There’s never been any speculation that the Suns were in danger of moving out of Phoenix — they have a well-established fan base in the 11th-largest media market in the nation.
But when billionaires get involved, they tend not to think the rules of logic apply to them — the NBA has already seen a franchise get moved from the 12th largest market to the 44th (we’re looking at you, Thunder). Robert Sarver — the owner of the Suns forced to sell his team, but the man with sole control over the process — wants to make sure the new owners have no plans to move the team out of Phoenix. That is according to Sam Garvin, the minority owner of the team who stepped into the chairman’s chair with Sarver suspended, speaking to Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic (the story is behind a paywall).
One of those offers is a $3 billion bid from two tech venture capitalists, including financing from Peter Thiel, the tech investment mogul, reports the Wall Street Journal. There are other bids and the speculation around the sale is that the price could go higher and closer to $4 billion (the current record amount paid for an NBA franchise is $2.35 billion for the Brooklyn Nets, paid for by Joe Tsai. The sale will include the Suns and the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury.
Garvin is not in on a bid for the team (at this time) and said he does not wish to have a larger role or be the full-time chairman.
Whoever takes over the team don’t expect the franchise to be on the move. After the backlash of the Seattle sale (done on David Stern’s watch), NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has looked for franchise stability. The league found local owners in much smaller markets such as Sacramento and New Orleans, there is no chance the sale and move of a team out of Phoenix will gain momentum.
There is no timeline for the sale.