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Former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg is joining a contentious battle for control of the National Basketball Association’s Minnesota Timberwolves, extending his interests in sports ownership and adding deep-pocketed support for the franchise.

Bloomberg is joining a faction of Wolves minority owners, the ecommerce entrepreneur Marc Lore and retired baseball star Alex Rodriguez, a spokesman for the two said. Lore and Rodriguez are in a dispute with Wolves majority owner Glen Taylor over control of the team and its sister franchise, the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx, for which they signed a 2021 contract to buy from Taylor for $1.5bn. 

The exact size of Bloomberg’s share could not immediately be determined. Earlier this year, he joined a group led by Carlyle Group founder David Rubenstein to acquire baseball’s Baltimore Orioles for $1.73bn. 

A spokesman for the Timberwolves declined to comment and a spokesman for Taylor did not immediately respond to a request for comment. News of Bloomberg’s affiliation with Lore and Rodriguez was earlier reported by The Athletic.

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