If you can't figure out why AOL Time Warner's sale of the Hawks, Thrashers and Philips Arena operating rights to Texas businessman David McDavid isn't done by now, you're not alone.

"I woke up the other day and thought, 'Why in the world is this taking so long?' " McDavid said Wednesday from his Dallas office. "I can't figure it out, either.

"I don't know how many times I've talked to my attorneys and accountants and people, and they say it's almost done, and then it doesn't get done, and for the life of me I don't know why. . . . And I don't know that it's anybody's fault."

Some experts say that as protracted as the process seems --- 107 days since McDavid and AOL signed a letter of intent on the deal --- it isn't unusual for such a transaction.

"This is not unexpected. The purchase of a sports franchise has become a very sophisticated deal," said Jack Williams, a Georgia State University law professor who specializes in sports and business law. "There are a lot of rights to be transferred, and that takes time. This really isn't taking that much longer than other [similar] sales."