Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam have agreed to purchase Marc Lasry’s 25% stake of the Milwaukee Bucks at a $3.5 billion valuation. If finalized, those numbers would mean the Haslams plan to spend about $875 million for Lasry’s stake of the team.
The deal, pending league approval, would be the second-highest valuation ever for an NBA team, being surpassed only by the $4 billion purchase of the Phoenix Suns by Mat Ishbia from Robert Sarver earlier this month. It would also be the third highest for any American professional sports team.
Lasry and Wesley Edens, both New York investment firm executives, bought the Bucks from former U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl for about $550 million in 2014 with pledges to keep the team in Milwaukee. The Bucks’ ownership group also includes Jamie Dinan and Mike Fascitelli. Since that sale, the Bucks have enjoyed great success -- moving to a new arena in 2018, and winning their first NBA title in 50 years in 2021 led by Greek superstar and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Currently, Milwaukee is just 1/2 game behind the Boston Celtics for the NBA's best record, winning a league-leading 14 games in a row. The Bucks will next face-off against the Nets on Tuesday night in Brooklyn.
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