CHARLOTTE — Charlotte Hornets majority owner Michael Jordan released a statement today through his Jump Management confirming discussions with a minority investor about selling more of the NBA franchise but offered no details.
ESPN reported on March 16 that Jordan, who bought the Hornets for $175 million in 2010, is “in serious talks” to sell controlling interest to minority partner Gabe Plotkin and Atlanta Hawks minority partner Rick Schnall. At the time, Jordan’s Jump Management responded with a terse statement: “We don’t comment on rumors and speculation.”
Less than a week later, “rumors and speculation” have become “a natural step in a process.”
Jump Management said as much in its statement today: “Four years ago, Michael Jordan sold a stake in the Charlotte Hornets to a Gabe Plotkin-led group, As a natural step in a process due to that transaction, Michael and Gabe are in discussions about his group potentially buying an additional stake. At this time, it is unclear whether an additional sale will take place.”
VIDEO: Michael Jordan in talks to sell majority stake in Hornets, ESPN reports
:quality(70)/d1hfln2sfez66z.cloudfront.net/03-17-2023/t_e4031e5484a44594bbd25c0f021b58e8_name_GettyImages_1130408758.jpg)
©2023 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LH3JSJEF3VBLRJLJQESEAG34AM.png)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/SNIY2Q6TBJEL7MXONCB7XKGJ4E.jpg)
:quality(70)/d1hfln2sfez66z.cloudfront.net/04-19-2024/t_adcbd0ba2b1d4c3bacdd361059c824a6_name_file_960x540_1200_v3_1_.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/2TFZTCNBXJD5XFTE7N7ZEGQ67Q.jpeg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LO2Z4E5HVVESNIFDWE3DYSFR3I.jpeg)