djohn2oo8
01-10-2013, 05:04 PM
The family that owns the Sacramento Kings wants to maintain a say in how the team is run if they sell it to Chris Hansen, creating a possible snag in the sale negotiation, an NBA source told The Seattle Times.
The Maloof family has owned the team since 1998, and brothers Joe and Gavin have been particularly involved and visible presences in the franchise since day one.
An initial Yahoo! Sports report on the sale, since confirmed (http://seattletimes.com/html/sports/2020104985_kings11.html#) by others, is that the family would retain a small percentage in the team. But the question now, according to the source, is whether that percentage also would allow the Maloofs some say in how the team is run.
The source said it goes "beyond dollars and cents" and stressed how important being involved in the NBA has been to the family. "Everyone is underestimating what being owners means to them," the source said.
Negotiations between Hansen's group and the Maloofs have reportedly been ongoing for a week or so, and some reports Wednesday characterized them as almost a done deal. Yahoo! Sports quoted a source saying it was "first and goal at the one."
But Thursday afternoon, Sacramento News 10 reporter Bryan May tweeted that George Maloof said a deal was not close.
Some in Sacramento, where there is fear of losing a team that has been in the city since 1985 and is its only major pro sports franchise (http://seattletimes.com/html/sports/2020104985_kings11.html#), have noted that the Maloofs have several times before killed deals in the past at the last minute, including a proposal for a new arena in Sacramento last year.
Hansen has a deal with the city of Seattle and King County to build a new arena in Sodo once he and his investment group secure a team.
http://seattletimes.com/html/sports/2020104985_kings11.html
The Maloof family has owned the team since 1998, and brothers Joe and Gavin have been particularly involved and visible presences in the franchise since day one.
An initial Yahoo! Sports report on the sale, since confirmed (http://seattletimes.com/html/sports/2020104985_kings11.html#) by others, is that the family would retain a small percentage in the team. But the question now, according to the source, is whether that percentage also would allow the Maloofs some say in how the team is run.
The source said it goes "beyond dollars and cents" and stressed how important being involved in the NBA has been to the family. "Everyone is underestimating what being owners means to them," the source said.
Negotiations between Hansen's group and the Maloofs have reportedly been ongoing for a week or so, and some reports Wednesday characterized them as almost a done deal. Yahoo! Sports quoted a source saying it was "first and goal at the one."
But Thursday afternoon, Sacramento News 10 reporter Bryan May tweeted that George Maloof said a deal was not close.
Some in Sacramento, where there is fear of losing a team that has been in the city since 1985 and is its only major pro sports franchise (http://seattletimes.com/html/sports/2020104985_kings11.html#), have noted that the Maloofs have several times before killed deals in the past at the last minute, including a proposal for a new arena in Sacramento last year.
Hansen has a deal with the city of Seattle and King County to build a new arena in Sodo once he and his investment group secure a team.
http://seattletimes.com/html/sports/2020104985_kings11.html