Cleveland Cavaliers Owners - Gordon Gund, Ted Stepien, Nick Mileti, Dan Gilbert, Gary Gilbert (Paperback)

Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Not illustrated. Excerpt: Gordon Gund (born October 15, 1939) is the former principal owner of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, a co-owner of the San Jose Sharks NHL team, and remains the CEO of Gund Investment Corporation and a minority owner of the Cavaliers. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Gund is a member of one of Cleveland's more prominent families. He gradually began going blind in the 1960s because of the disease retinitis pigmentosa. By 1970, Gund was totally blind. As a result, during his tenure as an owner, he has never been able to see a game played by any of his teams. Gund's brother, George, held a minority interest in the California Golden Seals of the NHL. The Seals had never been able to find success either on the ice or at the box office, and after plans for a proposed new arena in San Francisco were cancelled in 1976, he convinced majority owner Mel Swig to relocate the franchise from Oakland to the Gunds' hometown in June of that year. Renamed the Barons after the popular former American Hockey League team, they played at The Coliseum in Richfield, which had been vacated by the Cleveland Crusaders of the World Hockey Association when they moved to Saint Paul, Minnesota to become the second incarnation of the Minnesota Fighting Saints. The Barons only drew 10,000 or more fans in seven out of their 40 home games. They were also troubled by an unfavorable lease with the Coliseum. In January 1977, Swig hinted the team might not finish the season because of payroll difficulties. The Barons actually missed payroll twice in a row in February, and only a $1.3 million loan allowed the Barons to finish the season. They finished last in the Adams Division, and Swig sold his interest in the team to the Gunds. The Gunds poured money into the team, ... More: http://booksllc.net/?id=1908075