Hoops

Kestelman looking to sell majority of United stake

Let's hope his real estate business is going gang busters.
Prahan Isn't it?

"
LK "doing the right thing" would have been divesting his Melbourne interest before taking over the league.

"

Oh, you mean back when no one would have bought it because there may not have been a league the season after?

Fantastic idea!

"LK doing the right thing. Can't see how you can’t respect this guy."
So this would be one of the same posters who swore that LK was no longer involved in Melbourne.

LK "doing the right thing" would have been divesting his Melbourne interest before taking over the league.

I bid 2 shillings for the Bullets.

The Kings people are unhappy with their hands in the pockets all the time. Maybe they should sell for $8mill.

Cairns and Perth are two I know of that turn a profit

Investor is probably not the most accurate description. Most people that can entertain buying a sports club are usually savvy enough to know that there is almost no ROI. At best its a tax offset.

Are there enough buyers in Oz?

Hell, if he were willing to give it away for half that I'd be interested. They're going to be the benchmark team in the league for the foreseeable future and will become profitable

I think it'd be crazy to buy in now too. But Melbourne is big and (at present) has one NBL team. Maybe the intersection of basketball and Melbourne is a reasonable enough size that you're bound to get wealthy and keen people who aren't very fussy about $500k.

I'd also be interested to see the calculations and find out how the $10 million figure was arrived at.

Business valuations differ depending on industry and a variety of factors, but typically there's some kind of "Times earnings" approach somewhere.

As stated above, if they aren't making a profit then really- what are they worth?

If you had $30 million in the bank, would you spend $10 million buying a business that was just breaking even?

Look, I don't want to sound pessimistic but the reality is sports rely on people like LK who are doing it for the love.

Most AFL clubs make profits- but often this is due to other business interests such as pokies.

Most NRL clubs lose money. Most A League clubs lose money.

I'm just hoping LK stays on for as long as possible.

Uh, I doubt that very much, particularly if packaging at a loss to secure NBL season coverage.

Quote from LK in that article about the profitability of Melbourne:

"I am looking for some savvy business people to buy 5 per cent each of the team, so we can have a good collection of people that know business and think about this as a business proposition as well. We have got it to the stage where [it] is a break-even proposition and I think those that come in will be able to take it to the next level and have a profitable team that ends up being a good investment for them as well."

Note that he says "I am looking for some savvy business people to buy 5% each" - so he's not expecting some individual to drop 10 mil.

He also says about United "We have got it to the stage where it is a break-even proposition" - which to me is a slight worry considering their great crowds and success this season.

Larry keeps his stake in United = people bitch and moan

Larry wants to sell his stake in United = people bitch and moan

Can't please all the people all the time...

I can definitely see where you're coming from with the knife edge, Isaac, and I'm usually a glass half empty sort of person, but you'd think that after everything LK has sunk in and the effort he's putting in still, that he's got at least another season in him, especially if he can sell his stake in United and remove the conflict of interest with them (I think the league being in control of the Bullets is a different kettle of fish, as without them that would mean no Bullets) then that will open up the door for expansion...

He's doing the right thing and I hope it all works out... Putting a public number on it could be dangerous, and I agree that his ability to sell United could be the key to whether he stays and commits more time and money, or he pulls the plug...

Bet he thought he could do this a few years ago but things weren't going to plan. Probably why the soft cap/ fund redistribution was shelved. Build up United with an unfair advantage then sell when they're on top. The fund redistribution would have helped out too many other teams.

Jack Toft, please tell me where you can get 5% interest on term deposit, I'd love to invest

1. He has spent a shit load, to pull out now would be dumb business going by the numbers thrown around.

I wish I could win a big lotto and then I could fathom how much $30m is... I could even buy that V8 commodore that was advertised on here

he believes could value United about $10 million.

BUT WHAT ABOUT THE MEMERS COMPLAINING ABOUT OMG LK ONLY WANTS HIS OWN CLUB TO WIN WTF RIGGED NBL!!

It’s almost like he actually is trying to rebuild the league into the powerhouse it once was.

I wonder if this is the knife edge. Could quite feasibly go one of two ways:

1. He sells which removes the governance concern, an AFL club buys in with Bogut, the co-opted Boomers/NBA TV deal underpins all NBL clubs long enough for them to galvanise and take the next step league-wide.

2. He's overspent more than he expected he'd need to, the Melbourne sale doesn't go quite as hoped, the Brisbane sale not at all, winning a championship deadens some level of his interest, the league continues to struggle in a competitive media/sponsorship landscape. Drop the spending, and they're overwhelmed on many sides - broadcast/personalities, 3x3, merchandise, etc - that sort of stuff can't be maintained on the cheap with the polish they've put in.

Unfortunately, the linchpin is probably the United championship and it can exert pressure on either side of the knife. Gives him confidence to sell, or gives him an excuse to bail.

This has always been the risk. Hopefully it pays off.

Anonymous
Within the hour
21:03 8 Apr 18

hey Hey HEY !, no need to be aggressive and un-hip - , can i get the hook back - I think you took it along with the bait and all :(

PS: you forgot to count the $750 rego cost, so its actually a four figue loss in total - but then you are anonymous lol

I need to slightly correct myself Boti said "close to" $30 million.

On May 28, 2015, Larry Kestelman’s initial $6million commitment to save and restore the NBL to previous prominence and then beyond, was revealed nationwide.

(By now the league’s “executive director” has put in close to five times that amount.)

No mate if you sell your shitty commodore for $400 (after paying too much for it in the first place)and then spending money of RW tyres you actually haven't even sold it yet. You can't extrapolate that into a 200% profit either, cos even without the tyres it's still only 100% profit on a turd.

nah ... i'm all for it, got my V8 commodore for $200 off gum-tree last year , now that I've put almost roadworthy tyres on it and registered it , its worth $400 ..... now thats a 200% profit ! Eat that LK !

Very convenient title should help the sale along.

LK = Legend

Some interesting info regarding the TV package they're trying to sell. Packaging the NBL coverage with the 2 Boomers vs USA games is a clever idea.

Also interesting to see the mention of a 43% increase in "cumulative TV audience" for this season over last. Would that be the addition of the SBS and ABC coverage? Were they both additions this season?

BTW, the Foxtel ratings for Game 5 of the GF series were 49,000. Another good figure after the 53,000 for game 2 I think. So the cumulative number for Foxtel across the 5 games would be over 200,000. I don't know what SBS and ABC got but I expect it would be of the same order. Add in NBL TV and you'd be approaching half a million across the five games.

Boti said in a post recently that LK has spent $30+ million on the NBL.

I hope without the connection to Tigers/United LK still continues to invest in the league as he's done an outstanding job thus far.

Very convenient title should help the sale along.

He's currently in Slovakia with BK SPU Bemaco Nitraand he seems to be doing very nicely for himself.
13.1 ppg
7.8 rpg
1.2 ast
2.6 bpg
0.8 spg
all in 25 minutes a game. He average 3 turnovers and 3 fouls a game, but this is still some very nice stuff for the Lakers draftee. Pity he didn't have an out clause to at least go to the Lakers training camp. Maybe next season he might be able to scrap into the 14th or 15th spot, the Lakers are apparently quite impressed with his form so far.