The NBA Board of Governors on March 12 approved the transfer of ownership of the Atlanta Hawks to Atlanta Spirit LLC. Approval by the NBA clears the way for Time Warner to sell the Hawks to the Atlanta-based partnership.
Principal owners of Atlanta Spirit LLC are Steven Belkin, Todd Foreman, J. Michael Gearon, Jr., J. Michael Gearon, Sr., Bruce Levenson, Ed Peskowitz, Bud Seretean, J. Rutherford Seydel, II and Beau Turner.
"We are thrilled to be approved as owners by the NBA," said Spirit partner and Atlanta businessman J. Michael Gearon, Jr., "As a Hawks fan for over 30 years, for me, this is a childhood dream come true. We want to especially thank David Stern and the league's board of governors for their support in this process.
"We are also pleased that we can now focus our full attention on obtaining the approvals from the NHL, which we are optimistic will occur soon. We want our fans to know that we appreciate their patience as we aggressively pursued operating rights to the two teams and Philips Arena."