Kinder is supposedly worth even more than 7-8 billion, but who knows for sure. My issue with him is that he close to 80 years old and the fear is that the team will be sold again. FWIW Richard Kinder IS a Rockets fan and has floor level seats. He and his wife don't go every game but they have been there enough for people to recognize them.
Over the years there have been some, usually there are multiple holders in the team. The owner of the Sixers and Thunder and Bucks all don't have a lot of money and have a net worth less than the team value.
Wow! Thanks Nook! I didnt know that about Kinder being a Rocket fan! Is he a "young" 80 with some faculties left where all he would want to do is throw money at a new project? That would be a dream.
The huge gap here is that they paid a fraction for their teams vs what Tilman paid. I think, collectively, the prices they paid for their respective teams don't even pass the 1.5 billion line if you don't account for inflation.
It's always been amazing to me that they approved him without substantial additional investors. Not a chance, I mean zero, that he could be approved for an NFL or MLB franchise.
I guess that is another reason the Thunder have sold all their expensive players for draft picks over the last two years. Given the return they got, it seems like it was the right move for basketball reasons too. But I'm sure it is not hurting the owners pocketbook to have a few years of cheap contracts while things are so uncertain.
Tilman is toxic. Only a predator will be willing to risk a minority stake in this franchise. What I mean by that is an investor who understands Tilman will leverage their stake to force Tilman into eventually giving up more. Its going to be hard to find investors who trust Tilman as a majority owner to give them the returns they demand. If I'm Seattle, I'm looking at ways to pry the team away.
Thanks, Max. That family tree is remarkable, especially considering the histories of the Maceo and Fertitta families in Galveston. It's more than a bit strange to me that the league would take such a risk with Fertitta. I wonder how many owners of NBA teams had to borrow $275 million dollars from the seller of the franchise in order to purchase that franchise. According to Forbes, Tilman had "less than $300 million in cash" when he began the process of purchasing the Rockets. I don't think that "the son should have to pay for the sins of the father," but that the league was OK with Fertitta's very convoluted deal with Alexander is surprising, at least to me. From Forbes: Here's How Tilman Fertitta Is Paying For The Houston Rockets By Mike Ozanian Forbes Staff SportsMoney Traffic cop at the intersection of money and sports Sep 15, 2017 How is Tilman Fertita paying $2.2 billion for the Houston Rockets when he and his businesses have less than $300 million of cash? By selling $1.415 billion worth of bonds. According to Law360: "Casino and hotel operator Golden Nugget Inc. announced Wednesday that it had priced a $1.415 billion notes offering and that it will combine its casino operations with those of restaurant chain operator Landry’s Inc., joining the two companies, which are both owned by a Texas billionaire." The bonds are not cheap. PR Newswire says: "The Senior Notes will be issued under the indenture, pursuant to which Landry's initially issued $600 million in aggregate principal amount of its 6.750% senior notes due 2024 on October 4, 2016 (the "Existing Senior Notes"). In connection with the Reorganization, Golden Nugget will become the issuer under such indenture and will assume the Existing Senior Notes as Golden Nugget's obligations. The Senior Notes will have identical terms, other than issue date and issue price, and will constitute part of the same series as the Existing Senior Notes." The bond sale will be used for the $1.75 billion of equity Fertitta is using to buy the Rockets, along with $175 million of assumed debt and a $275 million loan from Leslie Alexander, the seller of the NBA team. Should be interesting to see how the bond sale goes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikeoz...ying-for-the-houston-rockets/?sh=7daef20a45d5
Lease runs through 2033. In the era of franchise free agency (around the time the Oilers left) the municipalities that entered into agreements with the teams for which they were investing hundreds of millions of dollars for got much smarter about the language for lease termination. Those are not easy clauses to break. This isn't a situation where the franchise is without a long term lease agreement...or where that lease agreement is set to expire soon. it's another 12 years before it expires.
It is business. Whenever he decides to leave the NBA, this club would be very profitable overall for Tilman. It is so funny to read some posts here.
