LeBron James has earlier said that his plan is to own an NBA team in the future, and here is a breakdown of how he is capable of doing it.
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is one of the most famous athletes in the world. He is a 4-time NBA champion, and his name is always up in the GOAT conversations.
Aside from basketball, LeBron has achieved a lot of success off the court as well. He recently became a billionaire and has been running numerous successful businesses around the world. Due to his popularity and a great circle of advisors, he has continued to achieve success wherever he has stepped foot.
He was nicknamed the chosen one during his high school days before entering the NBA. LeBron James has proven that nickname to be true, as he was the chosen one to build this legacy that will be remembered forever.
Recently, LeBron expressed his desire to own an NBA team in the future. He made it clear that he would love to own a team that is based in Las Vegas. With continuous rumors about the possible expansion of the NBA, two cities that have been linked to getting an NBA team are Seattle and Las Vegas.
In this article, we will break down how LeBron James is able to show an interest in buying an NBA Franchise, and what he has done to reach the position to buy it.
LeBron James is a billionaire but he’ll still need more money to buy an NBA Team
Even though LeBron James just became a billionaire, it will not be enough for him to alone own an NBA franchise. He has made a huge success in various business ventures to reach this point.
Here’s a breakdown of LeBron’s net worth:
- Spring Hill Company: $300m
- Fenway Sports Group: $90m
- Real Estate: $80m
- Blaze Pizza: $30m
- Cash + Investments: $500m
Everyone is well aware of LeBron’s association with Fenway Sports Group. He purchased a small stake in the ownership of Liverpool FC back in 2011. At that time, his 2% share in Liverpool FC was worth $6.5 million, but now it’s about $90 million.
This is due to the increase in the value of Liverpool FC from $500 million to $4.5 billion. It has been possible due to the success that they have had under Jurgen Klopp, and they are destined to achieve more success in the future. It will eventually increase the value of Liverpool FC, thereby giving more profit to LeBron and FSG.
The Fenway Sports Group is also the owner of:
- Pittsburgh Penguins
- Boston Red Sox
FSG is heavily interested in getting ownership of an NBA team. Hence, it’s very possible that LeBron James and the Fenway Sports Group will join forces again to become the owners of an NBA franchise in the future.
According to reports: The expansion fee of a new NBA franchise will probably be $3 billion-plus by the time that happens. As a result, LeBron James will require help from the likes of FSG to get an NBA franchise.
LeBron is a 1% stakeholder in FSG
Last year, the Fenway Sports Group raised $750 million by selling 10% of their business to RedBird Capital. After that deal was finalized, LeBron James was named a partner at FSG along with Maverick Carter.
Later LeBron James transferred his 2% ownership stake in Liverpool into a 1% stake in the parent company. As a result, he is now involved with Boston Red Sox, the Pittsburgh Penguins also along with Liverpool FC.
All of it is leading to the way that LeBron James and FSG will heavily pursue to become the owners of an NBA team that will be in Vegas after the expansion. However, since LeBron is a basketball savant, he’ll be the main head of that basketball team.
LeBron has always chased Michael Jordan’s greatness on the court. In the future, he might be competing with Jordan among the owners as well. Michael Jordan himself is the owner of the Charlotte Hornets. However, MJ hasn’t achieved much success with his team, and LeBron will have a chance to leapfrog him in that category.
Credits to Joe Pompliano for an amazing thread on his Twitter account, on which this whole article is based.
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