Celtics agree to sell team to William Chisholm for $6.1 billion

BOSTON — The Celtics will soon be under new ownership.

A group led by William Chisholm has agreed to purchase Boston’s iconic NBA franchise from the Grousbeck family for $6.1 billion, a source told the Boston Herald on Thursday.

The team expects to finalize the sale, which is pending a review by the NBA Board of Governors, in late June or early July. If confirmed, it will be the highest price ever paid for an American professional sports franchise, shattering the previous NBA record of $4 billion held by Mat Ishbia’s Phoenix Suns.

Wyc Grousbeck, the face of the Celtics’ ownership group since Boston Basketball Partners LLC purchased the team for $360 million in 2002, plans to remain in his roles as team CEO and governor through the 2027-28 season.

Chisholm, a Georgetown, Mass., native and Dartmouth College graduate, is the co-founder, managing partner and chief investment officer at Symphony Technology Group, a private equity firm based in California. He will work alongside Grousbeck before taking control of the franchise’s operations in 2028.

“Bill is a terrific person and a true Celtics fan, born and raised here in the Boston area,” Grousbeck said in a statement. “His love for the team and the city of Boston, along with his chemistry with the rest of the Celtics leadership, make him a natural choice to be the next Governor and controlling owner of the team. I know he appreciates the importance of the Celtics and burns with a passion to win on the court while being totally committed to the community. Quite simply, he wants to be a great owner. He has asked me to run the team as CEO and Governor for the first three years, and stay on as his partner, and I am glad to do so.”

In a statement, Chisholm said he has “been a die-hard Celtics fan my entire life.”

“I understand how important the Celtics are to the city of Boston — the role the team plays in the community is different than any other city in the country,” Chisholm said. “I also understand that there is a responsibility as a leader of the organization to the people of Boston, and I am up for this challenge.”

He continued: “My partners and I have immense respect for Wyc, the entire Grousbeck family and their indelible contributions to the Celtics organization over the last 23 years. We look forward to learning from Wyc and partnering with Brad Stevens, Joe Mazzulla and the talented team and staff to build upon their success as we work to bring more championships home to Boston.”

Also included in the Chisholm-led ownership consortium are Robert Hale, a current member of the Celtics’ board of directors, and Bruce A. Beal, Jr., the president of Related Companies. The group emerged from a reported collection of bidding finalists that included current Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca, Philadelphia Phillies minority owner Stan Middleman and The Friedkin Group.

Pagliuca released a statement after news of the pending sale broke, saying he “worked tirelessly to put together a strong bid” and was “saddened” that his offer to buy the team was not selected.

“We made a fully guaranteed and financed offer at a record price, befitting the best sports fans in the world, and with all the capital coming from individuals who are fully committed to winning on and off the court,” the statement read. “We had no debt or private equity money that would potentially hamstring our ability to compete in the future. We have felt it was the best offer for the Celtics. It is a bid of true fans, deeply connected to Boston’s community, and we’ve been saddened to find out that we have not been selected in the process. …

“I will never stop being a Celtic, and if the announced transaction does not end up being finalized, my partners and I are ready to check back into the game and bring it home, to help continue what the Celtics do best — win.”

The Celtics have been one of the NBA’s most successful franchises during the Grousbecks’ ownership tenure, reaching four NBA Finals, winning two championships and ranking second in the league in total wins behind the San Antonio Spurs.

Weeks after the Celtics won their most recent NBA title, in a five-game series victory over the Dallas Mavericks last June, the Grousbeck family announced it was selling its majority stake in the franchise for “estate and family planning considerations.”

It’s unclear what impact, if any, the transition to Chisholm will have on Boston’s payroll plans for next season, when the Celtics’ roster is projected to cost close to $500 million between salaries and luxury tax penalties. All five Celtics starters — including the owners of the two most lucrative contracts in NBA history, All-Stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown — and core reserves Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser are under contract through at least the 2025-26 campaign.

Tatum is signed through 2029-30, including a $71.4 million player option. Brown is signed through 2028-29. Starting guards Jrue Holiday and Derrick White are locked up through ’27-28 and ’28-29, respectively, including player options. Those four players, plus starting center Kristaps Porzingis, are set to earn $198.5 million in combined salary next season.

With that star-studded roster, Boston is looking to become the first team since 2018 to repeat as NBA champions. It currently owns the league’s third-best record and likely will enter the playoffs as the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference behind the Cleveland Cavaliers. Most prominent sportsbooks give the Celtics the second-best championship odds behind West-leading Oklahoma City.