Glen Taylor announces that Timberwolves, Lynx are no longer for sale
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Updated: 1:20 p.m.
The Minnesota Timberwolves and Minnesota Lynx will evidently remain in the control of owner Glen Taylor, after he announced Thursday that a deal where Marc Lore and former baseball star Alex Rodriguez would have acquired the controlling stake in the team has expired.
But soon after, a spokesperson for Lore and Rodriguez issued a response, saying the pair had met their obligations to complete the deal.
A statement from Taylor issued Thursday morning said there was a purchase agreement in place that required closing to occur within 90 days. But that 90-day period expired Wednesday.
Taylor agreed to sell the Timberwolves and Lynx for $1.5 billion in 2021 to Lore and Rodriguez, who then began the purchase by acquiring 20 percent of the franchise. Lore became Walmart’s e-commerce chief in 2016; Rodriguez has become an investor in a variety of businesses since, plus is a trustee at the University of Miami.
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Rodriguez and Lore had been looking to acquire a controlling interest in the teams. It was, by design, a drawn-out process in part so Taylor could mentor Lore and Rodriguez on what’s involved in ownership of NBA and WNBA franchises.
The closing of the deal was required to happen by Wednesday — and Taylor said Thursday that “under certain circumstances” a limited extension could have been offered. That did not happen, he said.
“I will continue to work with Marc, Alex and the rest of the ownership group to ensure our teams have the necessary resources to compete at the highest levels on and off the court,” Taylor said. “The Timberwolves and Lynx are no longer for sale.”
Later in the day, a spokesperson for Lore and Rodriguez issued a statement disputing Taylor’s account. As reported by Jon Krawczynski, Timberwolves beat reporter for The Athletic, that statement accused Taylor of “seller’s remorse that is short sighted and disruptive to the team.”
Lore and Rodriguez said they have funding to complete the purchase of the team, and have met their obligations.
Taylor, a lifelong Minnesotan, purchased the team in 1994 for $88 million, doing so at the time in part to keep the franchise from relocating to New Orleans or elsewhere.
Rodriguez said he and Lore — who unsuccessfully tried to purchase the New York Mets before striking the deal with Taylor — also were committed to Minnesota. In an interview with the Associated Press in 2022, Rodriguez said the NBA had welcomed him into the ownership world with open arms.
“It’s all about the fans in Minnesota. I think they deserve a winner,” Rodriguez said in that interview.