New Bidder Joins As Three Nets Suitors Submit Revised Bids

Four bids to buy the Nets were submitted yesterday, "including one that was unexpected," according to sources cited by Richard Sandomir of the N.Y. TIMES. None of the bids "exceeded $300[M], and the highest one was separated from the lowest by about $30[M]." Revised bids were submitted by NJ-based developer Charles Kushner and U.S. Sen. Jon Corzine (D-NJ), who would keep the Nets in NJ; developer Bruce Ratner, who would move the team to Brooklyn; and Islanders co-Owner Charles Wang, who would move the team to Long Island's Nassau Coliseum. A source said that the new bidder, who has not been publicly identified, "formerly expressed interest in buying the [Bucks] but is not known in most sports circles" (N.Y. TIMES, 11/11). In Newark, Matthew Futterman cites sources as saying that Kushner and Corzine bid $250M, but Kushner has "tried to convince several current investors with the Nets to stay with the team, which would allow him to pay less money to acquire control of the franchise." YankeeNets execs added that Wang "had cleared his financial representatives to bid as high as $285[M]." Futterman notes Wang's previous offer of roughly $250M "included little financing, giving him a clear advantage in his ability to close the deal" (Newark STAR-LEDGER, 11/11).

WHAT NOW? On Long Island, Laura Price-Brown reports the YankeeNets BOD now "could decide to pare the competition to two, declare a winner, or decide not to sell the team." One source said, "More than likely, things will remain status quo and YankeeNets will unravel first. There may not be a consensus on a sale." Price-Brown notes that if YankeeNets should dissolve, "only the Nets owners would have to approve any future sale" of the team. A N.Y.-based sports exec said, "Unless the Wang proposal blows them away, I think the Nets will stay in New Jersey. The question is, will they accept any of the offers right now?" (NEWSDAY, 11/11). The STAR-LEDGER's Futterman adds that several NJ-based Nets owners "are firmly against a sale, especially if either of the two bidding groups from New York emerge with the highest offer" (Newark STAR-LEDGER, 11/11).