After 13 years, Michael Jordan has sold the Charlotte Hornets. First reported by Adrian Wojnarowski, Jordan is finalizing a sale to an ownership group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall. The news comes amid rumors that the team is looking to swing a trade to bring 2019 first-overall pick Zion Williamson to Charlotte.
However, this could be the start of a new era in Charlotte. The Hornets have long been regarded as one of the NBA’s worst teams. Since Jordan assumed majority ownership in 2010, the team has had just three winning seasons and two playoff appearances. Last season, the team went 27-55 under head coach Steve Clifford. 2022-23 marked the first season of Clifford’s second stint with the team. Previously, Clifford had coached the Hornets between 2013 and 2018. However, the new ownership group also features a famous face from the music world.
J. Cole Joins Hornets Ownership
First reported by Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today, North Carolina rapper J. Cole will hold a minority stake in the Charlotte Hornets once the sale is finalized. Cole was born in Frankfurt, Germany but raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina. A lifelong sports fan, specifically basketball, Cole has made several headlines related to the NBA in recent months. Namely, Cole was behind the Miami Heat’s signing of Caleb Martin, a fellow North Carolinian who found himself in Cole’s gym after being cut by the Hornets. Martin later thanked Cole for the opportunity after the Miami Heat made the NBA Finals this season. Elsewhere, LSU star Flau’jae Johnson named Cole as her dream music collab.
Zillgitt also revealed that Eric Church was another member of the ownership group. Church, born in Granite Falls, North Carolina, is a country singer with six top-five charting albums. However, Cole’s love of basketball makes it no surprise that the musician would become part of the new-look Hornets. The final price of the sale has not yet been made public. However, Jordan bought majority ownership of the team in 2010 for $180 million. Do you think that the new ownership will turn the Hornets around? Let us know in the comments. Follow all the latest sports and music news here at HotNewHipHop.
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