The famous singer/actor is being roped in by Robert Pera as part of the new ownership group that will be buying the Memphis Grizzlies from Michael Heisley .....
It seems as if there is going to be one more celebrity minority owner in the NBA after Rapper/musician Jay Z and actor Will Smith.
Robert Pera, the young wireless technology millionaire and CEO of Ubiquiti Networks, has just convinced singer Justin Timberlake to be part of his ownership group which is set to buy the Memphis Grizzlies franchise from current
owner Michael Heisley.
Sources with knowledge of the deal have informed that Timberlake, a Memphis native and a hardcore basketball fan, has agreed to terms to become a minority owner in the group that is being led by Pera as the new owners of the Grizzlies.
Timberlake and Pera have formed a good friendship over the years, and the singer plans to make a sizable investment in the franchise and remain active with the Grizzlies. The NBA has also been informed of Timberlake’s involvement
in the purchase of the basketball franchise, and are well acquainted with him after he has been a regular in the All Star weekend over the past few years.
Pera has said from the beginning that he does not intend to move the franchise away from Memphis, and if a deal between him and Heisley is struck and approved by the league, the franchise would stay in Memphis for at least the
next fifteen years.
ESPN.com reported in June this year that Pera has reached terms with the Grizzlies owner to buy the franchise for a reported $350 million. Although shares in Pera’s company, Ubiquiti Networks, dropped after the news of him buying
an NBA franchise was released, sources have informed that Pera remains committed in acquiring the club and the deal is nearing an official approval from the NBA.
The league commissioner, David Stern, said in July after a meeting of the Board of Governors that the process of the sale of the Grizzlies franchise was "proceeding on pace and we hope in the next couple months to be able to approve
that."
Pera and Timberlake are said to have bonded well as both share an interest in technology apart from being soon to be partners in the Memphis Grizzlies acquisition.
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