Stad takes controlling stake in NBA’s Timberwolves, WNBA’s LynxShams Charania
American businessman Marc Stad has completed a deal to become the controlling owner and largest shareholder of the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves and the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx by buying the majority of co-owner Marc Lore’s stake in the two franchises.
The deal is valued at $4.5 billion, sources told ESPN.
Lore will retain a minority investment in the teams, while co-owner Alex Rodriguez has decided to increase his equity stake, the former MLB star revealed Friday, though it is not clear exactly how large Rodriguez’s or Lore’s shares will be at this time.
Lore decided to take a step back from his co-owner and co-chairman role to focus on the IPO push for his food tech company, the Wonder Group, over the next calendar year, believing changing ownership seats with Stad gave the Timberwolves the best opportunity for continued success.
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Stad, the founder and managing partner of Dragoneer Investment Group, had been a significant minority investor in the Timberwolves and Lynx under the ownership group of Lore and Rodriguez. Sources reported the transfer of ownership developed after months of conversations and allowed Stad, Rodriguez and Lore to continue working together and maintain the current leadership structures of the Timberwolves and the Lynx, including Timberwolves president Tim Connelly, general manager Matt Lloyd and coach Chris Finch and Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve, who also serves as the Lynx’s president of basketball operations.
“We have been working together for years with a shared goal of building the Timberwolves and Lynx into the best organization in basketball on and off the floor,” read a joint statement from Stad, Rodriguez and Lore issued Friday. “Our priority is and always will be championships. Our new agreement, pending league approval, is an evolution of the partnership we have built together and strengthening of our commitment to our team and our culture.
“While we’re proud of the great work we’ve done, there’s so much more to do and we’re just getting started.”
The NBA’s board of governors are set to meet Sept. 15-16, at which time the league is expected to approve the deal.
In a post on X, Rodriguez reported that being part of the Timberwolves and Lynx ownership group has been one of the “great joys” of his professional life, adding that he feels “energized” by Friday’s developments.
One of the great joys I’ve had in my career is spending the last few years helping build the Timberwolves and Lynx with my friend and partner Marc Lore. I’m very excited to announce that this incredible journey reaches a new level today. Marc and Elisa Stad, who have been our…
— Alex Rodriguez (@AROD) August 21, 2026
The $4.5 billion valuation puts the Timberwolves fourth on the list of largest franchise sales in NBA history, behind only the $6.1 billion sale of the Boston Celtics in 2025 and the two sales of the Los Angeles Lakers in the past year, which valued the team first at $10 billion and now at $12.5 billion.
Stad’s wife, Elisa Stad, will serve as the Timberwolves governor as Marc Stad continues as managing partner for Dragoneer. Rodriguez will continue to serve as alternate governor for the Timberwolves and governor of the Lynx under the new arrangement. Elisa Stad co-founded University of California, San Francisco’s Stad Center for Pediatric Pain, Palliative & Integrative Medicine after a two-decade career building global consumer brands.
Marc Stad founded Dragoneer in 2012 and built the firm into one of the largest growth investment companies, which now manages over $35 billion in capital, according to Forbes. He also joined the original ownership group in the NHL’s Seattle Kraken in 2018 as a minority shareholder, holding close relationships with owner Samantha Holloway and her father, the late David Bonderman.
Lore and Rodriguez bought into the Timberwolves in 2021 at a $1.5 billion valuation, with an agreement to eventually purchase the team in full from previous owner Glen Taylor, who later tried to stop the transfer of the team. Lore and Rodriguez officially took full control in June 2025, and re-upped their commitment to keeping the franchise in Minnesota. However, the Target Center is the second-oldest building in the NBA (behind only Madison Square Garden), and ownership has been working with the city of Minneapolis on plans for a new arena.
The Timberwolves have reached the playoffs in each of the five seasons since Lore and Rodriguez bought into the team, advancing beyond the first round in each of the past three seasons. Lore and Rodriguez went into the luxury tax in both 2024-25 and 2025-26 as the Wolves proved to be a contender in the Western Conference. Before the Lore-Rodriguez era, the Timberwolves had won only two playoff series in franchise history, both in 2004. They’ve won five playoff series this decade, advancing to the conference finals in both 2024 and 2025.
This offseason, after Minnesota took a step back and was eliminated in the conference semifinals, ownership empowered Connelly to make a big trade for Charlotte Hornets star LaMelo Ball, creating an All-Star backcourt with Ball and Anthony Edwards. Minnesota was also one of four finalists for all-time leading scorer LeBron James, who chose to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers for the same minimum salary Minnesota could have offered. The Timberwolves are projected to be a taxpaying team again this season for the third straight year.
The Lynx have consistently been among the league’s best under Reeve, their longtime coach, who has guided the club to four WNBA titles. This season, behind Napheesa Collier, Kayla McBride and rookie MVP candidate Olivia Miles, the Lynx have the best record in the WNBA (30-7).
Minnesota is the first team in WNBA history to reach 30 wins in three straight seasons, according to ESPN Research, and the Lynx are 15-1 in their past 16 games. Miles has the second-shortest odds to win MVP at +900 behind the heavily favored A’ja Wilson at -1000. Miles is the second rookie in league history with 600 points and 200 assists in a season, joining the Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark (2024), according to ESPN Research.
