Atlanta Hawks Sale Rumors: Latest News, Speculation on Potential New Owners

The Atlanta Hawks have succeeded on the court despite uncertainty with ownership and where the team may end up in the future. 

Continue for updates. 

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ESPN: New Bidder In the Mix

Wednesday, Mar. 4

According to ESPN's Marc Stein, Lionsgate Entertainment chairman Mark Rachesky has thrown his hat in the ring to buy the Hawks:

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Sources told ESPN.com that Rachesky, ‎who heads the investment firm MHR Fund Management, is a close associate of Atlanta Braves controlling owner John Malone, which is said to have sparked Rachesky's interest in the Hawks.

‎Rachesky is not known to have previously expressed interest in purchasing a sports franchise, but he is regarded as a protégé of activist investor Carl Icahn and brought Malone onto the Lionsgate board last month.

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Also of note in Stein's report, citing sources, Rachesky could go the same route as Malone did with the Braves and try to move the team "out of its downtown Philips Arena home to an Atlanta suburb." It also states that the Hawks' current ownership group will start having meetings "with groups that have made nonbinding bids" for the franchise. 

The Hawks have been on the market for two months, though ESPN's Bill Simmons reported around the same time that two bidders were planning to buy the team with the intent of making a move to Seattle:

It's unclear what the immediate future for the Hawks in Atlanta will be. Rachesky sounds like he would be interested in keeping the team in its current location with a new home, though they still rank 19th in average home attendance this season despite owning the league's best record. 

That may not give Rachesky leverage if he wants to build a new stadium, but that's a long way down the road. The Hawks have to get sold first, something that sounds like may be happening soon if the current ownership group starts meeting directly with prospective buyers.