The Brooklyn Nets might not be moving to Russia after all.
A day after billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, the National Basketball Association’s first foreign owner, said he intended to transfer the team to one of his Russian companies, Onexim Sports & Entertainment said such a move -- which would be the first of its kind in major U.S. professional sports -- might never happen.
“This is a long process which may or may not come to fruition,” Onexim, the team’s parent company, said yesterday in a statement. “Of course, no steps in this direction could or would be taken without the full knowledge and approval of the NBA.”
Chuck Baker, a partner with DLA Piper’s Global Sports media and entertainment practice, said in a telephone interview that he would be hard-pressed to believe the NBA would allow such a change.
“While they have the power to revoke a franchise, I’m not certain that will be exercised here,” he said. “But we are in uncharted territory.”
The proposed transfer of ownership would allow Prokhorov to heed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ban on politicians having foreign accounts and equity and his call for Russian- owned companies to be registered and pay taxes locally.
Owners’ Approval
Chris Weafer, a partner at Macro Advisory in Moscow, said Prokhorov is tailoring his comments to his audience.
“It seems that Mr. Prokhorov has had a reality check,” Weafer said by e-mail yesterday. “What seemed like a slam dunk patriotic move in Russia today has proven to be something of a foul move among Nets supporters in New York.”
Joel Litvin, the NBA’s president of league operations, said the Nets haven’t submitted an application to change their ownership. If they did, 75 percent of owners, or 23 of the 30, would have to approve it, Litvin said, adding that no specific rule exists barring a non-U.S. entity from owning a team.