guber.

"I am incredibly excited to have the opportunity to be the next steward of this storied NBA franchise. This is my dream come true," said Lacob, who is also the managing partner with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. "Peter and I intend to do what we do best -- innovating and building. It is our passion to return the Warriors to greatness and build nothing short of a championship organization that will make all of us in the Bay Area proud."

Lacob and Guber beat out Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, who had been considered the favorite to buy the team from Cohan. Ellison has a personal fortune of $28 billion, according to an annual survey by Forbes magazine, and is the sixth-richest man in the world.

He had been courted by Warriors fans at a game earlier this year to buy the struggling franchise, which has made the playoffs only once in the past 16 seasons.

While Ellison has expressed a desire to own a sports franchise, he was unwilling to outbid the group led by Lacob and Guber. Their offer broke the record for the largest sale in league history, topping the $401 million Robert Sarver paid to buy the Phoenix Suns in 2004.

"The sale process was extremely competitive and the price reflects the Warriors' exceptional fan base, the outstanding demographics of the Bay Area, the high level of interest in the team and the strength of the NBA," said Sal Galatioto, president of Galatioto Sports Partners, which advised Cohan on the sale.

CNBC first reported the deal.

The deal still needs to be approved by three-quarters of the NBA Board of Governors. Lacob also must sell his interest in the Celtics.

Lacob, who has been a season-ticket holder for the Warriors, was part of the ownership group with the Celtics when they won their 17th championship two years ago. He has also been involved in sports websites, was the primary investor in the women's American Basketball League along in venture capital.

Guber is a producer who helped bring movies such as "Rain Man," "Batman," "Flashdance," and "The Color Purple" to the screen. In 1995, he founded the Mandalay Entertainment Group with partner Paul Schaeffer, who will also be an owner of the team. Mandalay has financed, produced and distributed numerous motion pictures including "Donnie Brasco," "Enemy at the Gates," and "Seven Years in Tibet."

Cohan has had financial problems. In 2007, the Internal Revenue Service said he owed more than $160 million in back income taxes and penalties from the 1998 sale of a cable television company.

Cohan bought the Warriors in January 1995 for $119 million and made the playoffs just once in his entire tenure. The only other franchises that have been in the league since then to make the playoffs fewer than five times are the Los Angeles Clippers with two appearances and the Memphis/Vancouver Grizzlies with three.

Latest VLogs

iLoveMakonnen "Loudest of the Loud Tour - On the Road Pt. 2"

Life With Ty Dolla $ign (Ep. 7)

Lil Durk's "Wherever I Go" Tour (Pt. 1)