Michael Jordan, arguably the best basketball player of all time, has ended his time as an NBA team owner. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Jordan has agreed to sell his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets to an ownership group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall.
Plotkin, a minority owner with the Hornets, and Schnall, a minority owner with the Atlanta Hawks, agreed to pay $3 billion to take over the control of the team. Jordan will reportedly keep a minor stake in the franchise.
Jordan, who originally bought the Hornets in 2010 for $275 million, put the franchise on sale earlier this year. He previously sold a significant minority stake in the team to a group that included Plotkin and hedge fund manager Daniel Sundheim back in 2020.
Under Jordan’s ownership, the Charlotte Hornets were consistently one of the worst teams in the NBA. They only made the playoffs twice, being eliminated in the first round both times. Their best regular-season finish was sixth seed in Eastern Conference in 2015–16.
The Hornets, however, might be positioned to have a bright future. They have a young star in point guard LaMelo Ball and hold the No. 2 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
