Magic Johnson was excited and pleased with his fellow Spartan Mat Ishbia for purchasing the Suns on Tuesday.
Ishbia, a billionaire mortgage lender, is reportedly expected to complete the deal—one in the neighborhood of $4 billion—for the Arizona-based franchise and the WNBA’s Mercury very soon, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. It would end the tenure of owner Robert Sarver.
Hours after news surfaced of Ishbia’s reported purchase of the teams, Johnson tweeted compliments to his friend taking on a new role.
“I had a great call with fellow Spartan Mat Ishbia congratulating him on his purchase of the Phoenix Suns. He’s going to do great things not only for the Suns organization, but for the entire league. All of the other 29 NBA teams better watch out because Mat’s a winner!” Johnson said.
Ishbia, the CEO of Michigan-based company United Wholesale Mortgage, played college basketball at Michigan State from 1998 to ’02. His purchase—if completed at around $4 billion—would become the highest sale ever of a franchise, topping Joe Tsai’s 2019 purchase of the Nets for $2.35 billion.
In September, Sarver announced he would sell the Suns and Mercury after being fined $10 million and suspended for one year following a league investigation into workplace misconduct. ESPN reported in November 2021 accounts from more than 70 current and former Suns employees that accused Sarver’s workplace of being both racist and misogynistic. The NBA opened its investigation shortly after the report’s publication.
The investigation found that Sarver had used the n-word at least five times “when recounting the statements of others” during his time with both teams. It also discovered he acted inappropriately toward employees.
