Amidst the many Free Agency transactions in recent days, it was revealed that Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck was strongly considering selling the Boston franchise. A real earthquake in Beantown, which we wanted to revisit.
Selling the Celtics when they are at the top of the NBA and could win more titles in the future? Obviously, it surprised us when the news broke on Monday, July 1st. Even Jayson Tatum was “shocked” if we are to believe it his words wordsThe news is all the more surprising given that the ownership group led by Wyc Grousbeck has been at the helm of the Celtics since 2002.
But then why this announced sale? Why now?
The official version
Shortly after the breaking news, the Celtics released a statement announcing the proposed sale of the franchise and the reasons behind it. Here it is, translated in full.
“Boston Basketball Partners LLC, the ownership group of the Boston Celtics, today announced its intention to sell all of its shares in the team. The family that controls the ownership group (Grousbeck family, editor’s note), after careful consideration and internal discussions, has decided to sell the team for asset management and family planning reasons.
The board of directors of the ownership group expects to sell a majority stake in 2024 or early 2025, with the balance sold in 2028, and expects Wyc Grousbeck to remain the team’s governor through the second phase in 2028.”
A statement from the Boston Celtics pic.twitter.com/DqArzkGnR5
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) July 1, 2024
The Reality of Finance
Wyc Grousbeck – an American businessman – bought the Celtics in 2002 for a price of 360 million dollars. For more than 20 years, the overall value of NBA franchises has continued to increase, especially that of Boston. At the time of writing, having just won their 18th NBA title (and the second in the Grousbeck era), the Celtics are valued at around 5 billion dollars, almost 14 times more!
If the value of the franchises is expected to continue to increase in the coming years (a new $76 billion TV deal is about to be signed by the NBA…), the profit that Grousbeck can make by selling the C’s in the coming months is enormous. His fortune is currently estimated at “only” $400 million (it is “low” compared to many other NBA owners), it would multiply immediately.
But above all, this sale would be part of a fairly complicated financial reality for the Celtics.
Indeed, while Boston has extended all its main players with big contracts (more than 300 million dollars for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown!), the bill will be steep in the years to come, even more so with the new CBA which punishes more than ever the biggest spending teams in the NBA.
- Jayson Tatum : extended for 315 million over 5 years
- Jaylen Brown : extended for 304 million over 5 years
- Jrue Holiday : extended for 135 million over 4 years
- Derrick White : extended for 125 million over 4 years
- Kristaps Porzingis : extended for 60 million over 2 years
According to Sportythe Celtics will pay their five major players $220 million in 2026, an amount to which must be added a luxury tax of at least $180 million! This is the price to keep the best five major players in the NBA in the long term and hope to win other NBA titles, we understand that it can cool Wyc Grousbeck. The latter recently declared that he was “losing money” even though the Celtics dominated the NBA.
He didn’t exactly say that, not looking at the projected triple figure tax number. He said he’s doing this for the love but also acknowledged they are losing money.
C’s ownership also doesn’t own the Garden, limiting their revenue from homes games.
— Judson Walden (@JudsonMWalden) June 14, 2024
The sale of the Celtics – one of the legendary franchises in American sports – will probably break all records. As a reminder, the biggest sale ever recorded in the NBA was that of the Phoenix Suns for $4 billion in December 2022. There is no doubt that the purchase of the Boston franchise, reigning NBA champion, will require an even larger investment.
Faced with this opportunity to fill his pockets while avoiding the biggest expenses in the future, Wyc Grousbeck believes that the right time has come to sell his beloved Celtics. Who will have enough funds to buy them back in the coming months? It’s hard to say at this point, but what is certain is that this is a turning point in the history of the Boston franchise.
“As for the future owner, I hope the foundation and the structure of the franchise don’t change. What we’ve built, what we have, is something great. I don’t want things to change.”
– Jayson Tatum
2024-07-03 19:44:00
#Wyc #Grousbeck #owner #sell #Celtics
