When you root for a team that hasn’t won a playoff series in 20 years and its next opportunity isn’t visible on the horizon, you’re not accustomed to having reason to celebrate.
Which explains why fans are greeting the news that billionaire Justin Ishbia is in line to be the White Sox’ next owner — taking over from Jerry Reinsdorf as soon as 2029, according to the team — as though it were a division championship, an American League pennant, a World Series crown and a free sausage-and-giardiniera pie from Vito & Nick’s all rolled into one.
Finally!
Spending competitively on players: Yes, please.
Hiring top-notch personnel bosses and managers: If only.
Winning: Good Lord, make it so.
But — and you should have known there would be a ‘‘but’’ because these are the Sox we’re talking about — be careful what you wish for.
Consider the cautionary tale that is the NBA’s Suns.
Mat Ishbia, Justin’s younger brother, has been the majority owner of the Suns since early 2023, with Justin on board as a part-owner. Those roles will flip-flop with the Sox, assuming things fall into place as planned.
In two-plus years since the Ishbias took hold of pro basketball in the desert — they own the WNBA’s Mercury, too — the Suns have fired coach Monty Williams, then fired his replacement, Frank Vogel, after one season and then fired Vogel’s replacement, Mike Budenholzer, after one season.
Even more whiplash-inducing than that, president of basketball operations James Jones was fired last month — after the Suns’ first losing season since 2019-20 — and Brian Gregory, who has no front-office experience, was handed the reins as general manager. You might recognize Gregory’s name from his 19 seasons as coach at Dayton, Georgia Tech and South Florida, which he led to a grand total of two NCAA Tournaments. Before that, he was an assistant coach at Michigan State, where one of his players was a walk-on named Mat Ishbia.
And the reported successor to the Suns’ coaching crazy train? That would be Jordan Ott, who never has been a head coach but, of seeming importance to his cause, also worked in the basketball program at — and has a degree from — Michigan State.
It all sounds like madness for a team that’s desperately trying to trade an all-time great in Kevin Durant.
And considering Reinsdorf’s penchant for surrounding himself with loyalists and his recent elevation of Chris Getz all the way to GM, it all sounds kind of like the Sox.
Phoenix is abuzz this week with talk of Mat Ishbia’s growing involvement in basketball decisions, and meddling owners rarely lead to more successful teams. That, too, makes the question of how similarly the Ishbia brothers operate a vital one.
By the way, a cynic might ask why Jeff Ishbia, founder of United Wholesale Mortgage, made son Mat CEO of the nation’s largest home lender. Particularly a cynic who enjoyed the show ‘‘Succession’’ and suddenly is having a hard time separating Justin from the character Kendall Roy.
That might be utterly unfair, though. Mat went to work for his father more than 20 years ago, while Justin did his own thing.
‘‘We’re both alphas,’’ Justin told Forbes last year. ‘‘I said, ‘Dad, if Mat and I work together every day, we’re going to end up fighting all the time, and that won’t be good for either of us.’ ’’
Two final things to keep in mind:
One, the Ishbias have major ties to Nashville, Tennessee, which Sox fans will recall has been rumored as a potential destination for relocation.
Two, the Sox’ news release about this purported transfer of power included these words: ‘‘There is no assurance that any such future transaction will occur.’’
These are the Sox, people. There’s just no telling.