David Levine
Posts: 71282
Joined: 7/14/2007
From: Las Vegas
Status: offline
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Snippets: Preliminary documents are being drawn up, and the group plans to press forward with negotiations to try to get a deal done. The Athletic reported that Taylor had received initial interest from six to seven groups, but the Straus Group has emerged as the frontrunner, and their talks have been the most extensive to this point. Franchise icon Kevin Garnett has expressed an interest in putting together a group to buy the team, but he has not had formal discussions with Taylor to this point, sources said. Garnett is not involved with the Straus group, according to sources. Limited partner Meyer Orbach, for several years the presumed heir apparent to Taylor, was exploring putting a group together but also has yet to officially enter the fray, sources said. There are several other groups that have expressed interest, sources said. Taylor has been firm in his desire to sell to a group that will keep the team in Minnesota. The team’s lease at Target Center runs through 2035, but the $50 million penalty for breaking the lease early is peanuts in relation to the final purchase price. The Straus Group has been exploring what it would take to further renovate the second-oldest building in the league, a city-owned structure that received a $145 million facelift in 2017, sources said.
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