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Jeffrey Epstein and Sixers co-owner Josh Harris had an ongoing business relationship that included numerous phone calls and at least one visit to Epstein’s home in Manhattan, according to emails released Friday by the U.S. Department of Justice. The emails do not contain any indication that Harris was involved with sexual misconduct.
The records — buried within the three million documents made public Friday as part of the congressionally ordered release of the Epstein Files — shed light on a yearslong correspondence that occurred after Epstein’s 2008 guilty plea for solicitation of prostitution with a minor, but before his 2019 arrest on child sex trafficking charges.
Epstein’s relationship with Black and Apollo would eventually disintegrate over a legal dispute about his tax and estate planning fees. Harris and Epstein continued to email sporadically until at least 2016. That year, Robert Bodian, managing partner at the law firm Mintz, reached out to Epstein, indicating he was contacting him at “Josh’s request,” apparently regarding a tax issue. And, in September 2016, Epstein e-mailed Harris again directly asking him to call him about an unspecified issue. “Any conversation that you prefer to stay between just us. will. its my financial confessional booth for jews,” Epstein wrote. “Will do Jeff,” Harris responded. “Happy to catch up. Thx.”
Tilman Fertitta, the owner of the Houston Rockets, has also submitted a bid to the WNBA for an expansion team, a spokesperson for the Rockets confirmed to The Athletic. The prospective team would play its games at the Toyota Center, where the Rockets play.
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Aside from Philadelphia, Nashville and Detroit, potential ownership groups representing Charlotte, Austin, Denver and Houston have all shown public or private interest in getting a WNBA team.
The 76ers still think Joel Embiid, who’s played in just 13 games this season, is a franchise-level player. “We’re still really happy with Joel,” 76ers majority owner Josh Harris told The Athletic this week. “He’s a warrior. I’ve seen this. He’s fought through a lot of injuries. You remember when we started, in his first (two) years, he didn’t play at all. And then, in his third year, he played 30-something games. And then, he fought through all of that, and became the MVP. So, he’s fighting right now, and we’re fighting. And I’m hopeful and optimistic that we’ll get through.”
Josh Harris: “I want him to get his body right and get on the court. If he gets back on the court, everything’s going to fall into place. I know him as a person, and I know him as an individual, and I know how hard he’s working. I think he’s also super-smart and very in-tune with his body. He has a whole team around him, and we have a whole team around him. He’s getting the absolute best care and best advice. I’m hopeful that he’ll fight through this and make it happen, and that’s what we’re going to plan for right now.”
“I would say that, again, we always start with trying to build elite teams,” Harris told The Athletic. “We started this season with two potential Hall of Famers, and one All-Star. We were very excited about the season. Obviously, it’s been a disappointing season. No one’s happy with where we are. We’re not happy.”
A week after a city-sanctioned report cast doubt on the economic benefits of the Philadelphia 76ers’ proposed facility in Center City, the team received a written proposal from the state of New Jersey detailing a transformative arena project in Camden that the team could own and operate, should it choose to relocate to New Jersey. It is a proposal that the Sixers will look at seriously, a team spokesperson told ROI-NJ.
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“We have worked tirelessly for the past five years to build an arena in Philadelphia, and negotiations remain ongoing with city leadership regarding our proposal at Market East,” the spokesperson said. “The reality is, we are running out of time to reach an agreement that will allow the 76ers to open our new home in time for the 2031-32 NBA season. As a result, we must take all potential options seriously, including this one.”
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and his economic development agency on Monday sent a letter detailing the offer to Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, the owner of the National Basketball Association franchise. The firm was created by David Blitzer, a senior executive at Blackstone Inc., and Josh Harris, a co-founder of Apollo Global Management Inc.
New Jersey’s government is indeed courting the Philadelphia 76ers to move across the Delaware River to the Garden State, Gov. Phil Murphy confirmed Monday. ROI-NJ reported last week that state officials in Murphy’s administration are making a pitch to the ownership of the NBA franchise to move to Camden as talks to build a new arena in Philly have been bumpy.
