Basketball legend Michael Jordan has agreed a deal to sell his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets basketball team to hedge fund billionaire Gabe Plotkin and private equity titan Rick Schnall, the Hornets said Friday.
The sale, whichh is subject to approval by the National Basketball Association’s board of governors, values the team at roughly $3bn, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The agreement, which has been in the works for months, was announced this morning by the Bobcats.
The buyers are a group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall, who are currently a minority owner with the Hornets and a minority owner with the Atlanta Hawks, respectively.
Jordan had already sold minority percentages to Plotkin and Daniel Sundheim, a founder of DI Capital, in 2019.
The Hornets’ official statement notes that the deal is dependent on approval from the NBA’s board of governors, but it should sail through.
The six-time NBA champion bought a small share in the Hornets (then the Bobcats) in 2006. Five years later, he bought a majority stake for about $275 million, according to the Robb Report. At the time, he was the only Black majority owner in the league.
Earlier this year, Forbes valued the Hornets at about $1.3 billion. Today’s deal more than doubles that, arithmetic that’s all the more remarkable given that the small-market Hornets had the fourth-worst record in the NBA last season.
So whatever the percentage, Jordan is making a handsome profit on his investment.
This is not a surprise. Jordan has explored selling and late in the season, Plotkin and Schnall emerged as potential buyers for a majority share.
During his NBA Finals news conference, Commissioner Adam Silver was asked about the status of a sale.
“I’m not going to speak for Michael Jordan. I never will. So, I’ll let him answer a question what his current status is,” Silver said.
“I’d only say that just in the same way that it’s wonderful that one of our greatest, Michael Jordan, could become the principal governor of a team, he has the absolute right to sell at the same time. Values have gone up a lot since he bought that team, so that is his decision.”
Jordan, who will retain a minority stake in ownership, bought the Hornets in 2010 at a $180 million valuation and likely will sell his share at a nearly $3 billion valuation.
The sale is subject to the NBA Board of Governors approval.
Jordan is set to make a profitable return on his investment after 13 years of ownership, and this will also open up time for Jordan to pursue interests outside of basketball.
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