Alex Rodriguez Is No Longer Buying the Minnesota Timberwolves

Liam McKeone | Mar 28, 2024

Minnesota Timberwolves v Boston Celtics / Maddie Meyer/GettyImages

Alex Rodriguez and his business partner, Marc Lore, have been in the process of buying the Minnesota Timberwolves from owner Glen Taylor since April 2021. On Thursday, that process came to a shocking and sudden halt.

Taylor released a statement this morning stating Rodriguez and Lore failed to close their transaction acquiring a controlling interest in the Timberwolves and their WNBA sister team, the Minnesota Lynx, within the allotted time period. Taylor did not grant them an extension, and said in the statement the teams are no longer for sale.

“I will continue to work with Marc, Alex and the rest of the ownership group to ensure our teams have the necessary resources to compete at the highest levels on and off the court,” Taylor said. “The Timberwolves and Lynx are no longer for sale.”

It is important to note A-Rod and Lore are both part of the ownership group for the teams, which is why Taylor says he'll continue to work with them in the future. They are only minority owners, however. Taylor remains the majority stake-holder and primary decision-maker.

It's still a stunning reversal. Over the last three years, Rodriguez and Lore purchased 40 percent of the team in two 20 percent installments. They were supposed to acquire the final 40 percent in early 2024 and Taylor was to keep 20 percent. As recently as late December, everything appeared to be on track, with the Rodriguez/Lore team exercising their option to complete the final purchase.

This story does not seem complete, either. Shortly after the announcement of the sale falling through, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported the relationship between Taylor and his team's prospective buyers "disintegrated" over the last few years. Additionally, Wojnarowski noted Rodriguez and Lore did secure the funding required to complete the purchase but Taylor claimed they did not meet "contractual deadlines" throughout the process.

On Thursday afternoon Rodriguez and Lore released a statement on the situation.

“We are disappointed with Glen Taylor’s public statement today. We have fulfilled our obligations, have all necessary funding and are fully committed to closing our purchase of the team as soon as the NBA completes its approval process. Glen Taylor’s statement is an unfortunate case of seller’s remorse that is short sighted and disruptive to the team and the fans during a historic winning season.”

A lot has changed since the ball got rolling in 2021, and not just off the court. The Timberwolves are currently in the middle of their best season in decades, entering Thursday with a 50-22 record, good for second in the Western Conference.

The franchise cornerstone, 22-year-old Anthony Edwards, is a budding superstar who could soon become the face of the league. All that stands out in stark contrast to where Minnesota was at the end of the 2020-21 season, when it finished with a 23-49 record and picked Edwards first overall in the draft.

Seeing as they've already bought a good chunk of the team, fans can still look forward to seeing A-Rod sitting courtside for Wolves and Lynx games going forward. But Taylor, who has owned the majority stake in the Timberwolves since 1994 and founded the Lynx in 1999, will remain in control of the franchises going forward.