Alex Rodriguez fired up as his minority-owned Minnesota Lynx forces a deciding Game 5 against New York Liberty in WNBA Finals
Alex Rodriguez is known to be a very passionate basketball fan and is the part owner of the Minnesota Lynx. The Yankees legend has minority stakes in Minnesota Timberwolves and the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx and is often seen cheering on the teams during their respective matches.
While he wasn't in attendance in Minneapolis for the Lynx's Game 4 of their series New York Liberty, the former registered an 82-80 win.
A-Rod showed his appreciation with a hyped up Instagram story. The 14x All-Star posted the game score in a story which was followed by a video shared on the team's account. This video featured the entire roster surrounding Napheesa Collier as she reminded everyone that the goal of winning the championship is one game away.
It has been a successful season for the Lynx who won their first-ever Commissioner's Cup, the in-season tournament after beating the Liberty itself in the final.
They finished second behind New York in the overall standings but came first among teams from the West, earning their first Western Conference title since 2017.
The Lynx were in a similar spot in the Semifinals against the Connecticut Sun where the series stretched into a Game 5 decider. However, in the previous stage, they had home field advantage, winning 88-77 at Target Center. On Sunday, they will be off to the Barclays Center with a raucous New York supporting the Liberty.
Alex Rodriguez in arbitration battle with Minnesota Lynx owners
The reason that Alex Rodriguez and his ownership group, incuding Marc Lore, are just minority owners of the Minnesota Lynx is because of a dispute over the transition with current owner Glen Taylor. Rodriguez and Lore have successfully transferred 40% of Taylor's stake as part of a $1.5 billion sale of the team.
As per the terms of the contract, the pair and their backing were supposed to complete the entire tranisiton in parts by March. However, 60% of it was left and A-Rod and Co. sought a 90-day extension. This was refused by Taylor and arbitration is expected to follow, beginning on November 4.
Even if the sale was to go ahead, as per NBA and WNBA rules, the transfer of team ownership needs assent of other owners. This means the other 29 majority owners of the 11 other clubs need to vote on the transfer.