Sacramento group submits proposal to buy Kings
The NBA received an official bid Friday for the Kings' franchise from a group that plans to keep the team in Sacramento.
The group is headed by 24 Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov and billionaire Ron Burkle. Financial details weren't released, league spokesman Tim Frank said. They are hoping to keep the team from moving to Seattle next season.
The offer was announced by Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson on Thursday night, a day before the March 1 deadline for bid submissions to the league offices.
A vote by the NBA Board of Governors is expected by mid-April on the Seattle bid, which is led by Chris Hansen and Microsoft chief executive officer Steve Ballmer. They signed an agreement in January to acquire 65 percent of the team from the Maloof family and planned to relocate the franchise to Seattle, build a new downtown arena and restore the SuperSonics name.
