George, Gavin and Phil Maloof divested themselves of a 15% minority stake in the Vegas Golden Knights, selling it back to Golden Knights owner Bill Foley and his family, the NHL club announced Thursday. The Maloofs, who are former owners of the Sacramento Kings, are moving on from their NHL ownership as the NBA ponders expansion into the Las Vegas market.
Adrienne Maloof—the sister of George, Gavin and Phil—will continue to be an indirect owner of the hockey team as a new limited partner.
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“We would like to thank the entire Maloof family for their contributions to the Vegas Golden Knights organization during their tenure as minority owners,” Foley said in a statement. “They were helpful in bringing NHL hockey to Las Vegas and had a belief and commitment to our city as a viable major professional sports market.”
The Maloofs, who are former Las Vegas hotel and casino owners, have long been involved in the NBA, owning the Houston Rockets from 1979 until 1982, and the Kings from 1998 until 2013.
When Foley won the rights to a Vegas NHL expansion team in 2015, paying a $500 million entrance fee, the Maloofs were included in his ownership group from the beginning.
The Knights have been wildly successful in their seven seasons. The team reached the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural 2017-18 season and won it last year. According to Sportico’s most recent valuations, the Knights are worth $1.3 billion, 11th in the league.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver recently affirmed that Las Vegas and Seattle have the inside track for expansion teams, but he said there was no timetable when asked last month at the NBA’s In-Season Tournament. Silver recently said that the sale of the Dallas Mavericks to Miriam Adelson and family was in no way related to the prospects of an expansion team in Vegas.
After the Lakers won the inaugural In-Season Tournament, LeBron James discussed his excitement over a potential NBA team in Las Vegas.
“My enthusiasm about being here post-career, bringing a team here, has not changed. The fans are amazing here,” James said. “They have everything already: WNBA team, they have a baseball team coming in soon, NFL team, hockey team, F1 was just here over the Thanksgiving week. Everything is here. This is a place that loves great attractions, and I think the NBA will be another great addition to this city.”
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