WASHINGTON - Black Entertainment Television founder Robert Johnson hired Lehman Brothers Inc. to help him buy a major-league baseball team and move it to Washington, a Lehman banker said.

Lehman advised Johnson on his pursuit of an NBA expansion franchise in Charlotte, N.C. On Wednesday, he was granted the team for a fee of $300 million, making him the first black majority owner of a major North American sports team.

Johnson, 56, is shifting his focus to acquiring the Montreal Expos or another baseball club and moving them to Washington, said Sal Galatioto, head of Lehman's sports finance unit. The U.S. capital has been without a baseball team since the Washington Senators moved to Texas in 1971 to become the Texas Rangers.

"We think the Expos are the most likely and frankly, baseball needs to sell them," Galatioto said in an interview.

Baseball bought the Expos for $120 million in February 2001 from current Florida Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria and would probably seek at least $200 million from prospective buyers, Galatioto said.

Johnson's net worth is about $1.3 billion, according to Forbes magazine.