As a child, Robert Sarver's birthday gifts included tickets to Phoenix Suns basketball games from the team's owners, who did business with his father.

On Friday, the Tucson native took a step that will allow him to dole out the tickets.

The San Diego entrepreneur agreed to pay $401 million, a record price for an NBA franchise, to become the largest investor and managing partner of the Suns, the city's oldest big-league franchise.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," said Sarver, a banker and real estate developer who will own one-third of the team. "I don't know a lot about basketball, but I'm a competitor. I try to win at everything I do."

Sarver, 42, said he would bring in about 10 additional investors, including former Suns star Charles Barkley, to provide the financial muscle for luring big-name free agents, retaining talent and turning around a team that finished 29-53 this season.

Other new owners are Steve Kerr, a former University of Arizona basketball star who helped broker the deal, and Bryan Colangelo, Suns president and general manager. Colangelo is the son of Jerry Colangelo, who will step down as managing general partner but remain as chairman and chief executive officer for at least three years.

Jerry Colangelo picked Sarver's offer over one from another out-of-state suitor, whom he would not name.

"I will bring in wealthy investors, so if we need to spend more money, we will spend more money," Sarver said after a news conference Friday at America West Arena.

The investors also include former San Antonio Spurs great Sean Elliott, who also starred at the University of Arizona, Sarver's alma mater, and others with a current stake in the Suns. Sarver said he does not expect to bring in any companies as owners. The ownership group would have an "Arizona feel," he said.

The Phoenix Suns are expected to be sold next week for more than $300 million, and two out-of-state buyers are the front-runners, current investors said.

Jerry Colangelo, the NBA team's chairman and managing general partner, would remain as chief executive officer, the investors said. But it was not clear whether he would retain any ownership. He now owns 18 percent of the franchise.

Colangelo plans to hold a news conference at noon today at American West Arena.

Colangelo, in New York on Thursday for an NBA board of governors meeting, declined to provide details. But he confirmed that current investors will meet next Friday to consider offers for the Suns.

"I will be presenting a state of the union and discuss some options with them. Above and beyond that, that is all I have (to disclose)," Colangelo said. "I don't want to go any further."

Steve Kerr, who was drafted by the Suns from the University of Arizona in 1988, said he is in one of the ownership groups.

"The deal hasn't gone through yet," said Kerr, a basketball analyst for TNT who lives in San Antonio. "There are some final things that have to be done. It's ongoing and has been for a few weeks. I'm part of the new ownership group. My role will be determined as we go along."

The Suns' 2004-05 season began Thursday.

The organization has a plan to turn a 29-win club into a playoff participant a year from now.

"Everybody has their dragons to slay," coach Mike D'Antoni said. "We just have a lot of them."

Each coach on the staff will monitor assigned groups of players during the summer. Coaches will visit off-season homes, if necessary, to ensure that each player is on track.

"Everybody's got to be 100 percent ready to go," D'Antoni said. "We've got to get a jump-start on the season. If we start slow, that's nuts."

"If everybody could get on the same page, we could be unstoppable," guard Joe Johnson said.

The New York Post is reporting that Richard Jefferson has been selected to replace Vince Carter on the U.S. Olympic Team, beating out the likes of LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire in the process.

The news comes at a time when Jefferson was in the headlines for negative reasons.  Jefferson, partly angry after a defeat and partly tired, questioned the wisdom of playing heavy minutes back-to-back in what was an apparent meaningless game. So Nets coach Lawrence Frank spoke with his young and talented star yesterday.

"I speak to Richard constantly, mainly about his minutes and there are absolutely no issues," Frank said the day after Jefferson spoke up after a 90-80 defeat in Indiana. "We are on the same page. Richard told me that 'If I said it like that, I apologize.' We spoke about it. It's no big deal. It's a total non-issue."

Jefferson was a member of the U.S. qualifying team that competed in Puerto Rico last summer, and although his role was limited he insisted he wanted to return even if it meant playing less time.

In addition to the most overpowering concern of their own health, the Nets are trying to determine how to prepare for one of three teams. It looks like the Knicks. But it could be the Celtics. Or the Hornets.

"You have to prepare for all the scenarios," admitted Frank. "Sure, you could be spinning your wheels but you want to have your work all done when it's time to go . . . We just do what's just normal at this time of the year, as we've done in the past. We have two video coordinators [so] we break down and prepare for all possibilities in terms of films. We traditionally watch all of our games against their team, plus their last five or six games and we just have it broken down in a certain way."