so terrifying to hear: The ownership group of the NBA champion Boston Celtics is putting the team up for sale………..see more

BOSTON (AP) — The ownership group of the NBA champion Boston Celtics has announced plans to sell its shares of the team.

Boston Basketball Partners LLC revealed in a statement on Monday that it intends to sell the majority of its shares in 2024 or early 2025, with the remaining shares to be sold by 2028.

Wyc Grousbeck, whose family leads the ownership group, is expected to continue as the team’s NBA governor until the sale is finalized.

“After considerable thought and internal discussion, the controlling family of the ownership group has decided to sell the team for estate and family planning reasons,” the statement said.

The Celtics recently won their 18th championship by defeating the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.

Boston Basketball Partners, led by venture capitalist Grousbeck, his father and investor H. Irving Grousbeck, and venture capitalist Steve Pagliuca, acquired the Celtics for $360 million from the Gaston family in 2002. The Gastons had owned the team since 1983.

The Celtics, one of the NBA’s most iconic franchises, were valued at $4.7 billion last year by Forbes, ranking them behind only the Golden State Warriors ($7.7 billion), New York Knicks ($6.6 billion), and Los Angeles Lakers ($6.4 billion).

The current ownership group oversaw the Celtics’ NBA title win in 2008.

In an email to Celtics staff obtained by The Associated Press, Wyc Grousbeck emphasized their commitment to finding a deserving new ownership group to lead the Celtics to continued success.

“There will be a thoughtful and thorough process to find a buyer who understands the importance of Celtic Pride on the court and in the community,” he added

Last year, the Phoenix Suns were sold to mortgage firm owner Mat Ishbia for $4 billion, followed by the sale of the Milwaukee Bucks to Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam for $3.5 billion. In November, Mark Cuban agreed to sell the majority of his Dallas Mavericks’ ownership shares to Miriam Adelson and son-in-law Patrick Dumont, who operates the Las Vegas Sands casino company, for $3.5 billio