The parent companies of the Dodgers and the Nets "will not be getting hitched after all," according to Josh Kosman of the N.Y. POST. Sources said that although the two sides held talks recently, they have "broken down and are unlikely to begin again." A source said, “Guggenheim doesn’t have money. Will a deal ever happen? Probably no.” Despite reports that Dodgers co-Owner Todd Boehly flew to Russia to discuss such a deal, a Guggenheim Partners spokesperson yesterday said, “There has never been a proposal, never been a deal to walk away from. None was presented. None was ever seen. [Dodgers Chair] Mark Walter just told me he was never interested" (N.Y. POST, 10/9).
PRODDING PROK: Nets GM Billy King said that team Owner Mikhail Prokhorov is "not only remaining the majority owner of the Nets, he’s still willing to take on additional payroll." King: "We'll put it to rest. I think it has been said. He's not selling." In N.Y., Stefan Bondy cited sources as saying that Prokhorov "is indeed still planning to retain majority control of the Nets," and that the negotiations with Boehly, were "about integrating sports and entertainment assets." The Nets "still carry the top payroll in the NBA" at $94M, about $12M less than their "record-breaking number last season." King: "We're spending pretty good this year. Just because it’s less than last year, when the storyline was, ‘record levels, record levels.' So I don’t think anything has changed in (Prokhorov’s) mind-set" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 10/8).
