Apr 6, 2024
Mortgage billionaires Dan Gilbert and Mat Ishbia have quietly hated each other for years. The two NBA owners and Michigan natives—Gilbert bought the Cavaliers in 2005, while Ishbia bought the Suns from the disgraced Robert Sarver last year—have had an intense business rivalry for more than a decade. As recently as this week, it seemed to be just that: a fun story for the business press but nothing particularly relevant to sports fans.
On Tuesday, ESPN ran a story about the Gilbert-Ishbia feud. While it detailed a history of passive-aggressive comments from Ishbia about Gilbert’s Rocket Mortgage, the dynamic between the two men was described as “not contentious.” A Gilbert spokesperson told ESPN, “They have never met. From Dan’s perspective, there is no rivalry.”
That’s no longer the case.
Source: Front Office Sports