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Disgraced Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver has reached an agreement to sell his majority stake in the Suns and the Phoenix Mercury.
The buyer is reportedly the billionaire president and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage, Mat Ishbia. Ishbia is set to purchase both franchises for a record $4 billion.
Many around the league appear to be happy with the news as the NBA can now move past Robert Sarver’s workplace misconduct scandal. However, NBA legend-turned-TNT analyst Charles Barkley still doesn’t think justice has been served.
During Tuesday night’s episode of "Inside the NBA," Barkley explained why it isn’t right that Sarver gets to walk away with $4 billion.
“And I brought this up. I said ‘Yo man, that’s not fair. That ain’t right.’ He (Sarver) paid $400 million for that team (Suns),” Barkley said.
“For him to pay $400 million for a team, do really, really bad things behind the scenes, and they force him to sell it, and he gets $4 billion dollars? I want that deal.
“There’s not a single person in the world that’s not like ‘Wait a minute, where is the punishment?’ There’s no punishment.
“And there’s not a single person watching this show, there’s not a person behind these cameras that says, ‘I got a business and it’s worth $400 million, and I was harassing women, being racist at work,’ and they’re like ‘Well, we don’t want you around here anymore, we’re gonna give you $4 billion dollars.’
He concluded:
“Hey, I love the NBA, it’s given me every single thing in my life. But this is not right man. This is not right, period.”
Robert Sarver has been the Phoenix Suns' owner since 2004 when he purchased the team for $400 million. His tenure as owner has been filled with controversies over the years.
It was Sarver’s latest controversy involving allegations of misogyny and racism that basically forced him to sell the team. So it’s understandable that some, including Charles Barkley, may not be happy with the outcome of the whole situation.
Robert Sarver on sale of Phoenix Suns
Despite basically being forced to sell the Phoenix Suns, Robert Sarver appeared to be very supportive of incoming owner Mat Ishbia following their deal. In an official statement released on Tuesday, Sarver explained why Ishbia is the right choice to take over as the Suns' new owner.
“Mat is the right leader to build on franchise legacies of winning and community support and shepherd the Suns and Mercury into the next era,” Sarver said.
“As a former collegiate basketball player and national champion, Mat has exactly the right spirit, commitment and resources to pursue championships. Equally important, though, is his philanthropic outlook and commitment to using sports as a way to elevate and connect people.
“I know he shares my unwavering support for women’s basketball and I look forward to watching him become a unifying force across the Valley of the Sun,” he continued.
As Sarver mentioned, Ishbia is a former college basketball player who played for the Michigan State Spartans. Ishbia was even a part of the Spartans' 2000 national championship team.
He is also reportedly a big NBA fan who already has existing relationships with high-ranking officials in the league. This includes other owners as well as NBA commissioner Adam Silver.
Following the news of the sale, Mat Ishbia also spoke about his excitement in his own official statement. He said:
"I am extremely excited to be the next Governor of the Phoenix Suns and Mercury.
"Both teams have an incredibly dynamic fan base and I have loved experiencing the energy of the Valley over the last few months," Ishbia continued.
So even with Robert Sarver getting off relatively easily following his scandal, at least the future now appears to be much brighter in Phoenix.
For more on the record-breaking sale of the Phoenix Suns, click here.
Also read: What is Mat Ishbia's net worth: Looking at Phoenix Suns' prospective new owner's business empire
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