David McDavid expressed confidence Friday that his deal to buy the Hawks, Thrashers and Philips Arena operating rights from AOL Time Warner will be completed soon.

"We think the deal is practically done," McDavid said from his Fort Worth home. "We are at what I would call the 'ticking and tying' stage now . . . working out the details."

As for predicting when the deal will be finished, McDavid said: "Tell you the truth, we are at such a close stage, I'm a very poor guesser. It could be as early as the first of July, or it could be mid-July, but I think it's going to happen very quickly."

Since McDavid signed a letter of intent on April 30 to buy the teams and the Philips rights from AOL for $350 million to $400 million, lawyers --- his in Pittsburgh and AOL's in New York --- have been negotiating a definitive final agreement.