Kings sold to group led by India's Ranadive

A group led by software magnate Vivek Ranadive of India has purchased the NBA's Sacramento Kings and will keep the team in the California capital, the city's mayor confirmed on Friday.

Mayor Kevin Johnson, himself a former NBA player, announced that a deal had been signed to keep the club in Sacramento - a contract that includes a new 18,500-seat downtown arena as part of the lure to prevent a move to Seattle.

"It's about jobs and it's about revitalizing downtown," Johnson said of the deal and the planned new $447 million venue. "It's about civic pride. It's about not letting somebody take something that isn't theirs."

The Maloof family had made a deal to sell the club to a group that would have moved it to Seattle, but league owners voted 22-8 to reject that deal on Wednesday, setting the stage for the sale to Ranadive's group for a record sum.

Reports by the Sacramento Bee, USA Today and NBA telecasters Turner Sports and ESPN said the group would buy 65 percent controlling interest in the Kings for a record NBA club valuation of $535 million.

That would mean Ranadive's group would spend $347 million for the Kings in a a deal expected to be officially announced next week by the NBA.

"It's going to be exciting," Ranadive told USA Today. "We're going to build a global brand with the Kings. We're going to give the fans the product they deserve. There's a lot of work to be done."

Ranadive becomes the first NBA owner of Indian heritage at a time when the league has made moves to try and grow interest in basketball among the 1.2 billion people in cricket-loving India.

"I am a huge fan," Ranadive said. "I'm going to be there at all the games, be there to support the team in every way."

As part of the deal, Ranadive must sell his minority interest in the NBA's Golden State Warriors.