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Alex Rodriguez's bid to become majority owner of Timberwolves falls through. Here's why
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- Alex Rodriguez's bid to become majority owner of Timberwolves falls through. Here's why
Former MLB star Alex Rodriguez will not be taking over as majority owner of the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves and WNBA's Minnesota Lynx .
The teams' ownership group announced Thursday that the 90-day period for Rodriguez and partner Marc Lore to complete the purchase agreement they had reached in December has expired.
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"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," general partner Glen Taylor said in a statement . "The Timberwolves and Lynx are no longer for sale."
Timberwolves minority owner Alex Rodriguez hugs forward Karl-Anthony Towns after Towns hit the game-winning shot to beat the Atlanta Hawks in a March 22, 2023 game.
In a statement from Rodriguez and Lore, they said, "We are disappointed in Glen Taylor's public statement today. We have fulfilled our obligations, have all necessary funding and are fully committed to closing our purchase of the team as soon as the NBA completes its approval process. Glen Taylor's statement is an unfortunate case of seller's remorse that is short sighted and disruptive to the team and the fans during a historic winning season."
Axios reported last week that the NBA rejected a $300 million investment from the Carlyle Group. After that, Dyal Capital Partners joined the Lore-Rodriguez group to provide the necessary funding. It was expected NBA owners would vote on approval of the sale in April.
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"I've always been a big fan of the NBA," Rodriguez told USA TODAY Sports in an interview last June. "You see the trends, you see what they're doing. It's exciting, it's young, it's dynamic. We saw it also as a great business opportunity."
However, throughout the process, Lore and Rodriguez missed deadlines to submit money and other information, a person with details of the sale told USA TODAY Sports. The person requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak due to the sensitive nature of the sale.
Taylor grew frustrated with the missed deadlines, including the most recent one to provide the remaining 40% of funding to acquire 80% and majority ownership.
In the original agreement, Lore and Rodriguez agreed to pay in installments – 20%, 20% and 40%. As it stands, they own 40% and Taylor and his limited partners own 60%.
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While the agreement started off well, the missed deadlines became a sticking point as well as the perceived failure of Lore and Rodriguez to ingratiate themselves to the Taylors and fan base. The relationship between Taylor and his new partners declined.
Throughout the process, the league also sent Lore and Rodriguez multiple deadline notices for paperwork. Rodriguez and Lore said they had the funding but it did not leave the NBA enough time to vet the financial investment from other potential partners, according to a person familiar details.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Alex Rodriguez loses bid to take over NBA's Timberwolves, WNBA's Lynx
