Celtics Governorship to Pass to Bill Chisholm After $6.1 Billion Sale
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Wyc Grousbeck will relinquish the Boston Celtics’ governorship once the franchise’s $6.1 billion sale to entrepreneur Bill Chisholm closes, multiple league sources told ESPN.
According to those sources, Grousbeck will keep the chief executive officer title and serve as an alternate governor after the transaction, which is expected to be finalized within the next week. Chisholm will become the primary governor, a shift required by NBA rules mandating a minimum 15 percent ownership stake for the position. Final funding will leave Grousbeck slightly below that threshold.
The two men still intend to oversee the club jointly, maintaining the structure announced in March. Basketball operations president Brad Stevens and team president Rich Gotham are slated to continue running on-court and business affairs, respectively.
When the sale agreement was unveiled earlier this year, the plan called for Grousbeck to remain governor and CEO through 2028. League governors were notified in recent days of the change, sources said.
Grousbeck’s family led the group that purchased the Celtics for $360 million in 2002. Speaking to ESPN in March, he said Chisholm had asked him to stay on as both CEO and governor for the next three seasons and that he was “glad to do so.”
Chisholm and his wife, Kimberly Ford Chisholm, have begun engaging with Boston community initiatives as they prepare to take control of the 18-time NBA champions. Only the New York Yankees (27) and Montreal Canadiens (24) own more titles among North American professional sports franchises.
Source: ESPN
