Orange County Billionaire Still Fighting to Acquire Kings

The odds may no longer be in his favor, but Henry Samueli and his scrilla aren’t giving up on the dream of bringing the Sacramento Kings to Anaheim just yet. The Bee reports: “In a late move to land the Kings, Orange County billionaire Henry Samueli has offered to increase his personal loan to the team from $50 million to as much as $75 million, and has offered to buy a minority stake in the organization. Samueli, owner of the Anaheim Ducks hockey team, also has agreed to make far more costly improvements to Anaheim’s Honda Center, which he manages, to bring that facility up to NBA standards. Originally, Honda Center officials had planned to spend $25 million on upgrades. That figure has jumped in the last few days to $70 million, center officials said Thursday afternoon. Kings co-owner Joe Maloof declined to comment when reached Thursday evening. The move by Samueli represents a dramatic counter to recent efforts by Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, who earlier this week announced $10 million in new corporate sponsorships, should the Kings stay in Sacramento.”