Will Smith becomes part owner of Philadelphia 76ers

Source : NBA.com/sixers

Philadelphia, PA – October 18, 2011 – The purchase of the Philadelphia 76ers from Comcast-Spectacor by a group led by Joshua Harris was completed yesterday after having been approved by the National Basketball Association’s Board of Governors.

“My partners and I are thrilled to have become owners of the Sixers,” said Harris. “It is an honor to be a part of this storied franchise – we have a lot of work to do but we have a rich history, a strong foundation and a bright future. My partners and I want to thank Ed Snider and the Comcast-Spectacor team for all their efforts to make this outcome possible. As we move forward, we want to build on the team’s momentum and be world class and cutting edge in everything we do.”

The new owners have named Adam Aron, a native Philadelphian and the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Vail Resorts, Chief Executive Officer of the Philadelphia 76ers.

“Adam is a superb executive with deep and broad experience, and we are very pleased he will be returning to Philadelphia as CEO of the Sixers and a member of our ownership group,” Harris said. “Adam and I both have strong ties to the Delaware Valley, and we are committed to providing an exciting, high-quality experience to the great fans in Philadelphia in the years ahead.”

“Being named CEO of the Philadelphia 76ers is truly a dream come true. Having grown up in Abington, I have always been a fan of this team,” said Aron. “I’m excited about celebrating and building on the extraordinary heritage of the 76ers, the third winningest team in NBA history. We will work tirelessly to make Philadelphia sports fans proud.”

The investor group is led by Harris, who will serve as Managing Owner of the 76ers and as the team’s Governor on the NBA Board of Governors. Other investors include David Blitzer, who will serve as Co-Managing Owner and an Alternate Governor of the NBA, CEO Adam Aron who will also serve as an Alternate Governor of the NBA, Martin Geller, David Heller, Travis Hennings, James Lassiter, Marc Leder, Jason Levien, Michael Rubin, Will Smith & Jada Pinkett Smith, Handy Soetedjo, Erick Thohir and Art Wrubel, all of whom have made personal investments in the team.
About Josh Harris

Joshua Harris, 46, is Managing Partner of Apollo Management, L.P. which he co-founded in 1990. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and received his MBA from the Harvard Business School where he was named a Baker and Loeb Scholar. Among other civic activities, Harris serves as a member of The Federal Reserve Bank of New York Investors Advisory Committee on Financial Markets and the Undergraduate Executive Board of The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.