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Post by kingsxman on Mar 29, 2024 16:58:07 GMT -6
Listening to the new Dane Moore pod with Lore and ARod on...OMG...FIRE!!! Wow. Wow is right. Glen not wanting Rudy. Telling Arod and Lore they were wasting thier time going after Connelly. Not letting them go places in the arena or talk to anyone on the team. Wow.
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Post by Nick K on Mar 29, 2024 17:59:11 GMT -6
Apparently Taylor sent a memo to the Wolves employees, players etc. telling them not to talk with Lore and ARod (who own nearly 40% of the team) and froze them out of the owner's suite. If true this is a rank, stupid, childish move. Glen has no idea how bad this looks of him.
Here is more: From Sportico.
"A-Rod, Lore Say They’re ‘Going to Be’ the Next Timberwolves Owners."
" Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore say they will be the next owners of the Minnesota Timberwolves despite Glen Taylor’s recent proclamation that their four-part deal is off.
Speaking to Sportico about 24 hours after Taylor announced that he would retain control of the NBA team, Lore and Rodriguez said they never breached any part of their agreement and said Taylor’s claims showed “complete and utter disregard for the contract.”
They accused Taylor of fabricating a story in order to back out of a deal that was no longer financially advantageous.
“We’re going to be the owners of the Minnesota Timberwolves,” Lore said. “It’s just a matter of time, and how much pain Glen wants to put the fans, the players, the town and community through. It’s his choice. It didn’t have to be this way.”
The Timberwolves declined to comment while the NBA didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Lore and Rodriguez reached an agreement with Taylor in 2021 to buy the Timberwolves in four parts, starting with 20% at a $1.5 billion valuation, and 4% value escalators in each of the following payments. They currently hold 36% and were in the process of securing another 40% for about $600 million when Taylor said they’d missed a March 27 deadline to close on the deal and that the team was no longer being sold.
Lore and Rodriguez referenced a clause from their purchase agreement—section 6.4, part A—which says the buyers should receive an automatic 90-day extension if they’ve submitted the signed financial subscriptions but are still awaiting NBA approvals. The commitments were submitted on March 21, they said, six days before the March 27 deadline. The NBA approval is in process.
Taylor said in his statement Thursday: “Under certain circumstances, the buyer could have been entitled to a limited extension. However, those circumstances did not occur.”
So what happens next? Lore and Rodriguez said their lawyers at Wachtell Lipton are currently speaking with lawyers at the NBA. They did not commit to a lawsuit but said they were willing to take action to defend their interpretation of the contract.
“I’ve never sued anyone; I’ve never been sued,” Lore said, “but we’re dealing with someone that is very comfortable operating that way, and we have to take whatever actions are necessary to protect our childhood dream here.”
Lore and Rodriguez declined to provide specifics about the financing of their first 36% equity position, or how it broke down between the two of them. (Lore has put in more money, according to multiple reports.) Rodriguez said that in a hypothetical future where the deal was done, the pair was set to control 55%-65% of the cap table, their holdings would be “close to even,” and that they’d both put in “hundreds of millions” of their own money into the deal.
The structure of the deal—particularly the four payments spaced over as many as four years—has raised eyebrows across the sports deal-making community as abnormal. Rodriguez said the pair was originally in talks to pay the $1.5 billion price in cash in 2021, but that the deal was switched to a longer multiyear path to control at Taylor’s request.
As a result, the $1.5 billion valuation looks like a bigger discount with each passing day. Two more recent transactions—Mat Ishbia’s buy of the Phoenix Suns for a record $4 billion and Michael Jordan’s sale of the Charlotte Hornets for $3 billion—are widely considered to have dramatically raised the floor of NBA valuations.
The team is also dramatically improved on the court. The Timberwolves are 50-22 and led by All-Star Anthony Edwards, one of the league’s brightest young talents. The franchise was valued at $2.94 billion in Sportico’s latest NBA valuations.
Lore and Rodriguez claim their front office moves, including hiring Timberwolves president Tim Connelly, has increased the team’s valuation while putting the club in position to be contenders in the long term. That’s part of why Taylor has seller’s remorse and is reneging on the deal, according to Rodriguez and Lore.
Lore and Rodriguez claim Taylor has ordered team leadership to not speak with them. This includes everyone from Timberwolves CEO Ethan Casson down to the players. They’re also not allowed to enter the franchise’s designated family room and certain parts of team facilities, according to them.
Sportico reported earlier this week that the relationship between the Taylor and the buyers had soured in recent months. A source cited an owner’s suite that the pair built inside Target Center as an example of actions that bothered Taylor. Rodriguez said that talk was distracting from the facts of their purchase agreement.
“Think about it from our end: If we had an ironclad agreement, like we do, would we be talking about how Marc and Alex are more worried about the owners suite than making real [basketball] trades?” Rodriguez said. “It’s so f***ing childish. But you only do that when you don’t have any ground to sit on.” -------------------------------------------------------------------------
It gets worse!
From another poster....
Glen Taylor has now kicked Lore and Arod out of Target Center lmao
As soon as he issued his statement Thursday, Taylor’s attorney also informed Rodriguez and Lore that they were no longer allowed to be in the back hallways of Target Center where that owners’ suite is located, and that they were not to communicate with president of basketball operations Tim Connelly, CEO Ethan Casson or any of the principal leaders of the basketball and business departments.
“It feels very much like a slap in the face and much more personal than even just about the money,” Lore said.
Neither side appears ready to back down.
“It is now personal,” Rodriguez said. “We can be in this (fight) for five years, 10 years, whatever. We’re not going to let go.”
Added Lore: “We will use every ounce of effort here to enforce the contract that Glen broke. So that means time, capital, whatever means necessary.” ---------------------------------------------
Glen is looking worse by the moment, if true. He probably doesn't realize how bad. Kicking them out is childish. It's time for Glen to take his money and run.
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Post by Nick K on Mar 29, 2024 18:07:20 GMT -6
Listening to the new Dane Moore pod with Lore and ARod on...OMG...FIRE!!! Wow. Great stuff!!! Here's the Youtube link. The Lo/Rod POV.
This is must see!
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Post by araxen on Mar 29, 2024 18:08:58 GMT -6
They are a 40% owner still. It's crazy to me that he can kick them out of the building. I'm hoping they sell/give his courtside seat to KG when they become owners.
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Post by Nick K on Mar 29, 2024 18:29:37 GMT -6
Leo S @y0leo ARod: "(Glen) didn't agree with (Rudy trade). He warned us against it. He didn't want to do the deal. He let us do it, so credit to him, he didn't get in the way.
The big one was Tim Connelly. His quote was: Why are you wasting your time. People like Connelly don't come here." ----------------------------------------------------------
It's time for Glen to go.
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Post by Nick K on Mar 29, 2024 18:31:02 GMT -6
They are a 40% owner still. It's crazy to me that he can kick them out of the building. I'm hoping they sell/give his courtside seat to KG when they become owners. This is unbelievable to me. Backing out of the deal is one thing this is even worse.
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Post by cory on Mar 29, 2024 18:38:34 GMT -6
I guess we should have known Glen/Golum/Smiegel would pull something like this before his cold dead hands lose grip of the team and he fades to death. Thanks for keeping the team here. Now go away. Guy was a snake of a corporate business man and a snake of an operator as an owner. F—- this guy.
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Post by jojo on Mar 29, 2024 21:25:00 GMT -6
So sad. Honestly Glen seems to have descended into a mental abyss. It now seems even more likely he’s fabricating the so called breach of contract. I actually feel sorry for him.
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Post by kingsxman on Mar 30, 2024 8:30:54 GMT -6
They are a 40% owner still. It's crazy to me that he can kick them out of the building. I'm hoping they sell/give his courtside seat to KG when they become owners. Glen is now saying that this isnt true and that as limited partners they have the same rights as any other limited partner. We'll see. One thing I found interesting in the Dana interview (if you listen you'll get the joke) is that one of them pointed out that if they won the Obrian trophy that they were going to let Glen be the one hoisting the trophy as they feel that hes earned it with being the owner for so long. I have always been curious what they'd do in that situation and how they described it is what I was hoping they would do. It would be the classy thing to do. Now, whether they are being honest or not is another story. But....I think that the ship now has sailed on that and Glen has only himself to blame.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Mar 30, 2024 8:51:31 GMT -6
I believe the lawfirm that LoRod is working with is the same law firm that worked with Twitter when Elon Musk tried to back out of his deal to buy the company. They kept saying it was "ironclad" which is strong phrasing, but even in light of what I think of Taylor I can't imagine he did what he did without consulting his own legal team. This is all going to come down to whose interpretation of the contract is correct.
I've been pretty hard on LoRod for not finalizing things sooner and even giving Glen the chance to do this, but in their interviews LoRod asked why they would have to do things early if they were abiding by the contract? I don't trust any of these guys really, but we know for a fact that Glen bends the rules. He cheated with Joe Smith and there are other stories like the McHale story and the KG rift where Glen seems to find himself being accused of shadiness.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Mar 30, 2024 9:01:36 GMT -6
Glen is now saying that this isnt true and that as limited partners they have the same rights as any other limited partner. We'll see. I believe ARod said that Glen had sent a memo to Wolves employees instructing them not to talk to LoRod or let them in certain places? Mudslinging...ugly. One thing I had questions on is what about the last 20% of the team? If LoRod currently own approximately 40% and Glen and his LPs own the other 60%, what happens with the other 20 if LoRod is found correct and they get the 80%? Glen would still own it, but is that last 20 accounted for in their original contract? Or, does that need to be negotiated separately at a new valuation? That would be a fun negotiation! If Glen wins this and keeps control, he'd have a really advantageous position. He'll have complete decision making authority, but only be on the hook for 60% of the costs. He could greenlight a big tax bill and if it puts the Wolves in the red, LoRod would need to pay 36% of any "loss" I believe. Nice arrangement where you're not liable for 40% of your losses on decisions you make.
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Post by Nick K on Mar 30, 2024 9:11:48 GMT -6
Listening to the new Dane Moore pod with Lore and ARod on...OMG...FIRE!!! Wow. Wow is right. Glen not wanting Rudy. Telling Arod and Lore they were wasting thier time going after Connelly. Not letting them go places in the arena or talk to anyone on the team. Wow. The killer is that sounds just like Glen! No doubt. I believe it.
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Post by quinn on Mar 30, 2024 10:12:03 GMT -6
I never thought I'd say it but Taylor IS a snake for sure. I hope he loses in arbitration and then LO/rod find a way to buy him out.
What respect I've had for him is gone. I don't think Taylor has a clue how bad this makes him look. He probably doesn't care....but he should.
I hope he gets boo'd when he walks into the arena next time. but that would be just our luck: he says "oh..ok...you dont like me..fine. I'll sell the team to someone who'll move them to St. Luis. (They arent moving to Las Vegas or Seattle). For selfish reasons, if the team would ever move, Kansas City would be my favorite destination!
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Post by levine on Mar 30, 2024 11:36:58 GMT -6
Vegas for me…
But I want them back in Minny forever.
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Post by kingsxman on Mar 30, 2024 13:29:16 GMT -6
Glen is now saying that this isnt true and that as limited partners they have the same rights as any other limited partner. We'll see. I believe ARod said that Glen had sent a memo to Wolves employees instructing them not to talk to LoRod or let them in certain places? Mudslinging...ugly. One thing I had questions on is what about the last 20% of the team? If LoRod currently own approximately 40% and Glen and his LPs own the other 60%, what happens with the other 20 if LoRod is found correct and they get the 80%? Glen would still own it, but is that last 20 accounted for in their original contract? Or, does that need to be negotiated separately at a new valuation? That would be a fun negotiation! If Glen wins this and keeps control, he'd have a really advantageous position. He'll have complete decision making authority, but only be on the hook for 60% of the costs. He could greenlight a big tax bill and if it puts the Wolves in the red, LoRod would need to pay 36% of any "loss" I believe. Nice arrangement where you're not liable for 40% of your losses on decisions you make. I think what Glen was saying is that the agreement with ALL the limited partners is they cant go certain places in the arena and they arent allowed to have contact with the players or front office. In other words..they are money people only. They should have no influence on day to day operations. What I'm not sure about is if they can be in the building for games. I think it was Jonny K's pod today that referenced that Lore and Arod couldnt be at games...which to me is over the top. And I cant believe that the other limited partners cant attend games for a team that their part owners of. Regarding who's "in the right". If I were a betting person, my money would be on Glen. I am sure that Glen started thinking about this a year ago and has been looking for some sort of an "out". I dont care what LoRod says: there's no question in my mind that they've had issues one way or another getting the cash to close the deal. Given that, I'll bet that Glen knows exactly what "stipulation" in the contract they missed at some point and he allowed it to happen and probably never said anything...knowing he was just giving LoRod a bit of rope to hang themselves. The other thing potentially working against them is that IF this comes down to the NBA board of governors having to make a ruling.....they may be in Glens back pocket. I'm sure there is still a pretty big "good old boys" network going on there and they dont want to rule against one of the brethren. Especially if it could be THEM on the other end some day. The flip side is that its ridiculous that Glen is now disappointed that the value has gone up so much. The argument LoRod has is that he should have "expected" the value to increase over the years because thats what sports teams do. Its not like buying a car. Plus...it was Glens wishes to make this a long drawn out process. So the value of the franchise SHOULD have absolutely increased. Its just that no one expected it to double in 3 years.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Mar 30, 2024 14:29:46 GMT -6
Regarding who's "in the right". If I were a betting person, my money would be on Glen. I am sure that Glen started thinking about this a year ago and has been looking for some sort of an "out". I dont care what LoRod says: there's no question in my mind that they've had issues one way or another getting the cash to close the deal. Given that, I'll bet that Glen knows exactly what "stipulation" in the contract they missed at some point and he allowed it to happen and probably never said anything...knowing he was just giving LoRod a bit of rope to hang themselves. I have to wonder if there's a notification window that Glen would have to follow for older stipulations in the contract. Glen has indicated that LoRod didn't fulfill more than one aspect of the contract. Unless those multiple instances occurred just recently, I wonder how it would be legal to not notify of a breech when it actually happened. It doesn't seem fair to just make a note of something that voids a contract, keep acting like the contract is in place, and then call it off based on the previous infraction whenever you want. To my non lawyer/legal brain, this has to be about the closing date as Glen waited until now to notify LoRod that it was off. Waiting until now indicates that Glen feels the date itself was the trigger that voided the deal. LoRod seem pretty certain that the contract gives them an additional 90 days to get approval from the league and I've seen lawyers weigh in that they're correct based on the contract that has been shared online. The legal arbitration process will decide this, but my guess is that LoRod is going to prevail. They're sharing the actual contract. Glen has vaguely referred to them missing obligations. Obviously I don't know anything special, but just my guess. I think what Glen was saying is that the agreement with the limited partners is they cant go certain places in the arena and they arent allowed to have contact with the players or front office. In other words..they are money people only. They should have no influence on day to day operations. What I'm not sure about is if they can be in the building for games. I think it was Jonny K's pod today that referenced that Lore and Arod couldnt be at games...which to me is over the top. And I cant believe that the other limited partners cant attend games for a team that their part owners of. It's all pretty wild going forward. If Glen wins, LoRod are just guys who own a big chunk of the team, but have no power? And whatever restrictions Glen has implemented on LoRod I'm guessing would apply to himself if he winds up the minority owner in the event that LoRod win arbitration? Just imagine the reception Glen would get at games if he loses control? Most people hate the way he's run the team (and for other things) with the only credit being him keeping the team here. Once he's not the actual lead owner and people know he tried to pull this during this season, there's gonna be even more hate with nothing left to tether it to keeping the Wolves here.
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Post by levine on Mar 30, 2024 14:57:19 GMT -6
Older stipulations should not have any bearing. This post is from Mnem - one of the more knowledgeable lawyers that posts on Canis:
Yeah, there's a couple factors I keep coming back to as someone who has negotiated thousands of contracts and dealt with dispute after dispute during my career in house (albeit at much smaller dollar value and impact):
If Glen is referring to PRIOR tranche delays and extensions, well, he's already waived those by continuing to the next stage. All contracts have a default waiver provision that says once you waive something (like a deadline), you can't bring it back up as a problem later on.
If he's referring to technical delays like the NBA approving the transaction or escrow requirements, etc., well, the agreement takes those into account, is silent, or offers automatic extensions based on my quick read through.
There's always immaterial breaches in contract negotiations and execution. Are the ones Glen is bitching about here actually material? I'm skeptical.
You can criticize ALore for leaving this to run down to the wire (and should) but this really does stink like Glen is trying to squeeze some extra cash out of the deal to get it over the finish line. You can't come back from this coordinated media blitz and personality conflict and operate a business in good faith with a FORTY percent partner without major conflicts that impair the business down the line AND make it harder to find a new buyer at the higher valuation you want.
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Post by jojo on Mar 30, 2024 18:13:01 GMT -6
Yeah don’t know how this can play out well for Glen. He’s ruining his legacy if he wants to keep ownership. If it’s about squeezing out more dollars that can be negotiated. I expect stuff about the contract to start leaking out on who has the upper hand here.
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Post by XRaySpecs on Mar 30, 2024 21:01:53 GMT -6
Mackey and Judd were discussing how in their digging on this that plugged in people think this will eventually end with Glen still owning the team. They didn't have any details specifically on why, but they did wonder about if the league could just deny LoRod as owners even if they win in arbitration.
Hopefully they can get this sorted out by the finals. It will be awkward if they don't know which owner should get the trophy.
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Post by Nick K on Mar 30, 2024 22:53:00 GMT -6
Lo/Rod didn't buy this team to be 40% limited partners. Who wants to invest with a team that has a snake for an owner? Glen will be dead before he finds a buyer that will keep the team in MN especially at these elevated prices. Money isn't cheap anymore. That's a huge consideration.
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Post by kingsxman on Mar 31, 2024 9:12:06 GMT -6
Mackey and Judd were discussing how in their digging on this that plugged in people think this will eventually end with Glen still owning the team. They didn't have any details specifically on why, but they did wonder about if the league could just deny LoRod as owners even if they win in arbitration. Hopefully they can get this sorted out by the finals. It will be awkward if they don't know which owner should get the trophy. I'm not sure this will be resolved by NEXT years finals. This wont be quick.
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Post by kingsxman on Mar 31, 2024 9:26:37 GMT -6
Lo/Rod didn't buy this team to be 40% limited partners. Who wants to invest with a team that has a snake for an owner? Glen will be dead before he finds a buyer that will keep the team in MN especially at these elevated prices. Money isn't cheap anymore. That's a huge consideration. Yep. I really believe that IF Glen gets the team that the next owner will move them. Or at least attempt to. Once Glen gets it I dont think he'll sell it. He will pass and his family, who doesnt want the team, will be selling and they wont care if it stays in Minnesota or not. The ability to own a sports team has now fallen out of the realm of possibility for the very wealthy and now only the richest of the rich are able to do it. We dont have many of those people. The odds of the team staying long term are very small if Glen wins. Which reminds me: as a side note to this I dont think the value of the teams will continue to rise like they have been because of exactly what I said above. I think the values are hitting a point where the number of people who can afford them are getting so small that they cant raise much more. The fact that this team went from 2 billion to 3 billion in 3 years is crazy. (And yes the value was closer to 2 billion when LoRod bought in..which shows the deal Glen was willing to give to keep the team here).
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Post by Nick K on Mar 31, 2024 10:16:50 GMT -6
I keep hearing people say Lo/Rod group don't have the money to successfully run the team. Let me enlighten you.
Dec. 29 2023. Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is among those joining Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore in the next round of their step-by-step purchase of the Minnesota Timberwolves, according to someone familiar with the negotiations.
RealGM Wiretap Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt Joins New Wolves' Ownership Group
Dec 29, 2023 1:46 PM
Eric Schmidt has joined Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez as part of their ownership group to purchase the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Lore and Rodriguez have been looking to raise money ahead of their next call option where they will purchase an additional 40 percent in the franchise.
The duo raised at least some of the money in this round at a $2.1 billion valuation. Lore and Rodriguez purchased the Wolves in 2021 at a $1.5 billion valuation.
Schmidt served as CEO and chairman of Google from 2001 to 2011, staying on as chairman through 2015. Schmidt was recently part of the ownership group to purchase the NFL's Washington Commanders.
#104 Forbes, Eric Schmidt, $16.2 Billion. 2023. -----------------------------------------------------
Anyone who doesn't think the Lo/Rod group doesn't have solid financial backing to successfully run the Wolves is poorly informed.
Not to mention the recently included Dyal group. I am thrilled with the financial viability of the new ownership group. It further supports the ability to spend what's necessary to field a winning team. Also the sharp business savvy to get things done. -----------------------------------
I have said this before but I have supported and defended Glen Taylor all these years so what he has done is revolting to me. Even if he thinks he can get out on a technicality it is wrong morally and ethically. I can't express how disappointed I am in him. It's time to change ownership and have them buy Glen out entirely.
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Post by RAHchills on Mar 31, 2024 10:42:15 GMT -6
Gotta love this development as a life long fan. #parforthecourse
The “A-rod couldn’t raise the money” narrative that Glenn wouldn’t comment on just doesn’t pass the sniff test - when investors can effectively buy into an appreciated asset at the pre-negotiated, lower than current market, price.
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Post by Bonecrusher on Mar 31, 2024 11:50:21 GMT -6
This all sounds like it's going to court. I think two things are likely true: 1. Lo-Rod didn't have the money. They probably raised enough to simply purchase the team at the $1 billion discount they were given. 2. Glen's a snake who can never give up control of this team. Forget the place I read it but when someone from Google is putting up some money along with Dyad I would say they have plenty of money. I just think Glen is a snake and right now the team is running great he wants to take over and is going to try and keep the team which sucks. We are where we are because of Lore and A-Rod not because of him.
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