NBA team owners come from many different industries, and their fortunes are often built outside of basketball.
Many owners have built their wealth through a wide range of businesses, from tech and finance to hospitality and real estate. Here are the 10 owners who boast a huge amount of wealth with their ownership of certain NBA franchises.
Micky Arison — $8.6 Billion
The owner of the Miami Heat and chairman of Carnival Corporation, Micky Arison, has an estimated net worth of $8.6 billion. The estimation puts him at #137 on the Forbes 400 list for 2024.
He received the majority of the ownership from his father in 1995. His wealth mainly comes from Carnival Corporation — this is the world’s largest cruise operator organization.
Tom Gores — $9.4 Billion
According to Forbes, Tom Gores’ estimated net worth stands at $9.4 billion. He is the founder and CEO of Platinum Equity. He founded this firm in 1995 and managed over $48 billion of assets and has investments in companies like Ingram Micro and McGraw Hill.
He bought the Detroit Pistons in 2011 for $325 million, and their value has since increased to $3.4 billion. This is not all, he also purchased a 27% stake in the Los Angeles Chargers NFL team for $750 million.
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Looking at his real estate, we see that he owns a mansion in the Holmby Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, which he purchased for $100 million in 2016 and is now valued at around $150 million.
Tilman Fertitta — $10.7 Billion
The Houston Rockets’ owner Tilman Fertitta’s net worth is estimated to be at $10.7 billion, per Forbes. He is also the owner of Landry’s Inc., a Texas-based entertainment and hospitality conglomerate encompassing brands such as Golden Nugget Casinos, Morton’s The Steakhouse, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., and Rainforest Cafe and it plays a huge role in expanding his wealth. He bought the Rockets in 2017 for $2.2 billion; its valuation now stands at $4.9 billion.
Joseph Tsai — $11.6 billion
Joseph Tsai is the co-founder of Alibaba Group. He has an estimated net worth of $11.6 billion ranking him 339th on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
His major wealth comes from his 1.4% stake in Alibaba. He has diversified his investments through his family office, Blue Pool Capital, managing a portfolio of technology startups, real estate holdings, and public equities. In the sports world, Tsai fully acquired the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center in 2019 for $2.35 billion and also owns the WNBA’s New York Liberty, along with stakes in lacrosse teams like the San Diego Seals and Las Vegas Desert Dogs.
Antony Ressler — $11.9 Billion
Antony Ressler has an estimated net worth of $11.9 billion, according to Grizzly Bulls’ Billionaires Index. He is the co-founder and executive chairman of Ares Management, a leading alternative asset manager with approximately $464 billion in assets under management.
He holds a 17% stake in Ares Management. He is the majority owner of NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, having acquired the team in 2015 for $850 million and minority owner of Milwaukee Brewers. The Hawks’ current valuation stands at $3.8 billion.
Stan Kroenke — $18 Billion
Stan Kroenke’s net worth is estimated at $18 billion and this valuation alone makes him the 11th richest sports team owner. His wealth comes from his diverse portfolio which includes real estate, sports franchises, and media ventures.
He is also the founder of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (KSE), which owns several major sports teams, including the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams, NBA’s Denver Nuggets, NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, MLS’s Colorado Rapids, and Premier League’s Arsenal FC. He also owns extensive ranchlands across North America, making him one of the largest landowners in the United States. He has invested in the wine industry, owning the prestigious Screaming Eagle Winery in Napa Valley.
Robert Pera — $19.9 Billion
The estimated net worth of Robert Pera Stands at $19.9 billion. He is the owner of the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies. This valuation makes him #14 richest sports team owner and #135 in the billionaire list in Forbes.
His wealth mainly comes from his substantial ownership stake—approximately 93%—in Ubiquiti, a publicly traded wireless networking company that reported $1.9 billion in revenue for the fiscal year ending August 2023. In 2012, Pera purchased the Memphis Grizzlies for $377 million and under his ownership the valuation of the team has grown significantly reaching $3.2 billion.
Dan Gilbert — $21.4 Billion
Dan Gilbert’s net worth is estimated at $21.4 billion, which gives him the ranking of #71 in worldwide millionaires. His wealth is mainly built from his majority ownership of Rocket Companies (NYSE: RKT), the parent of Rocket Mortgage, which originated $79 billion in mortgages in 2023.
He founded Rock Financial in 1985, sold it to Intuit in 1999 for $370 million, and repurchased it in 2002 for $64 million, later rebranding it as Quicken Loans and taking it public as Rocket Companies in 2020. He has invested over $5.6 billion in revitalizing downtown Detroit through his firm Rock Ventures, acquiring more than 100 properties and creating approximately 24,000 jobs.
He also owns the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, purchased in 2005 for $375 million, with the team’s value now standing at $3.95 billion. Additionally, Gilbert co-founded StockX, an online marketplace valued at $3.8 billion.
Miriam Adelson and Family — $30.1 Billion
Miriam Adelson’s net worth is estimated at $30.1 billion, ranking her among the top 50 wealthiest individuals globally and the richest person in Nevada. Her wealth mainly comes from majority ownership in Las Vegas Sands Corp., a leading casino and resort company with significant operations in Macao and Singapore.
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In 2022, the company sold its Las Vegas properties, including The Venetian Resort and Sands Expo and Convention Center, for $6.25 billion. In December 2023, Adelson expanded her portfolio by acquiring a majority stake in the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks from Mark Cuban for approximately $3.5 billion.
Steve Ballmer — $128.2 Billion
Steve Ballmer’s net worth is estimated at $128.2 million placing him among the top 10 wealthiest individuals globally. The majority of his wealth originates from his substantial holdings in Microsoft, where he served as CEO from 2000 to 2014.
Ballmer is believed to retain approximately 4% of Microsoft’s shares, making him the company’s largest individual shareholder. In 2014, Ballmer purchased the Los Angeles Clippers NBA team for $2 billion, a record at the time for a professional basketball team. Under his ownership, the team’s value has more than doubled, now estimated at approximately $5.5 billion.