Warriors on market
Salvatore Galatioto, whose company is helping arrange the Warriors sale, met with franchise officials on Thursday, league sources said. Official bids for the franchise can’t be made until a lengthy offer memorandum, which includes all financial, lease, payroll and team details, is completed in about two to three weeks. The Warriors are expected to be sold sometime between June and the start of next season’s training camp in October.
Oracle CEO Larry Ellison is considered the most likely buyer and has been in contact with franchise representatives since Monday’s announcement that the Warriors are officially on the market. As the San Jose Mercury News first reported, Mark Mastrov, founder of Bay Area-based 24 Hour Fitness, has also expressed interest. Mastrov partnered with Shaquille O’Neal(notes) and Magic Johnson, a minority owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, on several branded clubs. Sources say there have been about a dozen inquiries, including one from China.
Ellis better than LeBron?
While Rolling Stone recently declared Kevin Durant(notes) better than Kobe Bryant(notes), Warriors guard Monta Ellis(notes) has his own opinion on who should be ranked as the NBA’s three best players.
“I’m going to say LeBron James(notes) [third],” Ellis said recently. “He can do it all, pass, score, defend, block shots. No. 2, I would have to say, me. I can do a whole lot of things: defend, score, make passes, do whatever I need to do.
“No. 1, I’d say Kobe Bryant. There isn’t one player that can stop Kobe one-on-one. He has a lot of stuff. He can defend. And of course, he won four championships.”