In what may be one of the more surprising bits of news to come out of Chicago sports this year, Chicago Bulls and White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf has agreed to a deal that will see his ownership in the White Sox change over the next decade.

On Thursday, the Chicago White Sox would announce a long-term ownership agreement with billionaire investor Justin Ishbia, part-owner of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury alongside his brother, Mat Ishbia.

The “long-term investing agreement” will see Ishbia invest in the team and pay down team debt over the next couple of seasons, and gives Reinsdorf the option to sell his majority stake in the team to Ishbia, who currently owns a minority stake, as early as 2029 and as late as 2033. After 2034, Ishbia will have the option to “acquire the controlling interest” of the team. Other minority owners would be able to sell their stakes to Ishbia once he has majority ownership.

This would be the first major shake-up for the White Sox in nearly half a century. Reinsdorf purchased the White Sox in 1981 for $19 million before purchasing the Bulls in 1985 for $16 million. The White Sox would win one World Series in 2005 with Reinsdorf as owner.

Jerry Reinsdorf’s deal to sell the White Sox poses more questions than answers

With this agreement being announced for the White Sox, there are questions about whether a similar agreement could be made for the Bulls. With the Bulls being one of the most well-known organizations and having the history they do, it is estimated that Reinsdorf has made over $1 billion from the Bulls alone. Given that history, Forbes estimates the value of the Bulls at over $5 billion, over 500 times more than what Reinsdorf paid for the team in 1985.

Even though it’s possible that this could happen, Justin Ishbia would not be allowed to be involved as the NBA does not allow dual ownership. While the NBA allows for institutional investors and private equity firms to own stakes in multiple teams, they are limited and cannot maintain full ownership. Families are not allowed to own more than one team in the NBA as it prevents fair competition as a conflict of interest.

For years, it has been speculated that the Bulls will remain in the hands of the Reinsdorf family, with Jerry being chairman of the team and his son, Michael, overseeing the team’s operations, as he’s done the last 15 years. The Reinsdorfs have been criticized for the lack of spending over the years, given that Chicago is one of the bigger markets in the league. The Bulls have only paid the luxury tax once for the 2012-13 season. Because of this, Chicago is far from the free-agent destination it should be.

In recent years, Bulls Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, Arturas Karnisovas, has said that the Reinsdorfs would be willing to go into the luxury tax for a championship-contending team. Yet, after the great start to the 2021-22 season, they wouldn’t dip into the tax, instead choosing to cut costs to avoid it.

The Reinsdorfs have also been criticized for pushing the team to compete for the play-in tournament over recent years instead of tanking, choosing a playoff-esque game for revenue over the franchise’s future. The NBA has seen numerous ownership changes over the last handful of years as investors and private equity firms have purchased the teams as valuations have risen.

In the last five seasons, the Charlotte Hornets, Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Boston Celtics have all been sold, with the Portland Trailblazers currently up for sale. If the Bulls were ever to be sold, one would expect the team to be bought by an owner hellbent on returning Chicago to its championship-level pedigree. Still, for now, the Reinsdorfs remain majority owners of the Bulls, even as Jerry begins the transition away from his ownership of the White Sox.