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The majority owner of the Phoenix Suns insisted Tuesday that a $250 million capital call—and a second funding round issued over the summer—were executed squarely within the team’s LLC agreement, pushing back against minority investors who allege the move was designed to squeeze them out.

The dispute, now unfolding in Delaware’s Chancery Court, pits Suns Legacy Holdings LLC against minority owners Kisco WC Sports II LLC and Kent Circle Investments LLC, who claim mismanagement has plagued the franchise since billionaire Mat Ishbia purchased his controlling stake in 2023.

Majority Owner Says Capital Call Followed the Rules

In a complaint refiled with fewer redactions, Suns Legacy accuses the minority partners of fabricating a governance crisis to force an “exorbitantly priced” buyout. The organization argues Kisco and Kent bristled at the June 2 capital call, leveled accusations of fiduciary misconduct, then demanded that Ishbia purchase their shares at a premium rather than pay their portion of injected capital.

When Ishbia declined, the minority owners launched a books-and-records action, then escalated the fight into a broader mismanagement suit. Suns Legacy claims the accusations were crafted to create chaos over the franchise’s financial health—both in the courtroom and, symbolically, “on the court.”

“Defendants seek to use the overhang of this contrived legal drama to force a buyout far beyond what the market will bear,” the team asserts. The Suns are now seeking a court declaration that the June capital call was issued properly and administered lawfully.

Minority Owners Accuse Ishbia of Overspending and Misconduct

Claims of Wild Spending and Financial Decline

Kisco and Kent paint a starkly different picture. In counterclaims filed Tuesday, they argue that Ishbia has driven the company off a financial cliff through questionable transactions in which he “was on both sides,” while refusing to provide transparency.

They say Ishbia overspent on coaches and players, incurred major NBA tax penalties, and even built an expensive clubhouse for personal use—footing minority owners with their share of the bill.

Ishbia’s aggressive trades, they argue, mortgaged the Suns’ future, sacrificing valuable draft picks and revenue opportunities. And performance, they say, slipped just as fast: after years of deep playoff runs, the Suns were swept out of the first round the year after Ishbia took control.

The minority owners also claim Ishbia threatened them with punitive dilution if they failed to contribute capital within 10 days of the June raise—an ultimatum they argue was designed to boost the majority owner's stake.

Valuation Fight at Center of Bitter Feud

Quinn Emanuel’s Michael Carlinsky, counsel for the minority owners, said the valuation used in the capital call—$10 million per unit—was “artificially low” and had no relation to Ishbia’s own 2025 analysis valuing the franchise at $7 billion or more.

Carlinsky argued that Ishbia’s failure to fund under his own capital call terms should now leave his ownership stake vulnerable to drastic dilution—from 83.2% to 32.7%.

A Suns spokesperson dismissed the claims as “ridiculous,” saying the minority owners are trying to avoid investing while orchestrating a media spectacle to pressure a lucrative buyout.

Legal Teams in the Ring

• For the majority owner:
  Kevin Shannon and Jaclyn Levy (Potter Anderson & Corroon LLP)
  William Savitt, Randall Jackson, Steven Winter (Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz)
  David Marroso, Matthew Close (O’Melveny & Myers LLP)

• For the minority owners:
  Michael A. Barlow, Michael B. Carlinsky, Neil T. Phillips (Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP)