Report: Wyc Grousbeck is no longer staying on as Celtics governor
Grousbeck is expected to retain the CEO title, and remain an alternate governor, until 2028.
Bill Chisholm, who agreed in March to pay a then-record $6.1 billion dollars to buy the Boston Celtics, will assume the title of team governor when the sale is complete, according to ESPN.
Current Celtics lead governor Wyc Grousbeck had planned to stay in the role through 2028, but that will no longer be the case. ESPN reported that Grousbeck will relinquish his current role once the team sale is complete. He is expected stay in the ownership group as team CEO and alternate governor until 2028.
The NBA began moving away from the term team owner in 2019, and began using governor instead as a replacement.
According to league rules, a governor must own at least 15 percent of the team.
An alternate governor owns a portion of the team and vote on league matters during times when the lead governor is absent.
Grousbeck had said publicly, on multiple occasions, that he wanted to stay on as governor for a few more years. It’s not immediately clear what has changed in the plan for the Celtics’ ownership group.
It’s the end of a lengthy era for Grousbeck, who has been at the forefront of the team’s dealings since 2002 when he and his father put together a group of investors to purchase the team.
The Celtics won two championships during that span, one in 2008, and one in 2024.
The Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen trades, the rebuild after trading Garnett and Paul Pierce to Brooklyn, and the drafting of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown all happened during the Grousbecks’ time as owners.
The Celtics have made six of the last nine Eastern Conference Finals.
The odds of another deep playoff have shifted this year after Jayson Tatum ruptured his Achilles’ tendon and the team traded Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday.
The Celtics retained a core of Brown, Derrick White, and Payton Pritchard. They hope to reposition themselves as contenders upon Tatum’s return.
The sale is expected to be finalized soon, according to the ESPN report. The Lakers, which were sold for $10 billion, have since eclipsed the Celtics as the most expensive deal for a North American sports team in history.
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