A new billionaire for the Suns

Mat Ishbia, a mortgage dude I have never heard of, agrees to buy the two Phoenix-based pro basketball teams for an ungodly sum.

Good morning. Let’s basketball.

George II Depicted at the Battle of Dettingen; John Wootton; 1743

Woj broke the news on Tuesday: Mat Ishbia, a young billionaire who got rich off of the family mortgage business and was a walk-on for Michigan State’s 2000 title team (the one with MoPete and Mateen Cleaves), has agreed to buy the Suns and Mercury at a valuation of $4 billion. I have never heard of this particular billionaire, and that is a great relief, because the billionaires I had heard of who had previously been tied to this purchase gave me a stomachache.

In bad news, this means that the value of the Suns and Mercury increased 10-fold in the 18 years Robert Sarver owned the teams. He had purchased the teams at a valuation of $400 million in 2004. While it’s refreshing that we as NBA and WNBA fans may never have to hear from or about Robert Sarver again, I find myself perturbed that the current paradigm of pro sports team ownership makes being an abusive boss rather lucrative.