Taylor says Wolves, Lynx 'no longer for sale' as owners feud over deal collapse

In a significant development for the future of the Timberwolves and Lynx, Glen Taylor said he will remain the controlling owner of both franchises after Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez did not close on a $1.5 billion sale of a controlling interest in the franchises by a deadline that expired Wednesday.

But Lore and Rodriguez are disputing Taylor's version of events, accusing Taylor of "seller's remorse" while saying they fulfilled their obligations for the purchase of another 40% of the franchises.

That purchase, which would bring their total stake close to 80%, had a deadline of Wednesday, but a deal was not completed. Taylor remains the controlling owner.

"Lore and A-Rod now own 36 percent,'' Taylor said Thursday by phone to the Star Tribune. "I will work with them, as I do with my other limited [partners].''

In a statement issued by the Timberwolves earlier Thursday, Taylor said, "The Timberwolves and Lynx are no longer for sale."

But Lore and Rodriguez responded to Taylor's statement by claiming they had the necessary pieces in place to execute the sale

"We are disappointed," Lore and Rodriguez wrote in their rebuttal statement. "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."

The Timberwolves are 50-22 this season and challenging for the top seed in the NBA's Western Conference.

Taylor, who also owns the Star Tribune, contends that Lore and Rodriguez couldn't meet the deadline related to the closing process.

"The deadline had been pushed back, and they missed it," Taylor said. "That's what led to this.''

A source confirmed that Taylor contends the would-be majority owners have missed multiple deadlines along the way.

Taylor hangs on to approximately 60% of the team at a time when the value of NBA franchises has increased. In October, Forbes valued the Timberwolves and Lynx at $2.5 billion, $1 billion more than he agreed to sell it for to Lore and Rodriguez.

It remains to be seen what legal action might come from the Lore/Rodriguez camp.

Taylor purchased the Wolves in 1994 for $88 million. Lore and Rodriguez still own what Taylor says is 36% of the Timberwolves and Lynx from two previous purchases of stakes in the teams in 2021 and 2023.

Thursday is the culmination of a three-year period in which Lore and Rodriguez were set to take over the two franchises from Taylor after the sides agreed on a sale in 2021 for $1.5 billion.

Lore and Rodriguez had 90 days to complete the final portion of the sale after notifying Taylor of their intent to purchase another 40% ownership stake in late December, as was detailed in their original agreement. But the window closed on that time and no extension was given.

"Under certain circumstances, the buyer could have been entitled to a limited extension. However, those circumstances did not occur," the statement from the Wolves read.

In recent weeks, Lore and Rodriguez were working to secure funding to complete the sale. A deal with the Washington D.C.-based Carlyle Group fell through recently. Lore and Rodriguez did secure an investment from Blue Owl HomeCourt, which was formed in 2020 as a partnership with the NBA "to provide institutional capital to the NBA ecosystem" and is used to acquire minority equity stakes from minority shareholders of NBA teams.

The fund has previously invested in the NBA's Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks and Phoenix Suns but usually in smaller percentages. In 2022, HomeCourt acquired a 6% equity stake in the Hawks from nine existing minority shareholders.

Star Tribune staff writer Patrick Reusse contributed to this story.