Maloofs reach agreement to sell Kings

The Maloof family has reached an agreement with a Sacramento group headed by TIBCO software tycoon Vivek Ranadive to sell a 65 percent controlling interest in the Kings at a total franchise valuation of $535 million, a person familiar with the deal said late Thursday.

The person, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said there are about 30 investors in the group put together by Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, a former All-Star guard. An official announcement is expected today.

The NBA is expected to officially approve the agreement next week. The person said the agreement has to be closed by May 31.

On Wednesday, the NBA Board of Governors rejected a bid from a Seattle group that wanted to buy and move the franchise to the Pacific Northwest.

The 22-8 vote killed a deal that would have sold a 65 percent controlling interest at a total franchise valuation of $625 million to a Seattle group led by investor Chris Hansen, who boosted the offer twice after the NBA showed an unwillingness to relocate.

The vote ended an emotional saga that has dragged on for almost three years. Hansen wanted to move the franchise and rename it the SuperSonics, who left Seattle for Oklahoma City in 2008 and were renamed the Thunder. NBA commissioner David Stern praised Hansen’s proposal and said the NBA might consider expansion once a new TV deal is in place.

The plan includes a new downtown arena after Johnson got the Sacramento City Council to approve a nonbinding financing plan for a $447 million facility with a $258 million public subsidy.

■ LAWSUIT — Ousted NBA players’ association executive director Billy Hunter alleges in a lawsuit that president Derek Fisher had a secret deal with owners during the 2011 lockout that benefited himself, his publicist and certain players.

Hunter contends that Fisher undermined Hunter’s efforts to make an agreement and interfered with his position by secretly negotiating with select owners in violation of union bylaws.

Filed in California Superior Court, the suit seeks unspecified damages for defamation and breach of contract.