It’s been a month and a half since Charter hired The Raine Group to sell Spectrum SportsNet, the Los Angeles cable home of the Lakers, and dozens of companies have seemingly expressed interest, from private equity firms to traditional media companies. Mark Walter, who recently became the team’s owner, has also shown openness to taking ownership of Spectrum SportsNet away from Charter, which doesn’t see a long-term play in keeping the R.S.N. in its portfolio. Now, the burden is on Raine to distinguish the real potential acquirers from those kicking the tires for their own gain—to learn about the economics of the business to fuel some other investment thesis, say, or just out of morbid grinfucking curiosity.

Of course, the R.S.N. business is existentially challenged and Spectrum SportsNet bears its own unique burdens. To wit: The Lakers, which signed their deal with SportsNet in 2012, a veritable lifetime ago in the industry, collect an average annual fee of $150 million from the network. (In fact, that number was close to $200 million last season.) In 2032, the Lakers have an option to extend the current deal to 2037, and why the hell wouldn’t they? The team would be hard pressed to find another company willing to pay that much for local rights. Frankly, few might even exist by then.

But this deal process has made many sports business veterans nostalgic for a bygone time—some mere six years ago, when Disney was in the process of selling the Fox Sports–branded R.S.N.s as a necessary consequence of its overall deal to acquire 21st Century Fox. Back then, scores of companies signed nondisclosure agreements to try to comprehend why Fox sold the business in the first place. In the end, though, Disney received only three serious bids: one led by Major League Baseball, one backed with private capital, and one from the eventual winner, Sinclair.

Raine is facing a similar scenario with Spectrum SportsNet, with potential bidders showing interest in data points, from the Lakers precise rights fees to ad sales numbers. The merchant bank is presumably collecting N.D.A.s, offering access to data rooms, and providing financials on the business before culling the voyeurs from the legitimate participants. That much smaller group would get much more detailed information—which, of course, will also pertain to the challenges associated with the business.

In some respects, Walter is the most logical buyer. He closed his purchase of a majority stake in the team in late October, valuing the Lakers at $10 billion. He also owns the Dodgers, which is tied to Charter’s other L.A.-based R.S.N. Not coincidentally, the Dodgers have the most team-friendly deal in Major League Baseball, collecting an average of $334 million per year through 2038—an economic anomaly that helps explain their exorbitant ~$250 million annual payroll.

In fact, some of the companies interested in the Lakers’ R.S.N. have shown interest in the Dodgers’ network, too, I’m told. Walter himself has apparently expressed interest in a deal that would bring both teams’ networks under his umbrella. Charter, too, would presumably prefer to sell both channels at once to a single bidder, minimizing headaches and fees, if the number was in the trading range. After all, the company inherited both R.S.N.s via its acquisition of Time Warner Cable, a decade ago, and sports has never been a core part of its business.

It seems likely that any deal to buy these R.S.N.s would have to include a subsidy payment from Charter that would cover the expected losses of the R.S.N.s over the next 12 years. It’s not yet apparent whether Walter even really, truly wants to control these media rights. But if he shows any serious inclination, there’s a deal to be had, and a seller in the barrel.

On last week’s Players Era tournament: “I came to Vegas to watch the Irish lose to Kansas and then (thankfully) beat Rutgers. Between The Athletic’s excellent story and the overall vibe here, we should all expect this to evolve into a premier event. Fan attendance this week is definitely not overwhelming, but I would describe it as enthusiastic. The fans who did make the trip are all in, and many more will want to be here in the coming years—thanks in part to the great games we’ve already seen so far this week.” —A Varsity subscriber

On Nielsen ratings: “Should all comparisons to TV ratings have an asterisk by them due to the changes that the leagues have pushed Nielsen to consider?” —A media executive

[Ed. note: Yes.]

Have a great week. See you tomorrow.
John