Campus Apartments CEO David Adelman Buys Michael Rubin’s 10% Stake In 76ers, Devils Owner HBSE Valued At $250 Million

Real estate investor David Adelman grew up a Philadelphia 76ers fan. Now he’s on the verge of owning a piece of the team.

Adelman, 50, agreed to purchase the majority of Michael Rubin’s 10% stake in Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment, owner of the National Basketball Association franchise, Forbes has learned. Adelman purchased the stake from Rubin, chairman of sports merchandise giant Fanatics, who announced plans to sell in June.

Terms of the transaction were not publicly available, but Forbes estimates Rubin is worth $10.2 billion, and the 10% stake in the sports company is valued at roughly $250 million. The NBA approved the transaction, and National Hockey League needed to OK the deal because Adelman, through Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment, is also purchasing a stake in the New Jersey Devils. Forbes values the Devils at $775 million, ranking it 15th among the 32 NHL franchises. In addition, the pact includes the business that runs the Prudential Center, where the Devils play.

Forbes values the Sixers at $2.4 billion, a more than 800% increase since 2011, when Sixers owners Josh Harris, co-founder of Apollo Global ManagementAPO
, and top Blackstone GroupBX
executive David Blitzer formed the ownership group that purchased the franchise from Comcast-Spectator for a reported $287 million.

“It’s Josh and David’s team,” Adelman told Forbes on Thursday before the Sixers’ 2022-23 home opener. “I just want to be able to participate as a Philly partner.”

In July, Adelman joined Harris and Blitzer to create “76 Devcorp,” a group lobbying for the development of 76 Place, a downtown Philadelphia real estate project that would include a privately funded $1.3 billion arena for the basketball team. The 76ers estimate the project would create $400 million annually for the city.

“It’s going to happen because we have a great plan, a great design, and a great location,” Adelman says. “We’re not taking city money, and we’re going to help revitalize a part of the city that could use a shot in the arm.

“It was the only destination I was looking for,” Adelman adds of the proposed location. “And the reason is sports arenas, stadiums downtown, they revitalize cities.”

The Sixers are targeting a 2031 end date for the project, which would create additional income for the NBA club. The team’s revenue has declined in the last couple of years, according to Forbes data. Revenue for the 2020-21 season was $236 million, down from $259 million the previous season, when NBA revenue was affected by the pandemic. In 2018-19, the Sixers posted revenue of $300 million. On the court, the team has disappointed fans who expected the Sixers to compete for an NBA championship over the last three seasons.

Reached on Thursday, Rubin took part blame. “You have a massive responsibility to your city to win championships,” he told Forbes. “Every time you don’t win a championship, you fail. While I was there, we didn’t deliver for the City of Philadelphia, and I put myself as partially responsible for that.”

Adelman, raised near Philadelphia, is the chief executive of Campus Apartments, a student-housing provider. Adelman’s original investment of $2,000 over 30 years ago has grown to more than $1.5 billion in properties across 18 states. He also co-founded asset management firm FS Investments, formerly Franklin Square Capital Partners. The firm estimates it has over $35 billion in assets under management.

Rubin called the real estate mogul a “perfect fit” to become a minority owner of the two sports franchises.

“It’s going to be a great investment, and most importantly, he’s going to add value to this,” Rubin tells Forbes. “Look, here’s the reality,” he adds, “I had dozens of people who called me who wanted to buy my stake in the Sixers when this became public. I didn’t consider doing it with anybody other than David because I thought it was the right thing for Josh Harris and David Blitzer and great for Philadelphia.”

Adelman also runs Darco Capital, a family office that invests in technology and consumer companies. Darco has equity stakes in the English PremierPINC
League soccer team Crystal Palace Football Club, a minor league affiliate of the New York Yankees, and Sixers Innovation Lab, an early-stage venture capital firm.

Adelman is a board member of companies that include a fashion house founded by Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson and his wife, entertainer Ciara.