Cleveland Cavaliers founder and former Guardians owner Nick Mileti dies at 93

Nick Mileti, who helped found the Cleveland Cavaliers and became a prominent figure in the city's sports landscape in the 1970s, has died. He was 93.

Mileti died in his sleep Wednesday in Rocky River, Ohio, according to a spokesman for the Cleveland Guardians, one of several teams Mileti once owned.

The son of Sicilian immigrants emerged as one of the city's true powerbrokers after purchasing a minor league hockey team, the Cleveland Barons, and the Cleveland Arena in 1968.

He became a key figure in ownership groups that started purchasing or founding other franchises. In 1970, they brought the NBA to Cleveland by selling shares of the expansion-team Cavaliers at $5 each to raise $2.25 million and cover the $3.7 million expansion fee.

“A true pioneer in the world of sports, Nick was not just a leader; he was a dreamer who transformed that dream into reality for countless fans in Cleveland,” the Cavaliers said in a statement. “Nick Mileti changed the course of Cleveland sports history, and his passion and commitment will be deeply missed.”

He purchased controlling interest in 1972 in the city's Major League Baseball franchise, then named the Indians, as part of a group that included future U.S. Sen. Howard Metzenbaum, and he helped oversee construction of the Richfield Coliseum, where the Cavs played from 1974-94.

Mileti also bought a World Hockey Association franchise in 1972 and moved it from Calgary to Cleveland, renaming the franchise the Crusaders, and owned two of the city's largest radio stations.

He was replaced as Indians president in 1975 and, under pressure from banks, sold his stakes in the team. The Crusaders ceased operations in 1976 after an NHL team moved into town, and Mileti sold his stake in the Cavaliers in 1980.

Eventually, though, Mileti got back into the sports business.

After moving to California in 1979 to help produce and finance plays and movies, he founded the Canadian Football League's Las Vegas Posse, owned multiple radio stations and wrote three books.

But Mileti's influence in Cleveland continued.

He was a member of the inaugural class inducted into the Cavaliers' Wall of Honor in 2019 — part of the team's 50th anniversary celebration — and was rewarded during that ceremony with an NBA championship ring from the Cavs' first title team in 2015-16.

“I have often heard people say, ‘It’s not how long you live, but what you live for,'" former Cavs star Jim Chones said. “Nick was rewarded with longevity because he touched many in his mission to make Cleveland great again. His voice was soft but confident, demanding attention. He loved Cleveland, and Cleveland loved him.”