Mat Ishbia reportedly set to purchase Phoenix Suns
Billionaire mortgage lender Mat Ishbia is reportedly set to purchase the Phoenix Suns, according to a report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The deal will also include the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury and would close the book on owner Robert Sarver’s troubling tenure with both organizations.
This move comes months after Sarver was practically forced to sell the team after a league investigation into alleged workplace misconduct found that he made racist and sexist remarks. While he initially denied those claims, the apology he gave, and the subsequent selling of the team, indicates that there may have been some truth to the allegations.
While his initial punishment was only a one-year suspension with a $10 million fine, immense pressure built on the grounds that the punishment wasn’t severe enough eventually led Suns chairman Jahm Najafi to make the suspension permanent.
Immediately, the Suns became a very desirable destination for anyone looking to purchase an NBA team. Phoenix is a team with a great young core, fresh off a Finals appearance two seasons ago. It has also recently become a more desirable free agent location and appears to be a great investment.
Jeff Bezos was rumored to have been interested but it seems that he’s focused on purchasing the Commanders right now. Although, let’s be real here, he definitely has more than enough money to buy both.
So, who is Ishbia?
It appears that the bidding war is over with Mat Ishbia set to complete the purchase of the Suns. Ishbia, who was a walk-on basketball player at Michigan State, has been looking to purchase a sporting franchise for quite some time now. Now, he gets his opportunity and can hopefully bring some success to the city of Phoenix.
One thing is for certain, Suns fans are sure to be happy that the Robert Sarver era is coming to end. His time there was filled with distractions and scandals that oftentimes took away from the team’s success on the court. Ishbia should hopefully bring some fresh air into this franchise and maybe resolve some of the tensions within the organization.
Suns fans are desperate for a winning team. They’ve yet to see a championship but have been so close many a time. Mat Ishbia can hopefully be the missing piece this franchise needs and create a much better culture than the one cultivated under Sarver.
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