Gary Chouset?

[Sneakerhead]

Does anyone have any background info on this guy? I know he owns a stake in the Hornets but outside of that, I've no idea who he is.

[Vinny6420]

From what I learned, he is a New Orleans local billionaire. He loves basketball and makes money outside of basketball so he won't be cheap.

[Sneakerhead]

When you say billionaire, is he on par with someone like Mark Cuban?

[Vinny6420]

I have no clue, im fron NJ and only recently heard of Chouest. Maybe some of the New Orleans people can help you out.

[NYKF Hornet]

He is actually from the bayou (south Louisiana for those out of the region), not New Orleans. Gary Chouest is a private man, so he doesn't release his wealth to make lists. So don't go looking for him at Forbes. He is a basketball guy, played the game and is very involved with the sport on many levels. His kids all played basketball as well.

Business wise he builds ships for offshore work, rents ships, and has his hands in all kinds of different business ventures ... if you saw him you would never guess the guy was wealthy. His wealth has been estimated to be between 500 million to over 1 billion (the AP is reporting that he is a billionaire).

In 2007 Chouest bought a minority share of the Hornets for 1 reason only: to keep the NBA in Louisiana. He was interviewed once after becoming minority owner, he said it was an investment to keep the NBA in Louisiana. Chouest is not purchasing the Hornets to flip it or hold it for a few years and then cash out, the man loves basketball and this is the ultimate hobby for him. Most importantly, the Hornets are NOT his main source of income.

The doom and gloom of bad seasons leading to relocation are seemingly over ... all because Chouest invested in this team after Katrina.

[wuggie]

Black Gold.....that is all that is needed to be said about how he makes his money.

[iedmunds]

NYKF pretty much summed it up. Massive offshore fleet and ship-building operation. Closely held, private company that kicks off an enormous amount of cash.

The only other thing to add is that he's hugely connected in terms of state and local politicians and business-people. He made an immediate impact on the Hornets business side (helping recruit sponsors, sell luxury suites, etc.) after becoming a minority owner.

[NYKF Hornet]

Look at it this way ... Chouest doesn't have to buy the team right now. He could have forgave Shinn for the money owed and cashed out, let Shinn sell to the highest bidder and today we would all be talking about something completely different.

Probably about what they are going to call the Hornets when the move to KC or if Clay will give Seattle the "Sonics" name back so the Hornets could be properly re-branded there.

[bandogo]

he also is very close to Jindal even more so than Benson

[GeauxSaints53]

NYKF pretty much got it. His company is called Edison Chouest and has been successful since the late 90s. Apparently I met him once in 2002ish but I was only 10...Yeah, his wealth is unknown because he doesn't participate in the Forbes lists, etc. I've heard anywhere from $500M to more than Mark Cuban has.

[BigChris504]

I seen Gary Chouest doing the Harlem Shake behind Charity Hospital yesterday.

[Harvey]

he also is very close to Jindal even more so than Benson

Benson doesn't have any friends....but I understand your point.

[Unknown Poster]

Benson's only friends are his lawyer and banker: Stanley Rosenberg and Tom Roddy, respectively. They're also his 'brain trust' which is why the Saints were plagued with questionable hires until Mueller/Loomis and Payton.

[West Coast Hornet]

I'd be surprised if this guy was worth $500M. If his estimated cost basis in the team is $260M, then that would be over half his net value. I just don't see that. He's gotta be worth more.

[SaintfanHornet]

I know first hand that one of his boats puts his net worth at over 100 million. And I'm only talking about 1 boat. Most of his oats aren't nearly as good as the one I'm talking about but he has well over a hundred boats in his fleet.

[PELICANSFAN]

I know first hand that one of his boats puts his net worth at over 100 million. And I'm only talking about 1 boat. Most of his oats aren't nearly as good as the one I'm talking about but he has well over a hundred boats in his fleet.

How would you know that? One boat may be worth that, but that does not define net worth. It is not something that can be determined by one asset.

[SaintfanHornet]

I'm suggesting that one can extrapolate his net worth to be greater than a billion based on this knowledge. The accepted equation for net worth is assetts less liabilities. Hypothetically, if Chevron gives you the money for a state of the art anchor handling vessel for international operations, in excess of 150 million, then signs same vessel to a long term deal for 200K/ day + fuel, then you would be immedialtely worth over 100 million.

No, i don't kow what type of liabilties he has, but i know his company is very conservative, and his best boats were paid for by other companies because they are special build boats.

[PELICANSFAN]

I'm suggesting that one can extrapolate his net worth to be greater than a billion based on this knowledge. The accepted equation for net worth is assetts less liabilities. Hypothetically, if Chevron gives you the money for a state of the art anchor handling vessel for international operations, in excess of 150 million, then signs same vessel to a long term deal for 200K/ day + fuel, then you would be immedialtely worth over 100 million.

No, i don't kow what type of liabilties he has, but i know his company is very conservative, and his best boats were paid for by other companies because they are special build boats.

I don't doubt you have solid info, but there is absolutely no way to extrapolate an individual's net worth from the worth of one vessel. You have no idea of liabilities or contingencies or personal assets/liabilities. Regardless, it is clear he is worth much more than Shinn and that is a huge plus for New Orleans Hornets' fans.

[JKM]

He will be rich enough to compete and not let a luxury tax get in his way. I do not know how caps work when you pay off players and send them down the highway, but I would not be shocked if he does not pay off Peja or Posey, and tell them adios. I think I remember his son being a real good basketball player a few years back, may have went to Georgia Tech, help me out with that someone.

[Harvey]

He will be rich enough to compete and not let a luxury tax get in his way. I do not know how caps work when you pay off players and send them down the highway, but I would not be shocked if he does not pay off Peja or Posey, and tell them adios. I think I remember his son being a real good basketball player a few years back, may have went to Georgia Tech, help me out with that someone.

Just because you can afford to pay the luxury tax doesn't mean you should....especially when your team isn't a contender. Rich guys don't become rich by throwing money away. I'd expect Chouest to spend when the timing dictates that it's the proper basketball and/or business thing to do.

[BP225]

I do not know how caps work when you pay off players

Buying players out doesn't let you magically avoid the cap, you'd do something like pay Peja $11 million instead of $15 million and then he goes and signs with someone for $5 million effectively getting a raise. For Posey who's due over $13 million in the next 2 years you pay maybe $9 million instead of $6.5 million to send him packing. Then you have to sign 2 players to replace them on the roster. It doesn't help you one bit this coming season, in fact it costs you more money and the money you'd free up dumping Posey may well be money freed up in a season where any potential player moves are lost to a lockout.

If Peja or Posey go to another team it will be as part of a trade, not part of a buyout.

[kc2000]

Buying players out doesn't let you magically avoid the cap, you'd do something like pay Peja $11 million instead of $15 million and then he goes and signs with someone for $5 million effectively getting a raise. For Posey who's due over $13 million in the next 2 years you pay maybe $9 million instead of $6.5 million to send him packing. Then you have to sign 2 players to replace them on the roster. It doesn't help you one bit this coming season, in fact it costs you more money and the money you'd free up dumping Posey may well be money freed up in a season where any potential player moves are lost to a lockout.

If Peja or Posey go to another team it will be as part of a trade, not part of a buyout.

Agreed. And actually, I have a question that maybe you can answer, or HH, or anyone else -- when you buy out a player's remaining contract, what exactly comes off your cap? Does his entire remaining salary come off the books, or is it the difference of his original cap figure minus whatever agreed upon buyout price? I'm just trying to figure out the rationale behind a buyout if the player isn't a cancer that you need to get rid of immediately. If there's no real benefit to buying out Peja's remaining year, I'd say just let him stick around until that figure comes off the books the following offseason.

I think Chouest allows for more flexibility moving forward as the luxury tax won't be as much of an issue when pursuing future players. But fans expecting a quick fix to our salary and roster woes will be a bit disappointed I believe.

[BP225]

when you buy out a player's remaining contract, what exactly comes off your cap? Does his entire remaining salary come off the books, or is it the difference of his original cap figure minus whatever agreed upon buyout price? I'm just trying to figure out the rationale behind a buyout if the player isn't a cancer that you need to get rid of immediately.

First, I'm no salary cap guru, just using common sense and what I've seen around the net on how nba contracts work. This looks like some pretty decent info on buyouts and the cap http://members.cox.net/lmcoon/salarycap.htm#Q61

For a buyout to be worth anything you have to do it early enough. Peja for example, you'd probably want to buyout this summer. The link points to January 10th as decision time, but part of the dump working involves another team paying him so the sooner the better. So the Hornets pay $11 million and he signs with someone for $5 netting a $1 million raise while the Hornets get a $4 million savings.

Posey's deal being multiyear would be spread out over the 2 years he has left. so if you buy him out for $9 million it wouldn't completely dump him from the books next year, just save you roughly $2 million this year and next.

[NYKF Hornet]

Buyouts rarely happen in the NBA. Even Cuban avoids buying out players.

The smart thing to do is try to unload the players, if not then go through one more rough season and then you are home free. The key is thinking long term, which is not easy to do when all you want to do is win.

[Pelicans78]

I would stay put with the contracts. Be patient, draft well, let the contracts expire and go from there.