"As long as it's not John Henry" - Boston Celtics fans react to $5.3 B owner of Super Bowl LIX team expressing interest

Bill Simmons tweeted on Sunday that Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie “is in the running to buy the Boston Celtics.” Although Lurie is now focused on the Eagles, who will appear in Super Bowl LIX, Simmons claimed that the billionaire is a “huge Celts fan.” With the first half of the Celtics sale reportedly happening early in 2025, rumors about the next owner have intensified.

Fans reacted to Simmons’ claim on X (formerly Twitter) that the $5.3 billion businessman, per Forbes, is interested in the Celtics:

“As long as it's not John Henry”

One fan said:

“Nothing against Lurie, but hopefully it’s @pagsceltics. Maybe they can combine forces??? And maybe one of them can bring an All-Star Game to Boston!”

Another fan added:

“Expectation, Jeffrey Lurie. Reality, John Henry”

@TitosFishTacos continued:

“Much rather Lurie than FSG”

@lnjbwtz echoed the same sentiments:

“I trust Lurie a helluva lot more than I trust Henry/Pizzuti.”

Roughly a month after the Boston Celtics won their record-setting 18th NBA championship, Wyc Grousbeck shocked the basketball world by announcing he would be selling majority ownership of the team. The bidding started on Jan. 23 and the first half of the sale (51%) will happen in the first quarter of 2025. The remaining half will be completed in 2028, according to multiple reports.

John Henry, the majority owner of the Boston Red Sox, is also a principal stakeholder of Liverpool FC and the Pittsburgh Penguins as part of the Fenway Sports Group. Many quickly concluded he would bid for the Celtics once Grousbeck announced the decision to sell the iconic NBA franchise.

The Red Sox have won four championships since Henry took over in 2002, the most in the Major League Baseball during that span. However, fans have recently been unhappy with his ownership, as the Red Sox have made the playoffs only once in the last six years.

Boston Celtics fan Bill Simmons said on his podcast that he thought the Philadelphia Eagles were one of the "best-run football teams." He added that Jeffrey Lurie buying majority ownership of the Celtics would be a "decent outcome."

---

John Henry has more championships as Red Sox owner than Wyc Grousbeck has with the Celtics

In 2001, John Henry and other investors became the majority owners of the Boston Red Sox. Three years later, the Boston Red Sox ended 86 years of misery by sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2004 World Series. They added championships in 2007, 2013 and 2018 to their resume.

Henry’s tenure at Fenway Park coincided with Wyc Grousbeck’s assumption as majority owner of the Boston Celtics. Under Grousbeck's leadership, the Celtics appeared in the conference finals nine times, reached the NBA Finals four times and won the Larry O’Brien Trophy twice.

Jeffrey Lurie has one Super Bowl to his name. The Eagles won the big prize in 2018 after defeating another New England team, the Patriots.

Boston Celtics fans are eagerly awaiting an announcement about who the next franchise owner will be. For now, they are content to spar on social media about whether John Henry or Jeffrey Lurie should replace Wyc Grousbeck.