The long-awaited sale of the Atlanta Hawks and Phillips Arena is getting closer and closer to being finished. The ownership group of the Hawks is based out of Washington D.C. led by Bruce Levenson, who owns 50.1% of the team. Levenson’s group is being forced to sell their share because of a racially inflammatory email he sent last summer regarding the fan base and the game operations. He and his partners that make up the DC-based group, called the Atlanta Spirit, will sell their share along with the other two groups that have smaller shares of the franchise. The Atlanta-based group holds a 32.3% share, and a New York-based group holds a 17.6% share.
The organization has taken a long time selling the team, but they are almost there. According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s Chris Vivlamore,
There is a deadline of April 10 for final bids. However, that date could be moved, as one or more bids are still being considered.
Several people with knowledge of the situation told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that two groups are considered finalists. Current Hawks ownership and prospective buyers have signed non-disclosure agreements that prevent them from speaking publicly on the sales process.
One leading group is led by Grizzlies minority owner Steve Kaplan, who is joined by Indonesian billionaires Erick Thohir and Handy Poernomo and former Grizzlies CEO Jason Levien. Braves great Hank Aaron also has been associated with the group.
The other leading group is led by Lionsgate Entertainment’s Mark Rachesky, who is joined by New York investment banker Steve Starker. Jesse Itzler, who has done consulting work for the Hawks and attends many games, is also associated with the group. He is married to Spanx founder Sara Blakely.
The Hawks, who will be the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs, are at the end of one of the best seasons in franchise history. If the team is able to win the NBA Championship, and the franchise hasn’t sold by that time, the current ownership group will receive the Larry O’Brien trophy from Adam Silver at seasons end. The Hawks need to hurry up and get the sale of the team done so the new owners will be able to potentially hoist up the trophy and not allow the current ownership group who have stained the Hawks and the NBA.
Levenson’s email was discovered after the team was investigated due to a racially insensitive remark by general manager Danny Ferry on a conference call with ownership and management regarding free-agent Luol Deng. Ferry reportedly said that Deng “has a little African in him. He’s like a guy who would have a nice store out front and sell you counterfeit stuff out the back.” Since the comments were made public, Ferry has been on an independent leave of absence. He has since apologized to Luol Deng, and Luol was very forgiving of him. The Hawks ownership situation is almost over, and they are predicted to sell for about $800 million
