Steve Ballmer, owner of the Los Angeles Clippers. Photo/ Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg
The richest NBA owner is a smart investor
He made smart investment decisions a decade ago
He has an $83 billion net worth portfolio
The most surprising fact about the richest NBA owner is that it all has an undertone of smart investment decisions.
Besides, the NBA prides in ranking among the richest sports in the world. A colossal amount of money comes from the multiple revenue streams the clubs have. Media rights deals, sponsorship and advertising partnerships, ticket sales, merchandise sales, and global expansion all bring in revenue.
Additionally, the popularity of the NBA among fans also contributes to its financial success. While all these facts are constant there is something unique about Steve Ballmer, the richest NBA owner.
WHO’S THE RICHEST OWNER IN ALL OF SPORTS?
Ballmer tops as the richest man in all sports with an $83 million billion net worth portfolio as of 2022. He owns the Los Angeles Clippers and his wealth largely comes from his time as the CEO of Microsoft. He led this international company for 14 years; from 2000 to 2014.
Steve Ballmer is the richest NBA owner. Photo. Photo/CNBC
He diversified his investment to social media giant Twitter as an early investor and proceeded to successfully invest in other businesses. His huge net worth and financial muscle coupled with his passion for basketball enabled him purchase Clippers for $2 billion. This was in 2014 and the purchase increased his investment portfolio to the richest NBA owner.
WHAT BILLIONAIRE OWNS BASKETBALL TEAM?
There are a few billionaires who own basketball teams in the US. The high cost of acquiring NBA clubs, pushes a few to billionaire status because these teams do not come cheap. Some of the NBA billionaires include the following.
STEVE BALLMER
He owns Los Angeles Clippers and is worth $83 billion
MARK CUBAN
Mark Cuban owns the Dallas Mavericks with an estimated net worth of $4.8 billion
TILMAN FERTITTA
He is the Houston Rockets owner in the NBA $8.1 billion
JOE LACOB AND PETER GUBER
The duo are co-owners of the Golden State Warriors with a combined net worth of $3.8 billion. Jacob, a venture capitalist is individually worth $3 billion while Guber, a film producer is worth $800 million.
MIKHAIL PROKHOROV
He is worth $11 billion and is a former owner of the Brooklyn Nets.
WHO IS THE BEST NBA OWNER?
The richest NBA owner strongly ties to who takes the crown of the best of them. This credit goes to Jerry Buss, the ex-owner of Los Angeles Lakers. His stewardship led the team to 10 NBA championships and was a key figure in the growth of the league in the 1980s and 1990s. He transformed the Lakers into one of the league’s most successful and glamorous franchises and popularized basketball beyond the city of Los Angeles.
In addition to his success on the court, Buss had stunning innovations off the court. Some of his meticulous ideas saw him bring in high-profile celebrities to sit courtside at Lakers games and created a culture of showmanship and entertainment around the team. Buss was always willing to invest in his team, both in terms of player salaries and the development of state-of-the-art facilities like the team’s practice center.
Many of those who talk about him have an image of a man with a larger-than-life personality and his passion for the game.
WHO IS THE RICHEST ACTIVE NBA PLAYER IN THE WORLD?
LeBron James. Photo by Marca
Los Angeles Lakers all-time star LeBron James is the richest active NBA player in the world. James is worth $1 billion, and a part of his investment is in Premier League club Liverpool. He has a two per cent stake with the Reds.
James could be the richest NBA owner in the future given his huge salary with the Lakers. His total takeaway home in a year is approximately $96.5 million. This is inclusive of his salary and endorsements besides his lifetime endorsement with sportswear giant Nike, he has several other revenue streams including his media production company, SpringHill Company.
WHO ARE THE 3 BILLIONAIRE ATHLETES?
Besides LeBron James who you already know is a billionaire basketballer, other billionaire athletes include:
Michael Jordan ($1.7 billion)
Floyd Mayweather Jr ($1.2 billion)
Tiger Woods ($1.1 billion)
Save for Woods who is still in the gold pro circuit, Jordan and Mayweather retired from basketball and professional boxing respectively.
Teresa is a journalist with years of experience in creating web content. She is a wanderlust at heart, but an outgoing sports writer with focus on tennis, athletics, football, motorsports and NBA.
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