Mr. Prime Minister?
Finally some eyebrow-raising news from an NBA franchise that doesn’t involve Chris Paul or Dwight Howard trade rumors… Mikhail Prokhorov, the extremely wealthy owner of the New Jersey and soon to be Brooklyn Nets apparently is planning to run for Prime Minister of Russia in next year’s election. Here are some details, per CBS News:
[Mikhail] Prokhorov said Monday he will run against Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in the March presidential election.
Prokhorov has been cautious not to cross Putin’s path in the past, but the billionaire may pose a serious challenge to Putin, whose authority has been dented by alleged widespread fraud during Russia’s Dec. 4 parliamentary election.
It will be interesting to see, if elected, how his political responsibilities impact Prokhorov’s involvement with the Nets. Prokhorov purchased the Nets in May 2010 and holds an 80% stake in the franchise, as well as 45% in the new Barclay Center, where the Nets will be moving to in 2012. Prokhorov is the first non-American NBA owner and tallest at 6’8″ (random).
Despite struggles on the court of late, the Nets have been active in player movement, trading for Deron Williams last season and are said to be in hot pursuit of all-star center Dwight Howard. In 2010 Forbes ranked Prokhorov as the 39th wealthiest man in the world with an estimated fortune of $18 billion. Must be nice.
-ALR
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