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Rumors about potential issues with the transaction sprouted almost as soon as it was announced in late March, including reports that private-equity firm Sixth Street Partners was contributing more money than Chisholm. The NBA’s private-equity ownership rules stipulate that a PE firm cannot be the largest stakeholder in a team and that the controlling owner must contribute at least 15% of the purchase price. It wasn’t just media speculation. Steve Pagliuca, a minority owner since 2002 who lost to Chisholm’s group in the battle to buy the Celtics, wrote a fiery public letter to fans last month that said his proposal was “fully guaranteed and financed” and had “no debt or private equity money that would potentially hamstring our ability to compete in the future.” Pagliuca even said: “If the announced transaction does not end up being finalized, my partners and I are ready to check back into the game…”
Well, it's just—so you have these two guys. Wyc’s dad puts up the most money for the team. Wyc’s the one that's organizing the group, and it starts out, I think, with four people that put up the money. They get the price, and then their job after they get the price is to go find a group of minority people to offload some of the money they just committed to. Which, by the way, that’s what Chisholm's doing right now. He’s already put the feelers out, trying to put together a little syndicate to offload some of the money that he’s already promised. So that’s in motion now. So they get the four. But Pags was always—it was like, Wyc's the owner, and the dad put up the most money, but also here’s Pags. And they’ve had this uneasy co-owner alliance. Wyc was always the face of it, and it was always a little awkward. You could feel it when they were holding the trophy. You know—that’s when Lasry and Edens had that too. Some of these co-owner—like Guber and Leo, same thing—where it’s like: it’s my team, but you have to be here, and let’s hold the trophy together. And it’s always super awkward.
I don’t know how great it was going by the end, because I think when Pagliuca tried to buy the Nets—I don’t think Wyc found out from Pagliuca, is my understanding. And I don’t think it’s been great since then. And I think the reverse of that was: Pagliuca found out that the Celtics were being sold the same way we all did. He was not tipped. He was not given a heads-up.”
The Grousbeck side wanted more. They were pushing the number up. And I think one of the ways this really went sideways—there was a moment in this process where stuff gas getting leaked out about the sale. There was an unflattering piece that came out. I don’t even know what Wyc's exact stake is, but about how small Wyc's stake allegedly was with the Celtics, and that they were shooting too high. And I don’t think that went great for Pags. Whether he did something or not—maybe he did nothing—but I think there was a feeling that somebody was trying to 'neg' the price, make it lower, and try to sneak it in. And I think you look at 90-year-old Irv Grousbeck—he’s one of the great businesspeople of the last few decades. Really respected. Respected as a thinker. He’s mentored a bunch of people. He’s rich for a reason. And I don’t think it went over very well that stuff started coming out that they wanted too much for the team.
Pagliuca was one of four finalists in the bidding process, but his bid was not selected. His statement reads as follows: “Since the Grousbeck family announced it would sell the Boston Celtics almost nine months ago,” Pagliuca wrote. “I have worked tirelessly to put together a strong bid centered around the great majority of existing owners of the team who understand and appreciate what it means to be a steward of the Boston Celtics, a team steeped in championship tradition.” “Additionally, I recruited new partners with deep resources and expertise in technology and international markets to maximize the Celtics’ successes to ensure we can always compete for championships, luxury taxes be damned.” “We made a fully guaranteed and financed offer at a record price, befitting the best sports fans int he world and with all the capital coming from individuals who ae committed to winning on and off the court. We had no debt or private equity money that would potentially hamstring our ability to compete in the future. We have felt it was the best offer for the Celtics. It is a bid of true fans, deeply connected to Boston’s community, and we’ve been saddened to find out we have not been selected in the process.”
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Grousbeck and partner Steve Pagliuca led a group that purchased the Celtics in 2002 for $360 million. Franchise valuations have since skyrocketed, with the Phoenix Suns being sold for $4 billion to Mat Ishbia in February 2023, the Milwaukee Bucks being sold to Jimmy and Dee Haslam for $3.5 billion several weeks later, and the Mavericks being sold to the Adelson and Dumont families for $3.5 billion in December 2023. The Celtics are one of the iconic franchises in professional sports, with an NBA record 18 NBA titles -- trailing only the New York Yankees (27) and Montreal Canadiens (24) among all North American professional sports leagues.
Four groups emerge in bidding for Celtics
The Friedkin Group, Philadelphia Phillies minority owner Stan Middleman and Symphony Technology Group managing partner William Chisholm are among the groups that remain engaged in bidding for the Boston Celtics, according to multiple people familiar with the process. Those three groups, plus one led by existing Celtics investor Steve Pagliuca, have all participated in management presentations with the NBA team, said the people, who were granted anonymity because the details are private. The next round of bids is due at the end of the week.
Grousbeck family expects at least four bids for Celtics
When the first round of bids are submitted by Jan. 23, the Celtics expect to have received at least four and up to five from investment groups vying to become the next owner of the NBA franchise, according to a source with direct knowledge of the sale process on Thursday. One of those bidders is a consortium led by current Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca. The Grousbeck family expects the ultimate price to exceed $6 billion. All members of the bidding groups have been vetted by the NBA. Identities of the control person leading the other three to four groups remain under wraps.
Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca and limited partner Robert Hale are the only people to publicly state interest in joining the bidding process. Hale has said he could seek to be a lead investor or ultimately join another group to remain a limited partner.
Steve Pagliuca angling to buy Celtics at a discount?
A longtime Boston Celtics owner with a minority stake in the team is angling to gain control of the storied franchise — at a discount from the expected $6 billion asking price, The Post has learned. Steve Pagliuca, who owns about 20% of the reigning NBA champs, has pressed minority shareholders who own roughly another 30% to fall in with him in bidding for the Celtics, sources close to the situation said.
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If he can get firm commitments from the other investors, it would give him leverage over any deep-pocketed buyers who may jump in as the bidding process tips off, the sources said. Pagliuca, the former Bain Capital co-chair, has hired investment banks Allen & Co. and Raine Group to help him with his bid, sources said.
So far, no mega-billionaire suitors – like Amazon founder Jeff Bezos or Citadel boss Ken Griffin – have emerged, sources told The Post. John Henry’s Fenway Sports Group, which owns the Boston Red Sox, has expressed some interest but has yet to enter the fray, sources said. If he does get involved, Henry might prefer partnering with Pagliuca and combining the Celtics and Sox as opposed to going it alone, one source believes.
One complicating factor for Pagliuca in attaining his long-held dream of majority ownership could be an alleged strained relationship with Wyc Grousbeck, according to multiple sources who spoke to The Post. The two have not shared power in years even though Pagliuca is the managing director, two sources said. One of the sources pointed to an incident after the Celtics won their latest title in which Wyc Grousbeck seemingly iced Pagliuca out of the postgame celebration with the NBA trophy.
A Pagliuca spokesman insisted there is no animosity between the two. “Steve and Wyc enjoy both a close personal and professional relationship and any suggestion to the contrary is simply false,” the spokesman said.
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