The Case Of A Dead Oil And Gas Mogul Takes An Unexpected Turn — And It Involves The Oklahoma City Thunder

Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY SportsNEW YORK (Reuters) - This weekend, the Oklahoma City Thunder stands one game away from clinching a surprising spot in the NBA finals. But away from the roar of fans and the glare of cameras, another battle involving the basketball team is brewing in a probate courtroom in its home city. At stake is a roughly 20 percent interest in the Thunder held by Aubrey McClendon, the indebted Oklahoma energy magnate who died in a car crash on March 2. Some of McClendon's creditors want a say over how the stake will be disposed of by his estate, viewing the basketball team as one of his few assets of value, according to a copy of a transcript from a May 13 hearing in probate court. The lenders want the stake to be sold for top dollar but fear it will be sold for less than that to McClendon's wife, Kathleen, because she is family, said a lawyer representing a syndicate of banks led by Wilmington Trust that loaned $465 million to a company McClendon founded in 2013, American Energy Partners LP (AEP).