J. Cole is officially now a part-owner of the Charlotte Hornets after Michael Jordan sold his majority stake in the team.
According to a statement released by the Hornets on Friday (June 16), the Fayetteville rapper is part of The Buyer Group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall alongside country singer Eric Church.
The Buyer Group reportedly purchased the franchise from MJ for $3billion after the Chicago Bulls icon bought the team in 2010 for $275million.
Jordan will retain a minority stake in the team and remain as a figure around the Hornets as the deal will be finalized in the days ahead pending NBA Board of Governors’ approval, per ESPN.
In his 13 seasons at the helm as the NBA’s first Black owner, Jordan’s Hornets struggled as they compiled the fifth-worst losing percentage in that span as well as never finishing higher than the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference.
Schnall was previously a minority owner with the Atlanta Hawks while Plotkin was a minority owner within the Hornets organization already before they teamed up to lead The Buyer Group.
Cole, a North Carolina native, has been a courtside mainstay at Hornets games over the years while supporting his home state team. As a lover of hoops and ambassador for the game, J. Cole’s involvement shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise.
In recent years, he’s suited up in professional leagues in Canada and Africa. The 38-year-old made history as the first rapper to grace the cover of NBA 2K and was credited with helping Caleb Martin sign with the Miami Heat, who played an integral role in their NBA Finals run.
The Hornets are coming off a lowly 27-55 season as the new ownership group and J. Cole will look to turn the franchise around and inject a profound enthusiasm and energy into the team while remaking its image.
Charlotte currently holds the No. 2 pick in next week’s NBA Draft but, according to Marc Stein, the team is rumored to be in negotiations on a possible trade of the pick for New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson, who has recently been embroiled in controversy.
Purchased for 273 and sold for 3 billion 13 years later ?
Something sounds fishy.
Inflation
Michael Jordan was not the 1st Black NBA Owner, Bob Johnson (BET) was and then he sold the team to MJ.
No where in this article does it detail J. Cole’s purchase. How much was it and what stake does he have?
MJ sold a (portion) of his majority stake in the Hornets NBA team to an investment group, The Buyer Grp – which includes J. Cole, other current team owners, & other investors. though the team hasn’t performed well in recent yeas, it’s still worth far more than $3bln, of course.
MJ has kept a minority ownership stake in the team as well – that amount wasn’t provided. He’ll likely not be actively involved in the teams operations. J. Cole has assisted other NBA players with their contracts & other player biz. It’s not known how much of stake/ownership he has with this recent deal.
MJ sold a (portion) of his majority stake in the Hornets NBA team to an investment group, The Buyer Grp – which includes J. Cole, other current team owners, & other investors. though the team hasn’t performed well in recent yeas, it’s still worth far more than $3bln, of course.
MJ has kept a minority ownership stake in the team as well – that amount wasn’t provided. He’ll likely not be actively involved in the teams operations. J. Cole has assisted other NBA players with their contracts & other player biz. It’s not known how much of stake/ownership he has with this recent deal.