Big changes are being made in the sports world.
Michael Jordan has reportedly agreed to sell his majority stake in the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets for $3 billion, according to ESPN.
In 2006, his imprint with the team began as a minority shareholder and scaled to majority ownership after securing the team from Bob Johnson in 2010.
ESPN reported the rumored purchase price was $275 million while The Charlotte Observer stated it was $180 million.
He was the only Black majority owner of a sports franchise at the time.
“Purchasing the Bobcats [now the Hornets] is the culmination of my post-playing career goal of becoming the majority owner of an NBA franchise,” Jordan said at the time of purchase, according to Bleacher Report. “I am especially pleased to have the opportunity to build a winning team in my home state of North Carolina.”
In recent updates, Jordan will still be involved with the franchise, reverting back to a minority owner once the sale of the majority stake is finalized and transferred to the new buyers, led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall.
J. Cole, Dan Sundheim, Ian Loring, Eric Church, Amy Levine Dawson and Damian Mills are reportedly included in the buying group.
A statement from the Hornets Sports & Entertainment has confirmed the news in a press release.
“Plotkin, who acquired a minority stake in the Hornets in 2019, has been an alternate governor on the NBA Board of Governors since 2019 and is the founder and chief investment officer of Tallwoods Capital LLC. Schnall is co-president of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice LLC, where he has worked for 27 years, and has been a significant minority owner of the Atlanta Hawks and an alternate governor on the NBA Board of Governors since 2015. Schnall is in the process of selling his investment in the Hawks, which is expected to be completed in the next several weeks,” the release stated.
The sale is still awaiting a thumbs up from the NBA Board of Governors.
