Philadelphia, Pennsylvania emcee-turned-actor Will Smith (f/k/a The Fresh Prince) is part owner of his hometown’s NBA team, the 76ers. Will and Jada Pinkett Smith hold a stake in the Joshua Harris ownership group. The member of DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince and his wife were on hand at the city’s Palestra this morning (October 18) to confirm the deal.
Comcast Sports Network Philadelphia confirms that the new group fired acting Sixers general manager Ed Stefanski will be replaced by Rod Storn. Additionally, Harris’ group promised to reduce ticket prices by over 50%.
Will Smith joins another late 1980s emcee, Jay-Z, who is a part owner of the New Jersey Nets, a team that the Brooklyn, New York rapper-turned-mogul will be moving to his hometown as well.
Will Smith’s been grinding lately, good for him. He’s The Dj I’m The Rapper is my favorite album of all time, can’t wait for his new shit to drop.
did you read the article?
Shit….well bring back Iverson!!!
this is probably the greatest hiphop news of the year! Thank you DX for this great part of journalism. You guys are awesome and gonna win the pullitzer prize
You sir, are an utter moron. And it’s spelled pulitzer. Go slam your head in a car door.
This said ”I made it”-laugh.
“Will Smith joins another late 1980s emcee, Jay-Z…” Why are we calling Jay-Z a late 80s rapper now?
LOL.
Jay has been rapping since the 80s although he was still getting minor money. He really didn’t get a buzz until around the middle of the 1990s and when 1996 came around… you know the rest.
he didn’t drop an album until 1996, around 7 years after the end of the 80s…Will Smith was putting out albums in the late 80s..big difference there.
2pac made some raps in his basement in the 80’s too you gonna call him a 80’s rappers a well? no….quit your dumb ass knit picking
The Fresh Prince really should teach these youngins that you can flip this thing we call hip hop
lmao ed stefanski was fired thank god
Part Owner? No disrespect to Jay-z and Will Smith but I only respect majority owners. You know cats that have a 80-90% stake in the team, the true bosses. Not no measily 5%, 2%. I heard Jennifer Lopez has a stake in the Miami Dolphins. SOO… It’s not that big a deal. Usher owns part of a team and so does Nelly. Many celebrities is doing this, not just the very very rich(but not quite billionaires yet) celebirites.
THATS VERY TRUE
Yeah.. except that that’s not their fuckin’ calling, dude.
to be a majority owner, you need to be fully dedicated to the franchise and the sport’s areas.
do you see Will Smith or Jay-Z goin to NBA press conferences and shit on the drop of a dime? they got other fuckin’ shit to do
You do know a “majority” owner only has to own at least what everyone else has plus 1 to be considered the majority owner.
Check out the Boston Celtics for example. No owner owns a huge number like 80-90% in that team.
Being in the “owners box” is a big deal no matter how you frame it. If at the end of the fiscal year when they break dividends there’s a cut for you then you winning.
Read what you just said: “No disrespect to Jay-Z and Will Smith but I only respect majority owners”
Who the hell are you to respect or disrespect anyone? GTFOH with that
co sign lima. like who the fuck are you nigga?
HELL YEA GO WILL!!
Congrats to Will, but let’s get this clear:
Bruce Ratner, the real estate mogul, is responsible for moving the Nets to Brooklyn, not Jay. So let’s stop acting like Jay said “let’s move the team to Brooklyn”. He didn’t. Then start saying Jay is responsible for moving people out of their homes against their will to get the construction started as well.
Since when has Jay-Z been a late 80’s emcee? He dropped his first album in 1996.
follow me on twitter @noles506
Just like the comment down there, Jay was rapping back in the 80’s and didn’t get major shine until then. Grew up in Marcy? Brooklyn? Know Jaz and his music? So understand the book smarts don’t apply to this one, old head experience is trumping young head documented knowledge.
If you are calling Jay-Z a late 80s rapper then let me never ask you for directions anywhere because I would get lost with how poorly you explain the facts. Trying to describe Jay-Z in that fashion is either disingenuous or such a poor interpretation of his career that it defies logic.
^ co sign hiphopluv99 100%. trying to defend that ridiculous claim makes you look even more retarded. calling jay an 80’s rapper has little to no point of reference. just sloppy, misleading journalism. typical of hhdx. someone was obviously being a wise ass.
Hollywood stars don’t know shit about the politics of sport. All they’re doing is re-investing a small portion of their millions. Stick to what you’re good at.
and you know that beeeee-caaaauuuussseee??????
did you personally give them Hollywood stars iq tests thru their dicks while you blew em?
I am so proud of you Will. You have come along way from living in my pool house and mooching off my family.
thats fucking classic i almost pissed myself when i read this
hahahahahahaha, that’s nuts haha yell
i wonder if it’s only 1%, like jay z with the nets?? i hope he owns at least 10%.
Jay owners more like 4-5%…which translates to about 13-15 million annually (depending on the year). With the new arena profits will sky rocket.
Being in the “owners box” is a big deal no matter how you frame it. If at the end of the fiscal year when they break dividends and there’s a cut for you then you winning.
^*owns more like…
This is a good move for my city, but man, you just have to think with all of the money that Will Smith has…the fact that he’s a minority owner of the Sixers…just imagine how much money the majority owner has. Wow!
This is a great business decision. Congrats!
Anonymous –
Name one thing The Fresh Prince has ever done that would convince you that he has any idea what he’s doing becoming part owner of the 76ers? Is he going to sit court side and yell at the players? Have Jaden try out for shooting guard? Hey, maybe he’ll rap at half- time. You really are slow.
hiphopbaby76
will smith is a high roller been one since he became exe producer of fresh prince tv show,this is just helping to boost his profile