Category: Basketball

Celtics to be sold to Massachusetts native William Chisholm originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics have found a buyer.

An investor group led by William Chisholm, a Massachusetts native and lifelong C’s fan, has agreed to purchase a majority of the team at a $6.1-billion valuation — a record for a North American sports team.

“Bill is a terrific person and a true Celtics fan, born and raised here in the Boston area,” Celtics governor Wyc Grousbeck said in a statement. “His love for the team and the city of Boston, along with his chemistry with the rest of the Celtics leadership, make him a natural choice to be the next Governor and controlling owner of the team. I know he appreciates the importance of the Celtics and burns with a passion to win on the court while being totally committed to the community. Quite simply, he wants to be a great owner. He has asked me to run the team as CEO and Governor for the first three years, and stay on as his partner, and I am glad to do so.”

Chisholm is the managing director and co-founder of private equity firm Symphony Technology Group.

“Growing up on the North Shore and attending college in New England, I have been a die-hard Celtics fan my entire life,” Chisholm said in a statement. “I understand how important the Celtics are to the city of Boston – the role the team plays in the community is different than any other city in the country. I also understand that there is a responsibility as a leader of the organization to the people of Boston, and I am up for this challenge.

“My partners and I have immense respect for Wyc, the entire Grousbeck family and their indelible contributions to the Celtics organization over the last 23 years. We look forward to learning from Wyc and partnering with Brad Stevens, Joe Mazzulla and the talented team and staff to build upon their success as we work to bring more championships home to Boston.”

The Grousbeck family announced last July that it intended “to sell a majority interest in 2024 or early 2025.” The Grousbecks have owned the team since 2002 and the franchise has won two championships during that span.

The Celtics, who won their league record 18th championship last season, are in second place in the Eastern Conference standings with a 50-19 record as of Thursday.

This is a breaking news story. This article will be updated when more information is available.

Luka Doncic scored 31 points as the Los Angeles Lakers eased to a 120-108 home win against the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference.

The 26-year-old Slovenian bagged 21 points in the first quarter alone and went on to reach the 200th 30-point game of his career while also recording nine rebounds and seven assists.

Austin Reaves added 22 points for the Lakers, who were without the injured LeBron James and Rui Hachimura.

The Nuggets, who missed Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray because of injuries, failed to recover after trailing 46-29 at the end of the first quarter and saw the Lakers leapfrog them by moving into third place in the standings.

Doncic, who joined the Lakers from the Dallas Mavericks in February, has now scored 30 points or more in eight of his 16 games since the move.

"Like I always say, every day gets better," Doncic told ESPN after the win.

"That's three wins in a row now so we've got to just keep it going.

"We go game-by-game because if you think too far in the future maybe you forget about the next game. We know the [standings] are tight but we've just got to try and win every game."

The Lakers' 46-point first quarter was their highest-scoring quarter of the season, while Doncic's 21 points was his most points in any quarter for the Lakers.

In the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers remain top but fell to a 123-119 loss to the Sacramento Kings - their third straight defeat.

DeMar DeRozan added 27 points for the Kings against the Cavaliers, who had seen their franchise record 16-game winning streak snapped by the Orlando Magic at the weekend.