Alibaba founder buys minority stake in Brooklyn Nets
Internet billionaire Joseph Tsai will buy 49 percent of the Brooklyn Nets from Mikhail Prokhorov, with an option to take full control of the team in the near future.
Taiwanese-Canadian billionaire and Alibaba co-founder Joseph Tsai has purchased 49 percent of the Brooklyn Nets, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe are reporting. The deal values the team at $2.3 billion.
Under the reported terms, Tsai will have the option to purchase controlling interest in the team in four years. Current owner Mikhail Prokhorov is expected to retain control of the team until then.
The Barclay’s Center is also included.
Tsai is the co-founder, vice chairman and second-largest individual shareholder in Alibaba, one of the world’s largest online commerce companies. Forbes magazine estimates his net worth at $8.8 billion.
Prokhorov bought controlling interest in the Nets and a stake in the Barclay’s Center development from real estate developer Bruce Ratner in 2009. Onexim — a company controled by Prokhorov — bought the remaining 20 percent of the team and 55 percent of the arena in 2015.
The 2015 sale valued the team at $1.7 billion. At the time, that was the second-largest sale valuation of an NBA franchise, eclipsed only by Steve Ballmer’s $2 billion purchase of the Clippers. That record was broken with Tilman Fertita’s $2.2 billion purchase of the Houston Rockets earlier this year, and falls again with this sale.
As @wojespn and I report, valuation is Nets deal is $2.3B. Prokhorov wanted more than HOU fetched, and got it https://t.co/QctZCCu0EH
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) October 27, 2017
That’s likely to be the only title Prokhorov wins as owner of the Nets.
The Russian billionaire made big promises when he took control of the team, telling reporters and fans he expected to win a title in five years. And he backed his boasts with big-money acquisitions and trades for veterans like Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Deron Williams.
The Nets never did become title contenders, but those deals would hamstring the team for years. With a high payroll and poor record, Brooklyn reportedly lost over $44 million last season. Meanwhile, the first-round pick sent to Boston in the Pierce/Garnett trade helped the Celtics acquire Kyrie Irving from the Cavs.
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The team has made significant strides under new general manager Sean Marks and coach Kenny Atkinson, but after finishing the 2016-17 season with an NBA-worst 20-62 record, they have a very long way to go.