A handful of former professional athletes, including Kevin Garnett and Arron Afflalo, have been floated as potential names to purchase the Minnesota Timberwolves at one point or another. On Saturday evening, we learned that a retired athlete will indeed make a move to purchase the team, but there’s a twist: it’s not a former basketball player.
According to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, former Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, and New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez signed a letter of intent along with Marc Lore, the former president and CEO of Walmart U.S. eCommerce, to purchase the franchise. The news was soon confirmed by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, and eventually, Rodriguez and Lore released a statement laying out how their arrangement with the franchise will work out.
3-time MLB MVP Alex Rodriguez and close friend Marc Lore have signed a letter of intent and are negotiating with Glen Taylor to become the next owners of the Minnesota Timberwolves, sources tell @TheAthletic
— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) April 10, 2021
Former Major Leaguer Alex Rodriguez and billionaire Marc Lore are finalizing a deal to purchase the Minnesota Timberwolves from majority owner Glen Taylor, sources tell ESPN. Taylor will continue full control of team for two years before Rodriguez and Lore take over in 2023.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 10, 2021
Alex Rodriguez and partner Marc Lore are nearing minority stakes with the Minnesota Timberwolves, with plan to take control of the franchise in two years under mentorship of Glen Taylor. Statement from A-Rod and Lore: pic.twitter.com/nFDIhil5ra
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 10, 2021
Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor has in the past been rumored as entertaining offers for the team, but none of them ever came to fruition. The particulars of this deal are still unknown, outside of the fact that Rodriguez and Lore will ease into ownership of the franchise. This is not the first time Rodriguez has been in the running to purchase a team — earlier this year, the former AL MVP was in the running to purchase the New York Mets, but his bid was ultimately withdrawn.