Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is part of a team hoping to move the NBA"s Sacramento Kings to Seattle.
Microsoft has issued a response to a California state senator who made a thinly veiled threat about looking into the company"s deals with California and the city of Sacramento after it was revealed a group including Steve Ballmer plan to move the NBA"s Sacramento Kings to Seattle.
In response to Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg"s letter to Fred Klass, director of the California Department of General Services, Microsoft told the Sacramento Bee that it"s not involved in the sale or relocation of the Kings. Steinberg"s letter said it was strange that the head of a company with significant business deals with the state of California would move a California sports team to another state.
A Microsoft representative said the company has no involvement in the sale or move and that Ballmer"s involvement is a private matter, not one involving the company.
"The effort to build a new professional sports arena in Seattle was initiated and is led by San Francisco-based developer, Chris Hansen, who has announced a number of investors, including Steve Ballmer," a Microsoft spokeswoman told the Sacramento Bee. "Microsoft Corporation is not involved in the effort."
While the sale is far from complete, the NBA"s board of governors will likely vote on the matter in April. If the bid is accepted, it would pave the way for the team"s move to Seattle. The only major roadblock the group faces is the news of a potential rival group that may make a more lucrative offer.
Source: Sacramento Bee | Image via Microsoft