The Sacramento Kings, one of the N.B.A.’s most troubled and well-traveled franchises, may be on the move again.
The Maloof family has agreed to sell a controlling stake in the Kings to an investment group led by Christopher Hansen, a hedge fund manager who intends to move the team to Seattle by next season and rechristen them as the SuperSonics.
The sale and relocation must be ratified by the N.B.A. board of governors, a process that could take several weeks, while the league’s advisory and finance committee evaluates the deal. Although the board will meet next month during the All-Star break in Houston, a vote on the Kings sale will probably not come until April.
The Hansen group will purchase 65 percent of the team, which includes the Maloofs’ share. The remaining 35 percent is held by minority shareholders. Assuming an enterprise value of $525 million, the 65 percent stake would cost about $340 million, said people informed of the deal.
It is unclear whether this amount includes the Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento or the money needed to pay off the Maloofs’ loans from the city of Sacramento and the N.B.A. The board of governors would also need to set a relocation fee, which can be any number they choose.
The Hansen group has until March 1 to apply for relocation for the 2013-14 season. It is expected to file the necessary paperwork by then.
In a twist, Clay Bennett, who moved the SuperSonics from Seattle to Oklahoma City (where they were renamed the Thunder), is the chairman of the N.B.A.’s relocation committee.
The Hansen group’s bid is unlikely to face serious hurdles. Hansen and his fellow investors have deep pockets and the N.B.A. would like to have a team in Seattle, the nation’s 12th largest television market. The Maloofs own their own arena, so Hansen’s group would not have to break a lease if it chose to move the team.
“There are pieces that make sense,” said Marc Ganis, the president of SportsCorp, which brokers team sales but is not working with the Hansen group. “By all of their machinations, the Maloofs have killed the potential for the team in Sacramento.”
The Kings have long been rumored to be on the market. The team has not qualified for the playoffs since 2006 and is near the bottom of the standings in the Western Conference this season. The Sleep Train Arena is one of the oldest in the league and is obsolete by modern standards. Kevin Johnson, the mayor of Sacramento and a former N.B.A. star, brokered a deal with the Maloofs and the N.B.A. for a new arena last year, but the family later withdrew from the arrangement.
Until recently, the Maloofs had opposed selling the team, despite widespread reports of their financial struggles. Two years ago the Maloofs looked to move the team to Anaheim, while retaining controlling interest. They had discussions last year with Virginia Beach.
Johnson has vowed to line up local investors to buy the Kings and keep them in Sacramento, in a new arena that would include public financing. Commissioner David Stern has said he will give Johnson a chance to speak to the board of governors — most likely in April — to present an alternative plan for local ownership.
Hansen has promised to bring a pro basketball team back to Seattle, where he grew up. The Sonics moved to Oklahoma City before the 2008-9 season, after repeated failed attempts to secure a deal for a new arena to replace the aging KeyArena. While the Thunder have been a success in Oklahoma City, Seattle is the largest market without an N.B.A. team.
Hansen has said he would like to bring a basketball team as well as a pro hockey team to Seattle to play in a new arena that would be built downtown. Last year the Seattle City Council and King County Council approved plans for a new arena near Safeco Field, pending the acquisition of a new team.
When asked recently about the possibility of an N.H.L. team moving to Seattle, Gary Bettman, the league’s commissioner, said it was “not something we’re thinking about at the moment.”
The Kings are one of the most road-weary teams in the N.B.A. They began as the Rochester Royals, moved to Cincinnati in 1957 and then to Kansas City, Mo., in 1972, where they became the Kings and played some of their games in Omaha. In 1985 the Kings arrived in Sacramento.
Maloof Family Selling Sacramento Kings to Seattle Investor
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Maloof Family Selling Sacramento Kings to Seattle Investor
