Report: Maloofs may refuse to sell to Sacramento group
The Maloofs have another trick up their sleeve, threatening to not sell the team to an NBA- approved Sacramento group and keep trying to move the team.
By
Matt Moore
•
3 min read
ESPN reports that despite the NBA's relocation committee having voted to recommend denying a bid for relocation for the Sacramento Kings in favor of an arena effort led by a Sacramento-based group, the Maloofs have no intention of going down without a fight, despite a huge payday.
Two sources told ESPN.com the Maloofs have informed their fellow owners that if their deal to sell and relocate the Kings to Seattle is not approved by league owners next week, they will not sell the team to a Sacramento-based group that promises to keep the Kings in Sacramento.
Instead, the cash-strapped Maloofs have made a "backup" agreement with the Hansen-Ballmer group to sell them 20 percent of the team for $125 million to allow the Maloofs to continue to operate the franchise.
That new "backup" plan comes on the heels of Hansen's announcement on Friday that he had upped his offer to buy the Maloofs' 65 percent of the Kings to $409 million (from $358 million) for a total valuation of $625 million.
Sources said that new proposal also included a $115 million offer to owners as a relocation fee, which would amount to about $4 million per team. By comparison, in 2008 when the Oklahoma City Thunder moved from Seattle, they paid a $30 million fee to the other owners.
To consider these incredible new figures, the NBA relocation committee is planning to re-evaluate the Hansen-Ballmer offer and has scheduled another meeting ahead of next Tuesday's full owners' meeting in Dallas, sources said.
via Sources -- Maloof family cuts new deal for Sacramento Kings - ESPN.
So, in layman's terms, the Maloofs are mad that the NBA has rejected them, again, for a move of the Kings, and instead of just relenting, selling the team to the entity the owners prefer, taking their money and leaving the NBA forever, the Maloofs would rather pout and tell the owners they won't sell to the Sacramento group. Meanwhile, the Hansen group has increased its bid in an effort to bribe the owners after Sacramento put together a good-faith offer.
They've raised the sale price, which helps future evaluation of the owners' teams if they want to sell, and increased the relocation fee to pay them off.
Meanwhile, honestly, the Maloofs can not come off any more petty if they started throwing the cake Sacramento offered them. It's their team and they have a right to sell it to who they want, within reason, and to make the most money out of their endeavors. But the city of Sacramento has bent over backwards to build them a new arena and put together what the NBA agreed was a competitive offer. They could have reversed position, said "We realized Sacramento deserves this team" and walked away with some good will.
Oh, no, not the Maloofs.
So now David Stern and the owners go back to the table and Sacramento, which is likely tapped out in its offer. The Sacramento Bee reports that the Sacramento group don't plan on raising their offer. They've made an offer good enough for the NBA to accept it, at some point, discussions and negotiations need to close.
But there will be owners on the Board of Governors who will only look at the economics and ignore the politics, which is a considerable element in all this. The city of Sacramento and the ownership group they put together did what was asked of them to keep the team. Do the owners really want to turn their backs on future prospective cities by telling them the NBA can't be trusted to keep its word?
Meanwhile, the Maloofs will still need permission to sell the 20 percent to Hansen's group. This is a combination of a bribe and extortion attempt on the part of the Maloofs. Will they break David Stern and his contingent of ownership? Or will the Board decide they've had enough of this ugly process? The Board of Governor's meeting in Dallas on Tuesday will likely settle the issue.
