Michael Jordan has agreed to sell the Charlotte Hornets, according to an announcement by the team on Friday.
The Hall of Famer and legend is selling the team to Hornets’ minority owner Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall, a minority owner of the Atlanta Hawks. Schnall is in the process of selling his minority stake in the Hawks. Jordan will retain a minority ownership stake in the team.
Jordan was the majority owner of the Hornets for the past 13 years. Jordan became part-owner of the team in 2006 and bought a controlling interest in the team from then-owner George Shinn for $180 million in 2010. He was the first former NBA player to become a majority owner and he is still the league’s only majority Black owner.
The sale price was not disclosed, but Forbes had placed the value of the franchise at $1.7 billion. However, after Mat Ishbia purchased the Phoenix Suns in December for a reported $4.65 billion, there is speculation that the sale price for the Hornets was around $3 billion.
Jordan’s time as the owner of the Hornets has been mostly underwhelming. The Hornets made the playoffs just three times and never won a series during Jordan’s tenure. Charlotte went 423-600 in his 13 seasons in charge, and the Hornets haven’t earned a playoff berth in last seven seasons.
Jordan’s most notable achievement was bringing the “Hornets” name and brand back to Charlotte. The original Charlotte franchise was nicknamed the Hornets before it relocated to New Orleans and became the New Orleans Hornets.
The sale must be approved by the league Board of Governors.
