Naren Gupta, Silicon Valley-based co-founder of venture capital firm Nexus Venture Partners, has joined a team of new investors who have made a counterbid to buy American basketball team Sacramento Kings, which is part of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
The development was first by Sacramento Bee.
Gupta joins Vivek Ranadivé, founder and CEO of cloud computing company TIBCO Software Inc who is leading the counterbid. Ranadive is also co-owner and vice chairman of the Golden State Warriors, basketball team based in Oakland, California which is also part of NBA.
Gupta, who also serves on the board of Ranadivé’s TIBCO, declined to comment to a VCCircle questionnaire on his interest in Sacramento Kings and the proposed personal investment.
Others who are part of the rival bid include former Apple executive Andy Miller, 24-Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov, the Jacobs Family of wireless tech company Qualcomm, Sacramento developer Mark Friedman and former Facebook executive Chris Kelly.
Sacramento Kings is currently controlled by the Maloof family. Seattle investor Chris Hansen has offered to buy 65 per cent of Maloofs for $341 million and a few days back raise the offer to $357 million.
It is not the first time an Indian individual or business group has evinced interest in snapping a sports club outside India. Earlier, Venkateshwara Hatcheries had acquired English soccer club Blackburn Rovers.
