Celtics Sale Set to Close in Next Two Weeks

Bill Chisholm is expected to assume control of the Celtics within the next two weeks.

The $6.1 billion sale of the Celtics, announced in March, will be voted on by the NBA Board of Governors either late next week or early the following week, two sources familiar with the deal confirmed to Front Office Sports. The timing of the anticipated vote was first reported by Sportico.

The deal did not receive a vote during the most recent board meeting, although team sales don’t need to be voted on during scheduled meetings, a source familiar with the process previously told FOS. The board can call a vote at any time, and it can happen remotely. The vote and the closing of the transaction are the final two steps needed before the group led by Chisholm can formally take over. Closing typically takes place in tandem with the board vote.

The agreement—which set a record for the largest pro sports franchise sale in history that was quickly broken by the sale of the Lakers to Mark Walter at a $10 billion valuation—has taken longer to obtain board approval than some other recent franchise sales.

It took about one month for the sale of Mark Cuban’s majority stake in the Mavericks to receive BOG approval after its November 2023 announcement; Michael Jordan’s sale of his majority stake in the Hornets was approved about a month and a half after its June 2023 announcement. The same was true for the sale of the Suns by embattled ex-owner Robert Sarver to Mat Ishbia, which was approved in February 2023 after being announced in December 2022.

Seemingly, the transaction has been ready for approval since May, when a source familiar with the matter told FOS Chisholm had amassed enough money to cover the cost of the deal. Later that month, FOS confirmed that the CEO of ArcelorMittal—the world’s second-largest steel producer—is contributing $1 billion to the transaction. Other investors participating in the deal include private-equity firm Sixth Street, existing Celtics minority owner Robert Hale Jr., and Related Companies president Bruce A. Beal Jr. 

Chisholm, who prior to the Celtics announcement was a little-known private-equity executive, is buying the team in his personal capacity, not through his firm, Symphony Technology Group.

The departing majority owner, Wyc Grousbeck, plans to continue overseeing team operations through the 2027–28 season.

The team Chisholm takes over will look very different from the roster when he agreed to the deal. Kristaps Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday, starters for the Celtics squad who won the 2024 NBA championship, have been shuffled out of Boston this summer as the franchise cuts salary in the wake of Jayson Tatum’s Achilles tear sustained during the playoffs.