Warriors Works: ELLISON BLINKS, LACOB TAKES THE REIGNS

In a major upset, the favorite for new owner of the Golden State Warriors, Larry Ellison, was out-bid by an ownership group head up by Joseph Lacob (primary) and Peter Guber (secondary). Ellison is not accustomed to losing when it comes to takeovers of this magnitude, but Lacob's Group was willing to pay the asking price of $450 million.

Although nearly everyone was rooting for Ellison to win the bidding war, his ego would not allow him to go above the price HE believed the Warriors were worth and let Chris Cohan win. $50 million is nothing to Ellison, the 6th richest person in the world. I'm disappointed that he was not willing to swallow his pride and do what all die-hard Warriors fans dreamed would happen - take over and use his fortunes to turn Golden State into the destination of choice for NBA players.

At any rate, it's good to know that Cohan is out and a group of well-financed owners are willing to shell out record amounts to grab the ownership reigns of a Warrior franchise that has been severely mismanaged for the past 15 years. Lacob is currently 10% owner of the Celtics (must sell now) and is a savvy venture capitalist and Stanford Grad who makes his home in the Bay Area.

Biographies from Press Release

Joe Lacob, Managing Partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

Joe Lacob is a Managing Partner with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, the world’s leading venture capital firm. Since 1987, Lacob has been closely involved with KPCB’s investments in over 50 life science companies, including the start-up or incubation of a dozen ventures with KPCB’s medical technology practice, which includes over 30 therapeutic and diagnostic medical device companies. Joe is also an active investing partner in KPCB’s Internet company initiative; he led the firm’s investment in AutoTrader.com and Sportsline. Most recently, Joe has focused on energy investments as part of KPCB’s growing initiative in the fields of Greentech and alternative energy. Investments include SunDrop Fuels, a solar-based fuels company and an incubation in novel geothermal energy.

Lacob’s interest and experience in sports goes back two decades. In the 1990’s, he was the earliest institutional investor and helped build Sportsline, one of the pioneers in sports on the internet. Most recently, as part of the new Boston Celtics ownership group led by Wyc Grousbeck, Lacob earned a championship ring in 2008 when the Celtics won their 17th NBA title. In his position, Lacob served on the Celtic’s basketball committee that led their late decade turnaround. Lacob also was a primary investor and pioneer of women’s professional basketball, known as the American Basketball League (ABL). Lacob has been involved with Stanford basketball for over 25 years and is a fixture in his courtside seats at Maples Pavilion.
Lacob currently serves on the Board of Directors of two public companies, Align Technology and Orexigen, as well as several other privately-held companies including Ophthonix, NeuroPace, TherOx, Arresto Biosciences and TransMedics.

Lacob is actively involved in industry organizations including the American Heart Association and the AHA Roundtable. He is also very involved at Stanford University, serving on advisory boards at the Medical Center, Business School and Athletic Department.
Joe received his Bachelor’s in Biological Sciences from the University of California at Irvine, his Master’s in Public Health from UCLA and his M.B.A. from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Most importantly for Warrior’s fans, Lacob has supported his local franchise the last decade by being a season ticket holder.

Peter Guber, Mandalay Entertainment Group Chairman

Peter Guber has been a force in the entertainment industry for over thirty years. As a producer, among the many films he brought to the screen are Rain Man, Batman, Flashdance, The Color Purple and Midnight Express. He has been Studio Chief at Columbia Pictures, Co-founder of Casablanca Record & FilmWorks, CEO of PolyGram and Chairman of the Board and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment.

In 1995, Guber and his partner Paul Schaeffer, who will also be an owner of the team, founded the Mandalay Entertainment Group, which over the years has financed, produced and distributed numerous motion pictures including Donnie Brasco, Enemy at the Gates, The Score, Seven Years in Tibet, Sleepy Hollow, television series and high-profile television movies. He also took a strategic ownership position in Dick Clark Productions whose media assets included the Golden Globes and The American Music Awards.

Mandalay Sports Entertainment has become a national sports entertainment provider, owning and/or managing professional baseball franchises, sports marketing and venue management. Guber is a full professor at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. He speaks professionally at numerous global events, is a weekly on-camera entertainment and media analyst for Fox Business News, and the creator and co-host of the national tv shows, Shootout, and In the House for Starz/Encore and KNBC.

Guber currently authored his third book TELL to WIN – Connect, Persuade and Triumph With the Hidden Power of Story, due out from Crown in March 2011, and the cover article for the Harvard Business Review and op-ed pieces for numerous papers including the New York Times and the San Francisco Chronicle and Huffington Post.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

ELLISON BLINKS, LACOB TAKES THE REIGNS

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