Charlotte Hornets owner Michael Jordan answers a question during a news conference at Time Warner Cable Arena on October 28, 2014 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Jeff Sinner | Tribune News Service | Getty Images
Basketball legend Michael Jordan has agreed to sell his majority stake in the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets to wealthy investors Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall, a representative of Jordan. Confirmed on Friday.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Jordan would retain minority ownership of the team as part of the deal.
Jordan took a majority stake in the Hornets in 2010 for $275 million. First, there was minority interest in his team.
Under the ownership of six-time NBA champion Jordan, the Hornets have struggled, making the playoffs only twice.
Plotkin acquired a minority stake in the Hornets in 2019 and serves as an alternate governor on the NBA Board of Governors. He is the founder of investment management firm Tallwoods Capital.
Schnall is co-chairman of the private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, where he worked for 27 years. He has been a minority owner of the Atlanta Hawks since 2015 and an alternate governor on the NBA Board of Governors.
He is in the process of selling his investment in the Hawks, which is expected to be completed in the next several weeks.
North Carolina musician J.J. Along with Cole and Eric Church, billionaire Dan Sundheim, owner of D1 Capital, is also in the buyer group.
The sale included other assets of the Hornets Sports Entertainment group, including their G League team, the Greensboro Swarm, their esports team, the Hornets Venom GT, as well as the management and operation of the Spectrum Center, where the Hornets play.
The transaction for the Hornets is subject to approval by the NBA Board of Governors.
Forbes values the Hornets at $1.7 billion, ranking them 27th out of 30 teams.