NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — After leaving the courtroom on Thursday in the family fight over his fortune, we asked Saints and Pelicans owner Tom Benson to make a pick in the NBA Finals.
Benson speaks briefly with reporters as he heads in and out of the courthouse each day. Since a gag order prevents him from commenting on the details of the case, he spends most of his time telling people how he feels or his general impression of how the trial is progressing.
But as the NBA Finals were set to begin on Thursday, we asked Benson if he thought the Golden State Warriors or the Cleveland Cavaliers would win the title. Keep in mind, Warriors assistant coach Alvin Gentry is going to become the head coach of Benson’s Pelicans as soon as the Finals are over.
Before Benson could chime in, his attorney, Phil Whittmann said, “He’s gotta go for the Golden State Warriors.”
But Wittmann spoke too soon; Benson was having nothing with the question.
“I gotta be careful,” the 87-year-old said. “Somebody might want to make a bet, you know,” Benson joked, followed by a chuckle from the reporters, photographers, attorneys, driver and others surrounding Benson’s sedan.
As for the events of the day in court, Benson said, “It was a long day. I know that much.”
One of the doctors who evaluated Benson’s health spent much of the day on the stand after Benson’s grandson Ryan LeBlanc finished testifying.
Ryan, his sister Rita, and their mother Renee LeBlanc, Benson’s daughter, are trying to convince a judge that Benson is no longer able to run his business empire, including his professional sports teams. The move comes as they were removed as heirs to inherit the teams and Benson’s other major businesses.
For his part, Benson has said that his family members proved they were not up for the job of running his businesses so he is leaving them to his wife, Gayle.
Going into the trial on Monday, attorneys expected it to finish by the end of this week. But it looks like the entire first week could be used by the LeBlancs’ attorneys. Next week, the judge has prior commitments on Monday and Tuesday. Also, there will a half-day of testimony on Thursday. So it looks likely that the case will not only fail to wrap-up this Friday, but it may not by the following Friday either.
