SEATTLE — For nearly two decades, Howard Schultz watched the Seattle SuperSonics through the eyes of a fan.
That will change tonight when the Sonics play at home against Vancouver in a game that will be his first as the team's new owner.
Barry Ackerley called it a "bittersweet" day for his family as he turned over ownership of the team Thursday to a local investment group headed by Schultz, chairman and chief global strategist of Starbucks Corp., the Seattle-based coffee chain.
The Ackerley Group announced it was selling the Sonics for $200 million to Schultz and four others. The transaction also includes the WNBA's Seattle Storm. The sale is expected to be final by the end of the first quarter of this year.
"I'm a fan at heart," Schultz said, sporting a huge grin during a standing-room-only news conference.
He doesn't plan to make major changes right away. He said he will take time to learn how to best operate an NBA franchise.
"I realize the challenges of winning a basketball game," he said. "Any time you try to do something like this, you are best served when you know more about it than you did when you started."
Schultz is a lifelong basketball fan who grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y., cheering for the Knicks. Once during high school, he said, he waited all night for tickets.
Schultz has held Sonics season tickets since he moved to the city in 1982, and plays basketball every Sunday.
He said he vividly recalls a Sonics victory in the 1996 Western Conference finals over the Utah Jazz in which no one wanted to leave the arena, neither players nor fans. The Sonics lost to the Chicago Bulls in six games in the NBA Finals that season.
"I will never forget that day," he said of the victory over the Jazz. "It was a beacon in my life. I want to bring that back."
Besides Schultz, the buyout group includes Wally Walker, team president and general manager. Schultz said the other investors will not be identified until after the NBA Board of Governors approves the sale. The board's next meeting is scheduled for March 29-30.
Forbes magazine listed the Sonics' value at $187 million in a recent ranking of NBA franchises.
It's the first sale of an NBA franchise since Mark Cuban bought the Dallas Mavericks last year for $280 million.
"For me and my family, this is a dream come true," Schultz said. "I never thought something like this would happen to someone like me. I was born on the other side of the tracks, but only in America. I'm really excited."
Ackerley said one of his group's main priorities was to find a strong local ownership committed to keeping an NBA franchise in the city.
Schultz said he will be an involved and visible owner, but will leave basketball operations to Walker.