Two Phoenix Suns minority owners have renewed legal action against majority owner Mat Ishbia, alleging earlier this week that he has been treating the franchise as his “personal piggy bank” and operating it for the benefit of his other businesses. The filing marks the latest development in an ongoing ownership dispute that has persisted since Ishbia acquired the team in 2023 from former majority stakeholder Robert Sarver.
The suit has been brought by Arizona-based real estate businessman Scott Seldin and former professional tennis player Andy Kohlberg, both of whom remained as minority owners after the earlier ownership transfer. They originally sued the franchise about three months ago, alleging that Ishbia had withheld access to internal records and deliberately missed a capital call deadline in the past year as a tactic to pressure and dilute their ownership stakes.
Ishbia responded with a countersuit in October, which led the minority owners to withdraw their initial case a few days later. However, they have now refiled with fresh allegations centred on breaches of contract and fiduciary duty. In the latest filing, they stated that Ishbia appeared to be operating the Suns to serve his own interests, including those connected to his mortgage business, United Wholesale Mortgage, and that several conflicted transactions had been undertaken without full visibility.
The dispute over the missed capital call remains central to the case. Seldin and Kohlberg argued that Ishbia had attempted to dilute their holdings by imposing a rapid funding deadline, but ended up failing to meet the same obligation himself. They claimed this failure could have exposed him to significant dilution of his own stake had it been discovered earlier, potentially jeopardising both his net worth and his eligibility to remain an NBA governor.
Ishbia, speaking through a spokesperson earlier this week, rejected the allegations and described the legal action as a coercive attempt by the minority owners. The spokesperson said that Ishbia had always been transparent about his intention to run the Suns and the Mercury differently from previous management and had committed substantial investment into the teams. They added that all investors had been informed they were free either to contribute alongside Ishbia or to exit the ownership structure.
The spokesperson also criticised Seldin and Kohlberg for resisting investment in the franchise and claimed the minority owners admitted in their own filing that such investment “made no business sense.” According to the statement, the pair could sell their shares in the open market instead of resisting Ishbia’s approach, and if they chose not to do so, they should be prepared to participate in continued investment and potentially lose the lawsuit.
The revived case deepens a conflict that has increasingly shaped the Suns’ ownership dynamics since Ishbia took charge. The dispute now extends beyond routine disagreements and into fundamental questions about transparency, shareholder rights, and modern sports-team governance. As legal proceedings progress, the tensions highlight how differing visions for franchise management can strain even established ownership structures within major professional sports.
Source – Reuters