"Do not want the Celtics" - Boston sports analyst rules out one $8 billion potential buyer group linked to imminent takeover of NBA champions
After the Boston Celtics won the 2024 NBA Championship, it was announced that they would be up for sale following their historic 18th championship. Since then, there has been quite a bit of uncertainty surrounding the team's future, with a slew of mixed reports regarding a new potential owner.
Two potential buyers have been leading acquisition talks, with reports indicating that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who was reportedly interested in acquiring the Phoenix Suns before Mat Ishbia, could be a frontrunner.
At the same time, there has been talk of Fenway Sports Group, who owns the Boston Red Sox, expanding their portfolio and acquiring the franchise. The group, which owns many professional sports teams around the world, notably includes LeBron James, which could be problematic, given the conflict of interest.
The way NBA analyst Tony Massarotti sees things despite the conflict of interest surrounding James' involvement, Fenway Sports Group isn't interested in acquiring the team. He spoke on Tuesday's episode of Felger and Mazz:
"When John Henry has bought franchises, he has bought undervalued signature franchises, okay? The Red Sox were undervalued, had greater capacity for growth than they were getting. Same is true of Liverpool.
"The Penguins are an elite franchise, but they got all these assets at favorable prices. The Celtics are not at a favorable price. Now you want my opinion? John Henry and his group don't want the Celtics. That's my opinion."
Could Jeff Bezos acquire the Boston Celtics? Looking at latest report from Bill Simmons
As previously mentioned, Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos has reportedly been linked to the Boston franchise after previously being linked to the Phoenix Suns during the summer of 2022.
At the time, the franchise was up for sale after Robert Sarver was caught making racist remarks, which led to the Phoenix Suns and the Phoenix Mercury going up for sale. While Bezos was reportedly interested in acquiring the team, nothing came to fruition, with Mat Ishbia eventually taking ownership of the two teams.
Now, with a chance to acquire the Boston franchise, Jeff Bezos is reportedly once again interested in acquiring the franchise. This week, longtime NBA analyst Bill Simmons spoke about Bezos' interest on his podcast.
"In the last few days, there's been some, I think, legitimate buzz about Jeff Bezos buying the Celtics. And I think it's real. I think he's gonna be one of the suitors, ... The league wants $6 billion for the team, for the Celtics. $6 billion, they don't own the arena. It's a crazy price, but they're probably gonna get it."
While it's unclear who will take ownership of the franchise. A sale is likely to get finalized before the start of the NBA season just like we saw with the Phoenix Suns and Mat Ishbia.