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Chris Hansen

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» Sunday, April 14 2013

Hansen's group told NBA owners that Seattle has 13 companies rated in the Fortune 1000; Sacramento has none. The Seattle economy has been ranked among the top five in the U.S. for the last four years, according to the independent research firm POLICOM, while Sacramento has dropped from No. 19 in 2011 to No. 55 this year. The Seattle group told owners that Sacramento's fall has been structural rather than cyclical, based on Sacramento's emphasis on residential home construction leading up to the recent housing crisis. When the housing bubble burst, the Sacramento economy was hit hard. Seattle's 32,555 season-ticket requests at the time of the meeting last week was more than three times the number of pledges of Sacramento. SI.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, David Stern, Chris Hansen 

If Hansen prevails, the inevitable question is: What kind of owner will he be? Polos, the friend since business school, predicted Hansen is “not going to be like Mark Cuban,” the outspoken billionaire entrepreneur who owns the Dallas Mavericks and who stars in the reality show “Shark Tank.” Hansen would take an active role, though. “I want to make sure this business of basketball is focused on giving back to the community and having the right players,” he said. “I won’t tolerate any less.” At the same time, Hansen has vowed in a recent letter to his hedge-fund investors that he would give most of his attention to Valiant and let others run the Sonics. He promised to “hire the best and brightest people I can find, and then just get out of the way.” Seattle Times

Seattle SuperSonics, Chris Hansen 

Hansen said he plans to invest far more than the 15 percent thresholdrequired by the NBA to be the majority partner of the team. He also revealed Walker would be a small investor. Last fall, the city and county councils tentatively signed off on the proposal after Hansen made concessions. Throughout the negotiations, Hansen was “very forthright” and “very flexible,” said Seattle City Councilmember Tim Burgess. It’s unclear how rich Hansen is. To protect the public interest, he is required to maintain his personal wealth at no less than $300 million, and he agreed to have his personal finances and business plan confidentially examined by independent auditors. In January, Hansen’s group reached an agreement to purchase a majority share of the Sacramento Kings for a reported $341 million, subject to NBA approval. On Friday, the group added $25 million to its offer. Seattle Times

Seattle SuperSonics, Chris Hansen 

By March 2008, Hansen fulfilled one of his personal goals by founding his own hedge fund, Valiant Capital Management in San Francisco. Perched on one of the top floors of the Steuart Tower in the Financial District, Valiant employs 30 people. The modern and minimalist office area has floor-to-ceiling glass walls and doors that show panoramic views of San Francisco Bay. As managing partner, Hansen said, he’s involved in Valiant’s daily operations and still researches companies. Valiant invests long-term in good companies and shorts the stock of bad ones. Short-selling is a tactic to make money when the stock price goes down. Seattle Times

Seattle SuperSonics, Chris Hansen 

Hansen wouldn’t discuss Valiant’s overall returns. Its performance reportedly has been good, but its 2012 fourth quarter was the worst in its five-year history, and this past quarter was poor, too. The bad results coincided with Hansen’s widely publicized play for an NBA team. He tried to calm his investors, saying he hadn’t been distracted, nor would he be if he landed a team. “Investing, not basketball, is and has always been my calling,” he wrote in a private, year-end report to investors. “I live my job ... often to the detriment of more important things in my life (like my family). Investing is what I think about when I wake up, on the drive to work, and just before I drift off to sleep.” Seattle Times

Seattle SuperSonics, Chris Hansen 

Hansen met his current wife, Kimberly Airey, of the Washington, D.C., area, while they both were vacationing with friends in Las Vegas in 2005. As their wedding approached, Hansen threw a memorable, weeklong bachelor party on the small Greek island of Mykonos. “Chris flew some of his friends out and rented a villa, and it was great bonding time,” Polos said. Perhaps his most generous gifts involve his family. On the day after Christmas in 2007, he and other family members put together a ruse to get Hansen’s father, Bob, to join them on a walk-through of a Bellevue home. Much to Bob’s surprise, he discovered a framed photo of himself and his longtime girlfriend, Robin, in the master bedroom. He opened a card that said, thank you for everything, from all the children, and made it clear the home was a gift. Seattle Times

Seattle SuperSonics, Chris Hansen 
 

» Saturday, April 13 2013

NBA commissioner David Stern said the sale of the Sacramento Kings would not become a bidding war. Chris Hansen and the group seeking to purchase the Kings and move them to Seattle is making moves that prove otherwise. The Seattle group led by Hansen and Microsoft chairman Steve Ballmer announced Friday night they had reached agreement with the Maloof family to raise the purchase price of the Kings by $25 million to an NBA-record $550 million. In a statement on his website, Sonicsarena.com, Hansen said the group has voluntarily raised the purchase price as a sign of commitment in bringing the NBA back to Seattle. ESPN.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, David Stern, Steve Ballmer, Chris Hansen 

Chris Hansen: We would like to announce that we have reached an agreement with the Maloofs to raise the price we are offering to purchase the controlling interest in the Sacramento Kings NBA franchise by $25 million — from an enterprise value of $525 million to an enterprise value of $550 million. While we already have a binding purchase agreement to purchase the controlling interest in the team, the Seattle Ownership Group has elected to voluntarily raise its purchase price as a sign of our commitment to bring basketball back to our City and our high degree of confidence in our Arena plan, our financing plan, the economic strength of the Seattle market, individual and corporate support for the team and, most importantly, the future of the NBA. SonicsArena.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Chris Hansen 
 

» Friday, April 12 2013

According to two people with knowledge of the situation, the bid from Seattle's lead investor, hedge fund manager Chris Hansen, for 7% of the Kings that belonged to Bob Cook and was available through bankruptcy court is not expected to be matched by the Sacramento group as was previously expected. The Sacramento side, which had until midnight Friday to exercise a first right of refusal and was planning on doing so through minority owner Dave Luchetti, has decided it is no longer a priority. The people spoke to USA TODAY Sports on the condition of anonymity because of the private nature of the situation. The key to this component of the deal and so many others in this saga is the potential transaction still will require the approval of the NBA. As a result, the Sacramento side, headed by former NBA point guard and current Mayor Kevin Johnson, is making this strategic choice based on the common-sense assumption that the league would not approve the minority stake if they reward Sacramento with the majority share. USA Today Sports

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Kevin Johnson, Chris Hansen 

Conversely, if the Seattle bid for majority ownership (a league-record $525 million valuation headed by Hansen and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer) is approved by the Board of Governors, then the minority stake surely would be approved as well. In essence, Johnson and his people have decided this subplot is not a factor at the moment and that they would prefer to react to the NBA's processes rather than follow through on their initial approach. It is a don't-sweat-the-small-stuff move that comes at a time when it seems increasingly possible that they might pull off the biggest of upsets. USA Today Sports

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Steve Ballmer, Kevin Johnson, Chris Hansen 

The Maloofs had been unwilling to make any deal with local investors who wanted to keep the team in Sacramento. But the family is now willing to sign a deal with the Sacramento group that would be an acceptable backup plan if the NBA rejects the sale of the team to the Seattle group, led by hedge fund manager Chris Hansen and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. The match, the source said, would have to include the same $30 million non-refundable deposit that Hansen's group made as part of its offer to buy 65 percent of the Kings from the Maloofs. That would mean a franchise valuation of $525 million. NBA.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Steve Ballmer, Chris Hansen 

The duration of the process – coupled with the fluidity of the Sacramento group that includes Vivek Ranadive, Mark Mastrov, Paul Jacobs and Mark Friedman that has yet to deliver a formal bid – prompted the Maloofs on Wednesday to leak the ultimatum about today's deadline. On Thursday, the sources said: • An agreement that keeps the Kings in Sacramento must include reimbursement to Hansen for his $30 million nonrefundable deposit. • Before being completely surprised by the size of the Hansen/Ballmer offer, the Maloofs had rejected overtures from Ron Burkle and Larry Ellison. Ellison would have attempted to relocate the Kings to San Jose. Sacramento Bee

Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Larry Ellison, Vivek Ranadive, Ron Burkle, Chris Hansen, Mark Mastrov 
 

» Monday, April 8 2013
 

» Wednesday, April 3 2013

Hedge fund manager Chris Hansen outlined the financial terms, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer expressed Seattle's enthusiasm for bringing an NBA team back to the city and Sacramento Kings owner George Maloof Jr. "expressed strong support for moving forward with the deal that they've made with Chris Hansen," Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn said. In a presentation on Wednesday to an NBA joint committee made up of owners and team representatives, the Seattle group made its formal to buy the Kings from the Maloof family, move the franchise to Seattle and rename the team the Seattle SuperSonics. USA Today Sports

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, George Maloof, Steve Ballmer, Chris Hansen 
 
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