Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor wants to bring on a minority partner who could take over as principal owner of the team after a few years, Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press reports (via ESPN.com). The 71-year-old Taylor, who prevented a move to New Orleans when he bought it in 1994, said any such partner must commit to keeping the team in Minnesota. State lawmakers are considering a plan for what the AP report calls a "massive" renovation of the Target Center, and approval could come next week.
"I could find somebody to buy the team. That's not my problem," Taylor said. "I have to find someone that's committed to here. It's always best if it would be a Minnesotan. I'm telling you I don't know that's the way it's going to work out. I haven't had a lot of Minnesotans step up."
Taylor, who hasn't spoken to any candidates yet, says the move is partially motivated by his age, and that it's also a consideration in his unwillingness for the team to go through another rebuilding stage. He's instructed team President David Kahn to be aggressive this summer in free agency.
Taylor is also chairman of the NBA's Board of Governors and played a key role in negotiating the current CBA during the lockout. The specter of Taylor and commissioner David Stern stepping down soon, as well as the turmoil within the player's association which threatens to oust executive director Billy Hunter, means the next CBA is likely to be negotiated by new leadership on both sides.