Boston Celtics' majority ownership selling its stake in team weeks after NBA title

Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis acknowledges the fans before tip-off during the NBA Finals game five between the Dallas Mavericks and the Boston Celtics in June in Boston

July 1 (UPI) -- The Boston Celtics' majority ownership group is planning to sell its stake in the venerable franchise, saying it was doing so because of "estate and family planning considerations."

The announcement Monday came two weeks after the Celtics won a record 18th NBA title at TD Garden in Boston.

Wyc Grousbeck led a group that purchased the Celtics for $360 million on Sept. 27, 2002. The Grousbeck family is worth an estimated $1.8 billion, according to Forbes. Ownership also includes the father of Wyc Grousbeck, H. Irving, who is a cable television billionaire.

"The controlling family of the ownership group, after considerable thought and internal discussion, has decided to sell the team for estate and family planning considerations," a press release on X said. "The managing board of the ownership group expects to sell a majority interest in 2024 or early 2025, with the balance closing in 2028, and expects Wyc Grousbeck to remain as the governor of the team until the second closing in 2028."

Minority shareholders are Stephen Pagliuca and The Abbey Group.

Wyc Grousbeck told The Boston Globe that he's losing money but he's doing it for "Celtic pride."

"We're fans who bought the team. We're doing this for love," Grousbeck said three weeks ago before they won the title on June 14. "We're doing this for Celtic pride, and we're going to put everything we can into the team to win a banner, to win a championship."

The Celtics are the fourth most valuable NBA team, with an estimated value of $4.7 billion, according to Forbes. Worth more are the Los Angeles Lakers $6.4 billion, New York Knicks at $6.6 billion and Golden State Warriors at $7.7 billion, according to Forbes.

The Celtics also won a championship in 2007, and reached the NBA Finals on two other occasions.

ESPN reported the Celtics are in the midst of trying to lock up financially their stars, including signing Jayson Tatum for an expected five-year, $314 million extension -- which would be the largest contract in NBA history.

The Celtics had a payroll of $184.2 million for the 2023-24 season, according to Spotrac. The NBA's fourth-highest payroll is above the luxury tax threshold of $136 million, meaning the owners will owe millions for non-tax-paying franchises.