- Michael Jordan is considered the greatest NBA player of all time.
- He’s also the richest former professional athlete in the world with a net worth of $2 billion.
- Since he retired in 2003, he has built a lucrative career and uses his wealth for philanthropic purposes.
- He also indulges: He has a secret golf course, sprawling estates, an NBA team, restaurants, interest in DraftKings, and even a $3 million car.
Michael Jordan was already a billionaire, and now he just added to his fortune.
The NBA announced that Jordan was selling his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets for $3 billion. Not bad for the $275 million investment he initially made when he bought the club in 2010.
Jordan will keep a minority stake in the franchise.
Before the sale, Jordan was already living the high life. Below we take a look at how he has amassed his fortune and what he spends it on.
Since Jordan retired 15 years ago, he has built the most successful and lucrative career we’ve ever seen from a former athlete.
He made less than $100 million as the NBA’s greatest player of all time, but that hasn’t stopped him from becoming a billionaire with an estimated net worth of $2 billion.
Jordan was the world’s first athlete billionaire.
Source: Forbes
Elsa/Getty Images
Source: Forbes
AP
Source: Business Insider
Chris Szagola/AP Photo
Source: Forbes
Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Source: Business Insider
Daniel /Allsport
Source: Business Insider
Source: Forbes, Business Insider, Los Angeles Times
AP
He earned $90 million total in NBA salary, and about $63 million of that came in his final two seasons with the Chicago Bulls.
Source: Forbes, Spotrac, Basketball-Reference
Source: Business Insider
Source: Business Insider
Abbie Parr/Getty Images
Jordan purchased the club for $275 million and he reportedly owned a 97% of the team. He did sell a minority stake in 2019 before selling most of his remaining ownership for $3 billion.
Source: Business Insider, Charlotte Observer
Jeff Haynes/Staff/Getty Images
Source: Business Insider
Grove XXIII — keeping with his obsession with the No. 23 — opened in the fall of 2019 in Hobe Sound, Florida.
Jordan loves to golf, and his course has quite the nickname. Called “Slaughterhouse 23,” it earned the name since it was designed by Jordan, for Jordan, and aimed at maximizing Jordan’s style of play against his opponents, especially when playing for money against pro golfers.
Source: Insider
Source: Insider
“In these challenging times and in a year of unimaginable difficulty due to COVID-19, it’s more important than ever to pause and give thanks,” he said in a statement.
The June announcement came amid nationwide Black Lives Matter protests over the killing of George Floyd.
Source: Insider
Other investors included Will Smith, Kevin Durant, and 2 Chainz.
Source: Insider
AP Photo/Thibault Camus
The company’s shares surged 12% immediately following the announcement.
Source: Business Insider
Ezra Shaw/Getty
Source: Business Insider
Susan Ragan/AP Photo
Source: Business Insider
YouTube/Hanes
Source: Business Insider
Amazon
Jordan said he has always been picky about his endorsements because he wanted to be genuine and also build his own brand.
Jordan told Playboy, “How can I stand in front of a camera and say I’ll eat Beanee Weenees?” He said the deal was close to $1 million per year — at the time, he had made less than $5 million in career earnings.
Source: Playboy
Source: Business Insider, Eater
