Michael Jordan set the bar high for NBA players to own when he purchased the Charlotte Hornets. Grant Hill (Hawks), Shaquille O’Neal (Kings), Dwyane Wade (Jazz) and Magic Johnson (Lakers) have had roles as minority owners of the NBA. LeBron James has made it clear that he wants to be part of the ownership group if (more specifically, when) an NBA expansion franchise in Las Vegas is announced.
Stephen Curry wants to join the club, he said on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street.”
“For me, it’s definitely on the table. I think I could do a good job of helping maintain the greatness of the NBA right now and what it takes to run a championship organization…
“I know I still have a lot to accomplish on the field before I take on other roles in the league.”
Curry recently agreed to a one-year, $62.6 million extension which locks him in with the Warriors for three more years, until he’s 39.
It’s easy to imagine Curry or LeBron as Hill. Atlanta and Magic had with the Lakers, not as a principal owner (they are rich but not rich enough to buy an NBA team) but as a minority owner and face of the franchise. For example, LeBron James is now a billionaire (according to Forbes), but the expansion fees for new NBA teams are expected to approach $6 billion, which is just the buy-in and does not include all the expenses of creating a team.
Before we see Curry as an owner, we’ll have a few more years of Curry as a player, and that will be a good thing for fans everywhere.
