Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor has filed legal documentation responding to a complaint filed recently by minority shareholder Meyer Orbach, writes Chris Hine of the Star Tribune. Orbach, who says he owns approximately 17% of the franchise, argued that his “tag-along rights” were violated, since he didn’t get the opportunity to cash out his stake in the team when the sale agreement with Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore was finalized.
Taylor contends that Orbach is not entitled to be bought out at this point because Rodriguez and Lore won’t assume majority control of the Timberwolves for two more years. For now, the duo has only agreed to purchase 20% of the club — full majority control will be subject to further investment and further league approval over the next two years.
While the legal battle between Taylor and Orbach may ultimately have little to no impact on Timberwolves fans, Dane Moore of Blue Wire Podcasts (Twitter link) points to an Instagram comment that made be of more interest to fans in Minnesota.
As Moore writes, Rodriguez replied to a comment asking him to keep the Timberwolves in Minnesota by replying, “We will!” There has been speculation that the new ownership group might want to relocate the franchise, but A-Rod’s first public statement on the topic suggests that’s not the plan.
Here’s more from around the Northwest:
- Jazz point guard Mike Conley, who has yet to play in the second round due to a mild right hamstring strain, is “making progress” but remains day-to-day, head coach Quin Snyder said on Monday, per Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link). While Utah could still conceivably win the series if Conley remains unavailable, the last couple games have showed how much the team misses its starting point guard, writes Tony Jones of The Athletic.
- Trail Blazers center Enes Kanter said during a Monday appearance on SiriusXM Radio that he’d be surprised if Damian Lillard decides he wants to leave Portland, as Marc Berman of the New York Post relays. “He wants to win it all in Portland. I’m saying this every time I talk about him, but he’s definitely one of the most loyal and maybe the most loyal player in the league,” Kanter said. “… He doesn’t care about the big market, big-city base, and that he wants to just bring a championship to Portland and the state of Oregon.”
- With Michael Porter Jr. up for a rookie scale extension this offseason, Mark Kiszla and Mike Singer of the Denver Post discuss whether the Nuggets should be comfortable putting a maximum-salary offer on the table for the 22-year-old forward.
More must-reads: