Mr.Bottomtooth
10-20-2006, 06:18 PM
Could Doctor J be Sixers' operator?By PHIL JASNER
[email protected]
JULIUS ERVING: owner?
Possibly.
The Daily News has learned via a source that Erving, the legendary Doctor J, has put together a group interested in purchasing the 76ers from Comcast-Spectacor.
The group, said to have Philadelphia ties, is hopeful of meeting with Comcast officials in the near future, the source said.
Erving, 56, who played 11 of his 16 professional seasons with the Sixers and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993, was unavailable for comment.
Potential suitors have been advised to deal directly with Galatioto Sports Partners, a New York-based sports investment firm that has been hired by Comcast-Spectacor; they have been required to sign non-disclosure agreements.
A group led by Andrew Barroway of the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, of Radnor, and including Wayne Kimmel, one of the founders of ETF Venture Funds of King of Prussia, met with Comcast officials last month.
Kimmel, via ETF, is an investor in Philadelphia Media Holdings, the owners of the Daily News and Inquirer.
The Barroway/Kimmel group is said to have had some informal discussions with Comcast-Spectacor since their meeting.
Recent speculation has suggested the asking price for the Sixers could be as much as $450 million, which would be the largest price in league history.
As a frame of reference, the Sixers' current ownership spent $130 million to acquire the franchise from Harold Katz in April 1996. Katz bought the team from the late F. Eugene Dixon for about $12 million in July 1981.
The current ownership has resolutely stood by an Aug. 4 statement from chairman Ed Snider, in which he said:
"We have been approached by multiple parties interested in purchasing the Philadelphia 76ers, particularly in the wake of recent speculation. While this is not the first time we have received some inquiries, we have decided to engage the services of Galatioto Sports Partners, an industry-leading sports-investment firm, to help us evaluate our strategic alternatives, including a sale or a new partnership. We emphasize that no decision has been made to sell the 76ers."
[email protected]
JULIUS ERVING: owner?
Possibly.
The Daily News has learned via a source that Erving, the legendary Doctor J, has put together a group interested in purchasing the 76ers from Comcast-Spectacor.
The group, said to have Philadelphia ties, is hopeful of meeting with Comcast officials in the near future, the source said.
Erving, 56, who played 11 of his 16 professional seasons with the Sixers and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993, was unavailable for comment.
Potential suitors have been advised to deal directly with Galatioto Sports Partners, a New York-based sports investment firm that has been hired by Comcast-Spectacor; they have been required to sign non-disclosure agreements.
A group led by Andrew Barroway of the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, of Radnor, and including Wayne Kimmel, one of the founders of ETF Venture Funds of King of Prussia, met with Comcast officials last month.
Kimmel, via ETF, is an investor in Philadelphia Media Holdings, the owners of the Daily News and Inquirer.
The Barroway/Kimmel group is said to have had some informal discussions with Comcast-Spectacor since their meeting.
Recent speculation has suggested the asking price for the Sixers could be as much as $450 million, which would be the largest price in league history.
As a frame of reference, the Sixers' current ownership spent $130 million to acquire the franchise from Harold Katz in April 1996. Katz bought the team from the late F. Eugene Dixon for about $12 million in July 1981.
The current ownership has resolutely stood by an Aug. 4 statement from chairman Ed Snider, in which he said:
"We have been approached by multiple parties interested in purchasing the Philadelphia 76ers, particularly in the wake of recent speculation. While this is not the first time we have received some inquiries, we have decided to engage the services of Galatioto Sports Partners, an industry-leading sports-investment firm, to help us evaluate our strategic alternatives, including a sale or a new partnership. We emphasize that no decision has been made to sell the 76ers."