AOL Time Warner has decided not to sell the Hawks, Thrashers and Philips Arena operating rights to Texas businessman David McDavid, according to Stephen Dieb, McDavid's business partner.

After almost a year of negotiations with McDavid's group, Turner Broadcasting will announce Tuesday the sale of the teams to a group that includes local and out-of-town investors.

"We have reached a binding agreement for the sale of the Atlanta Hawks and Atlanta Thrashers franchises and operating rights to Philips Arena to an investment group including local partners, which will be introduced to the press at an event tomorrow," the company said in a statement.

"We continue to have the highest professional regard for David McDavid and the McDavid group, with whom we worked in good faith for the past several months. We are confident that the deal we will announce tomorrow is best for our company, for the teams and arena, for the city and for the fans."

Sources said the investment group includes Boston businessman Steve Belkin, who previously pursued an NBA expansion team in Charlotte, and several Atlantans, including businessmen Michael Gearon Sr. and Michael Gearon Jr. and attorney Rutherford Seydel.

The McDavid group said it was stunned by the latest turn.

''We are shocked,'' Dieb said from Dallas, adding that a Turner Broadcasting executive informed a McDavid representative of the news this morning. ''We were expecting to come in today and close the deal tomorrow. We were led to believe on Friday that there would be a press conference announcing our deal on Tuesday.

''Until this morning, we thought it was done,'' Dieb said.