$2.7 billion in one day

After a storied playing career, NBA legend Michael Jordan tried his hand in owning a team and purchased the Charlotte Hornets in 2010 for a controlling share of $275 million, making him the only Black-majority team owner of the league’s 30 franchises.

His control of the Hornets did not translate nor have a semblance of his successful basketball past.  For 13 years, it has been a consistently mediocre ownership, only making the post season thrice, not advancing past the first round in all three occasions.

Last season, the Hornets placed second-to-the-last in the Eastern Conference with a 27-55 win-loss record.

In a deal first announced last June, the NBA board of governors approved the $3 billion sale of the Charlotte Hornets to the purchasing group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall which makes them the majority owners of the team.  Plotkin and Schnall have minority ownerships with the Hornets and the Atlanta Hawks respectively.

Forbes have the Charlotte Hornets’ market value at $1.7 billion, which ranked the franchise at 27th in the league in terms of value, far behind the leading trio of the Golden State Warriors ($7B), New York Knicks ($6.1B) and the LA Lakers ($5.9B).  The sale made Jordan laugh all the way to bank with a $2.75 billion profit.  He still has a minority stake with the team but will not be involved in decision making.

The Hornets were one of only two remaining teams that had a shot of that French kid named Victor in this year’s rookie draft and picking him would have changed Charlotte’s future and a projected increase in franchise value by $750 million.  We all know who won the Wembanyama sweepstakes.

According to league executives and insiders, San Antonio had an immediate $16 million revenue earnings upon drafting Wembanyama.  Had the Hornets gotten the top pick, perhaps Jordan would have changed his mind on giving up 70 percent ownership of the franchise.

He would be spending more time with his NASCAR race team, the 23XI Racing which he co-founded with racing legend Denny Hamlin in 2020.   They currently field three cars in the NASCAR Cup series – number 23, 45 and 67.

Severely underpaid during his career, Jordan had his biggest single cash windfall to date with the takeover from the Plotkin-Schnall group.  He has an ongoing deal with Nike which reportedly netted him $256 million in 2022 alone. — (FREEMAN)