Six years after Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore first bought into the Timberwolves, the franchise has a new controlling owner. Marc Stad, founder and managing partner of Dragoneer Investment Group, has completed a deal to buy the majority of Lore's stake, becoming the largest shareholder and controlling owner of both the Timberwolves and the Lynx, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
Stad wasn't a stranger to this ownership group before now. He'd been a significant minority investor under Lore and Rodriguez, and Charania reports the transfer developed over months of conversations between the Stad family and Lore. The point of the whole exercise, per sourcing, was to let everyone involved — Stad, Rodriguez and Lore — keep working together and keep the front office as-is. Stad's wife, Elisa Stad, will serve as the team's governor.
Stad, the founder and managing partner of Dragoneer Investment Group, had been a significant minority investor in the Timberwolves and Lynx under the ownership group of Lore and Alex Rodriguez. Sources said the transfer of ownership between the Stad family and Lore developed after months of conversations and allowed Stad, Rodriguez and Lore to continue working together and maintain the Timberwolves and Lynx current leadership structures. Stad’s wife, Elisa Stad, will serve as the Timberwolves governor. Rodriguez will continue to serve as a co-owner of both the Timberwolves and Lynx.
So why is Lore stepping back now? Charania reports it's about bandwidth — Lore is pushing for an IPO of his food-tech company, Wonder Group, over the next year, and he apparently believes handing the wheel to Stad gives the Wolves the best shot at continued success while he's focused elsewhere. He's not gone; he's retaining a minority stake. Rodriguez, meanwhile, is doing the opposite and increasing his equity in both teams.
Largest sales in NBA history all happening over the last 17 months: 🏀 Lakers: $12.5 billion 🏀 Lakers: $10 billion 🏀 Celtics: $6.1 billion 🏀 Timberwolves/Lynx: $4.5 billion
Zoom out and this is the latest domino in an absolutely wild stretch for NBA ownership. Per Charania's own tally, the four largest franchise sales in league history have all happened in the last 17 months — both Lakers sales, the Celtics at $6.1 billion, and now this one. The $4.5 billion Wolves/Lynx valuation ranks fourth all-time, per ESPN, and it's still got to clear the NBA Board of Governors, whose next meeting lands Sept. 15-16 — the same session where the league is expected to sort through the Lakers' ownership shuffle and, still, the unresolved Clippers situation.
I don’t recall this many changes in NBA ownership so quickly after originally purchasing.
For Minnesota fans, the more immediate question is what a new ownership group means for Tim Connelly. Marc Stein reports a new contract for the Wolves' president of basketball ops is likely among the near-term priorities for the revamped ownership — notable given Connelly is entering the final year of his current deal after just orchestrating the franchise's biggest swing in years, trading for LaMelo Ball this offseason. A stable, motivated ownership group locking up the guy who runs the front office is about as good a signal as Wolves fans could ask for heading into a pivotal season.