Mikhail Prokhorov, the Russian billionaire and current majority stakeholder of the Brooklyn Nets, is seeking to sell a minority interest, and reports are he’s valuing the stadium and team at $3 billion.
Prokhorov currently owns 80% of the team and 45% of Barclays Center in Brooklyn, where the Nets play their home games. While he’s not willing to give up his majority stake, it’s being reported that he wants to sell 29% of the team while keeping the remaining 51%.
The most recent sale of an NBA team occurred last May when Steve Ballmer bought the Los Angeles Clippers for $2 billion. So Prokhorov’s valuation of $3 billion may seem a bit stunning at first, especially considering the Clippers are a profitable team (projected 2015 operating income of $20.1 million) while the Nets are not (projected 2015 operating income of minus $99.4 million).
Then again, prior to the Clippers sale, their valuation at the time was only $575 million and they ended up selling for nearly quadruple that, so in today’s landscape, it doesn’t hurt to ask for the moon.
[Forbes]
