Tag: Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan agrees to sell Hornets stake for $3B

Michael Jordan has agreed to sell his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets to a group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall for an approximately $3 billion valuation, according to league sources. The transaction ends Jordan’s 13-year run as majority owner.

Schnall, a minority owner with the Atlanta Hawks, and Plotkin, a minority owner with the Hornets, will become the franchise’s governors once the NBA completes its vetting and approval process. Jordan will continue to oversee basketball operations through Thursday’s NBA draft and the start of free agency July 1.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports said, once the sale is complete, Jordan will keep a minority stake and maintain a presence with the franchise.

Jordan, a six-time NBA champion and five-time MVP, is largely considered to be the greatest player in the history of the game and has been the league’s only Black majority owner. Jordan paid $275 million for a majority stake in the franchise in 2010.

Jordan sold a significant minority stake to Plotkin, founder and chief investment officer of Melvin Capital, and Daniel Sundheim, founder and CIO of D1 Capital, in 2020, and Sundheim is part of the group purchasing the Hornets, sources said.

Schnall, co-president at private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in New York, was part of a group including majority owner Tony Ressler and Grant Hill that purchased the Hawks in 2015 for $850 million.

After a 27-55 season riddled with injuries to most of the team’s top players, the Hornets hold the No. 2 pick in the draft.

June 17, 2023
LeBron James makes NBA history, scores 40 points against all teams in league

American basketballer, Lebron James, has made NBA history by becoming the first-ever player to drop 40 points against all 30 teams in the league.

In Tuesday night’s Battle of LA., ‘The King’ (James) also sensationally tied Michael Jordan’s record of three-45-point games – the most of all-time at age 38. James is also now just 177 points away from tying Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time NBA scoring record of 38,387 career points.

He could surpass the NBA legend sometime in the next 10 games if he keeps up his form, after putting up 46 points, eight rebounds and seven assists against the Clippers, despite the Lakers losing the West Coast rivalry game 133-115.

James also hit a career-high nine three-points with 6:45 to play against the Clippers, setting a career-high from distance in his 1,404th game. But his brilliance wasn’t nearly enough, as the Lakers never caught up after falling behind by 23 points at halftime.

James spent the final minutes of Tuesday night’s game on the bench after tumbling in the stands following a steal on Kawhi Leonard with 5:17 to go in the third quarter, as Lakers head coach Darwin Ham didn’t want to potentially risk injuring the four-time NBA champion ahead of their five-game road trip starting on Saturday against the Boston Celtics.

TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that James is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Nicknamed “King James”, he is widely considered to be one of the greatest players in history and is often compared to Michael Jordan in debates over the greatest basketball player of all time.[a] James has won four NBA championships, four NBA MVP awards, four NBA Finals MVP awards, three All-Star MVP awards, and two Olympic gold medals.

James has scored the most points in the playoffs, the most career points (playoffs and regular season combined), the second most regular season points, and has the sixth most career assists. He has been selected an NBA All-Star 18 times, to the All-NBA Team a record 18 times, and to the NBA All-Defensive First Team five times.

He has competed in 10 NBA Finals, the third most all time, including eight consecutively between 2011 and 2018. In 2021, James was selected to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team, and in 2022 became the first and only player in NBA history to accumulate over 10,000 career points, rebounds, and assists.

TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) recalls that James won his first two NBA championships while playing for the Heat in 2012 and 2013; in both of these years, he also earned the league’s MVP and Finals MVP awards.

After his fourth season with the Heat in 2014, James opted out of his contract to re-sign with the Cavaliers. In 2016, he led the Cavaliers to victory over the Golden State Warriors in the Finals by coming back from a 3–1 deficit, delivering the team’s first championship and ending the Cleveland sports curse.

In 2018, James exercised his contract option to leave the Cavaliers and signed with the Lakers, where he won the 2020 NBA championship and his fourth Finals MVP.

James is also the first player in NBA history to accumulate $1 billion in earnings as an active player.

Off the court, James has accumulated more wealth and fame from numerous endorsement contracts. He has been featured in books, documentaries (including winning two Sports Emmy Awards as an executive producer), and television commercials.

He has won 19 ESPY Awards, hosted Saturday Night Live, and starred in the sports film Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021).

James has been a part-owner of Liverpool F.C. since 2011 and leads the LeBron James Family Foundation, which has opened an elementary school, housing complex, retail plaza/community center, and medical center in Akron.

January 25, 2023
Michael B. Jordan, Lori Harvey confirm romantic relationship

American actor, and Lori Harvey, a US model, have finally confirmed their relationship after months of dating rumours.

TheNewsGuru recalls that the rumours of the duo’s romance first sparked mid last year after they were seen arriving at an Atlanta airport together just before Thanksgiving. They were also spotted together again in December de-boarding a plane in Salt Lake City.

But on Sunday night, the pair took to their personal Instagram pages to confirm the rumours while sharing loved-up photos of each other.

The ‘Black Panther’ actor shared a photo of himself in a warm embrace with the 24-year-old.

In the same vein, the model, who is the step-daughter of Steve Harvey, a popular comedian and TV host, also posted a photo of the love birds in a romantic pose.

January 11, 2021
Michael Jordan donates $100m to racial equality groups

Basketball legend Michael Jordan said Friday he is making a record $100 million donation to groups fighting for racial equality and social justice.

The donation comes amid a wave of protests across the United States.

MJ said in a statement his Jordan Brand would distribute the money over 10 years to different organisations in a bid to stamp out “ingrained racism.”

The pledge is believed to be the largest financial contribution to non-profit groups ever made by a figure from the sports world.

“It’s 2020 and our family now includes anyone who aspires to our way of life,” a joint statement from Jordan and his Jordan Brand said.

“Yet as much as things have changed the worst remains the same.

“Black lives matter. This isn’t a controversial statement. Until the ingrained racism that allows our country’s institutions to fail is completely eradicated, we will remain committed to protecting and improving the lives of Black people,” the statement added.

“Today we are announcing that Michael Jordan and Jordan Brand will be donating $100 million over the next 10 years to organisations dedicated to ensuring racial equality, social justice and greater access to education.”

Jordan’s donation comes after a week of unprecedented nationwide protests across the United States following the death of an unarmed black man during an arrest in Minneapolis.

Large scale demonstrations have been held in all 50 states, with protesters demanding an end to police brutality and systemic racism after George Floyd’s death on May 25.

Jordan, regarded by many as the greatest player in NBA history with an estimated net worth of $2.1 billion, had already issued a passionate statement decrying Floyd’s killing.

“I am deeply saddened, truly pained and plain angry,” Jordan, 57, said last Sunday. “We have had enough.”

Jordan’s donation and impassioned recent statements followed criticism during his playing career over his reluctance to take a more prominent role in activist causes.

June 6, 2020