http://www.newsday.com/sports/basketball/knicks/ny-spkbuy224523858nov22,0,3936914.story?coll=ny-knicks-print
looks like we're stuck with Uncle Jimmy for awhile
BY NEIL BEST
STAFF WRITER
November 22, 2005
Might the Knicks and Rangers be sold?
Not anytime soon, a Cablevision spokeswoman indicated last night, reacting to a report on The Wall Street Journal's Web site that an investment group offered to buy the teams for $700 million in cash.
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"We have no plans to sell the Knicks and Rangers, and the inquiry did not look credible to us," the spokeswoman said.
The offer initially was made in a letter dated Oct. 18 from a group headed by Russell Glass, a former associate of the financier Carl Icahn and a past adviser to the Spanos family, which owns the San Diego Chargers, the Journal reported.
The group's offer also included a bid for Madison Square Garden itself at an unspecified price.
Much has changed since Oct. 18, though. At the time, the Dolan family, which controls Cablevision, was exploring turning the cable entities into a private company and spinning off the Garden, Knicks and Rangers into a separate public company.
The company withdrew that offer Oct. 25, likely making Glass' letter moot, although according to the Journal, the offer still stands. Glass' prospective partners were not identified, but they do not include Icahn or Spanos, the Journal said.
Estimates of the value of the Knicks and Rangers vary widely, but the combined total of $700 million appears to be in the approximate ballpark, if a tad on the low side. Each team has struggled competitively in recent seasons.
11/22/2005 11:34 AM
