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- Jordan, the league’s only Black owner, paid US$275m for Hornets controlling stake in 2010
- 60-year-old sold minority share to Plotkin and Daniel Sundheim in 2019
- Hornets have been valued at US$1.77bn
Michael Jordan is in talks to sell a majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets to a group led by the National Basketball Association (NBA) franchise’s minority owner Gabe Plotkin and Atlanta Hawks investor Rick Schnall, according to ESPN.
A deal is reportedly not imminent but ESPN states there is ‘significant momentum’ for the sale, which would eventually lead to Plotkin, the founder of Melvin Capital, and Schnall, a minority owner of the NBA’s Hawks, becoming co-governors of the Hornets.
If a sale goes through, NBA icon Jordan will purportedly retain a minority stake in the Hornets. The 60-year-old, who is the league’s only Black majority owner, had already sold a stake in the club in 2019 to Plotkin and Daniel Sundheim, the founder of D1 Capital. Sundheim is reportedly part of the group working to take control of the franchise.
Should Jordan part with his majority share, it will end his 13-year stint as Hornets owner. The six-time NBA champion paid US$275 million for a controlling stake in the team in 2010.
The Hornets were valued at US$1.77 billion in Sportico’s latest rankings, putting them 26th out of the NBA’s 30 franchises.
On the court, the team are second from bottom in the Eastern Conference, sitting 14th. They next face the Philadelphia 76ers on 17th March.
