The NBA is one of the world's most popular professional sports leagues. It is the most popular professional basketball league in the world. Because of its popularity, NBA franchises have a price tag in the billions. With teams being expensive to own, it requires insanely wealthy owners.
So we decided to put together this list of the richest NBA owners. Some of these owners are well-known personalities, like Steve Ballmer or Mark Cuban. Still, many are relatively unknown pioneers of companies that remain relatively unknown behind their NBA franchise scenes.
The Richest NBA Owners in 2022
Joe Lacob 1.5 Billion (USD)
Joe Lacob became a part-owner of the Boston Celtics, becoming a co-investor with H. Irving Drousbeck. In 2010, Lacob bought the Golden State Warriors with a group of investors for $450 million, which required him to sell his minority stake in the Celtics team. The team is now worth significantly more. It would be bought for billions of dollars if the team was auctioned today. He is known for his willingness to spend money on the team, as he has fronted an absurd luxury tax bill (a fee for signing contracts for players that total above the salary cap) and has said he will continue to do so. For example, his 2023 luxury tax bill is estimated to be around $400 million if they retained all their players, making the bill only $50 million away from the price he paid to purchase the team.
Joe Lacob is another well-known NBA owner. He owns the Golden State Warriors, who have won four NBA championships and made eight NBA finals in the last ten years behind NBA superstar Stephen Curry. They also won the NBA finals in the last season played. The team generates a lot of revenue from ticket sales. He recently invested money into building a new arena.
Mark Cuban 4.7 billion (USD)
Mark Cuban may be the most famous when it comes to NBA owners. He is known as one of the most passionate and vocal team owners and is constantly seen at the Dallas Mavericks game cheering behind the bench. He is an American entrepreneur, television personality, and media proprietor. He's most known for his spot on ABC's reality television investment show Shark Tank.
Mark Cuban purchased a majority stake in the team for $285 million in 2000. Cuban has received plenty of media coverage for his controversial statements over the years of his ownership. He has been fined a substantial amount of money for criticizing refs, yelling at players, and calling Nuggets fans “thugs.” His largest fine is $600,000 for stating that the MAvericks should “tank” (intentionally lose games for a higher draft pick), which the commissioner Adam Silver deemed was “for public statements detrimental to the NBA.
Joshua Harris $5.6 Billion (USD)
Joshua Harris is the owner of the Philadelphia 76'ers, one of the largest and most popular NMBA franchises. The 76'ers are a historic franchise and have fielded some of the best teams and players in the history of the NBA. Josh is a private equity investor and philanthropist. He co-founded Apollo Global Management. Harris and business partner David S. Blitzer (Blackstone Group) are co-founders of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment. They won their bid for the Sixers team, purchasing them for $280 million in 2011.
He is the managing partner of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers. As a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They have one of the most famous NBA stars, All-Star Center Joel Embiid, a perennial MVP candidate. Harris is also a managing partner of the National Hockey League’s New Jersey Devils.
Antony Ressler $5.9 Billion (USD)
Ressler was born on October 12, 1960, and is among the richest NBA owners. He is a private equity investor and the co-founder of Apollo Global Management. He also co-founded Ares Management in 1997. Ressler is the majority and controlling owner of the Atlanta Haws, purchasing the team with his group in June 2015 for $850 million.
The team plays its home games at State Farm Arena. It is the 23rd most popular basketball team. The team has had several down seasons but broke out in 2021 by reaching the Eastern Conference Finals after upsetting the Philidelphia 76'ers. They have one of the most dynamic young guards on their team, All-Star Trae Young.
Tom Gores $6 Billion (USD)
Tom Gores is one of the richest businessmen in the United States and the founder of Platinum Equity, a private equity firm in Beverly Hills, California. Gores and Platinum Equity purchased Palace Sports and Entertainment, becoming the owners of the parent company of the Pitons and its former arena, The Palace at Auburn Hills, in 2011. He owned a 51% stake, while Platinum Equity owned a 49% stake. He later became the sole owner, purchasing the 49% stake from Platinum Equity in 2015. Gores purchased the franchise for the price of $325 million, considered a bargain at the time. Considering a similar-sized franchise, the Minnesota Timberwolves, just sold for $1.5 billion, it would seem like a great investment choice.
The Detroit Pistons play in the Eastern Conference Central Division. Their home games are at Little Caesars Arena in Midtown. They play in the same division as the Chicago Bulls. At this time, the franchise is going through a rebuilding process but has picked highly-touted young players like Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey in recent NBA drafts.
Micky Arison $6.1 Billion (USD)
Micky Arison is an Israeli-American billionaire businessman and chairman of Carnival Corporation, the world's largest cruise operator. He has also acted as the company's CEO in the past. He has served time on the NBA Board of Governors.
He purchased the Miami Heat in 1995. Arison hired one of the best coaches in NBA history, Pat Riley, who is today the Heat's acting President of Basketball Operations. Pat Riley has brought three championships to the Heat in 2006, 2012, and 2013.
They are the 6th most popular team in the NBA, with 5 million followers on Twitter.
Joseph Tsai $8.8 Billion (USD)
Tsai is the co-founder and executive vice-chairman of the Chinese multinational technology company Alibaba Group. He owns the Brooklyn Nets, a team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn that competes in the Atlantic division of the Eastern Conference. The team is the 25th most popular on the charts, with 1.7 million followers on Twitter.
Tsai also owns the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the San Diego Seals of the National Lacrosse League. He purchased 49% of the Brooklyn Nets NBA in 2018.
He bought the remaining 51% in 2019. Born in Taiwan, he is a naturalized Canadian citizen with a Hong Kong SAR passport.
Ann Walton Kroenke $8.1 Billion (USD)
Ann Kroenke is the heiress to the Walmart fortune. Walmart is one of the biggest companies in the United States and is worth around $429 billion. She has made her fortune with real estate and by inheriting shares from the Walmart brand. She is married to fellow billionaire Stan Kroenke, who is the majority owner and CEO of multiple sports teams, including the Los Angeles Rams (NFL), Arsenal (Premier League), Colorado Rapids (Major League Soccer), and Colorado Mammoth (National Lacrosse League).
She is the head of the Kroenke Sports & Entertainment ownership group, which owns the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche. The Nuggets compete in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference and have reigning league MVP Nikola Jokic on their roster.
Robert Pera $15.9 Billion (USD)
Robert Pera was born on March 10, 1978, and is the youngest owner in the NBA. He is the founder of Ubiquiti Networks, Inc., a global technology company that Pera took public in 2011.
He bought the Memphis Grizzlies and became the owner in October 2012, purchasing the team from Michael Heisley. Pera is a big supporter of the Grizzlies Foundation, a sports charity based in Memphis.
The Memphis Grizzlies are based in Memphis, Tennessee, and are a member of the league’s Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays their home games at FedExForum.
Dan Gilbert $18.1 Billion (USD)
Dan Gilbert is the owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers. He co-founded Quicken Loans and owns 1.9 billion shares, around 70% of the company's total. His net worth increased substantially after Quicken Loans decided to take their company public, which increased the stock price.
Gilbert purchased the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2005 and put in a lot of effort to rebuild the franchise. The Cleveland Cavalier franchise competes in the NBA’s Eastern Conference Central Division and is ranked 18th in popularity.
Dan is well-known in NBA circles after sparking controversy by releasing a letter after Lebron James, one of the best players in NBA History and a Cleveland native, left the team to play for the Miami Heat. The letter was written in the Comic Sans font. It included a statement saying, “I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING' WINS ONE.” This proved false, as Lebron would later win his first championship with the Miami Heat in his second year playing for the Heat franchise.
Steve Ballmer $88.9 billion (USD)
Steve Ballmer is the former CEO of Microsoft and is the richest owner on our list. He has the highest net worth of any NBA owner in history. He is the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers. The value of this NBA team has increased since he bought it.
Steve Ballmer bought the team after former owner The NBA ousted Donald Sterling from the league after TMZ Sports released audio of Donald and his mistress, in which Donald made racist comments. This drew a lot of media coverage, as the Clippers players protested the racial remarks made by their owners. Sterling was eventually banned from the league for life and was stripped of all authority over the Clippers organization, paving the way for the franchise to be sold.
The Los Angeles Clippers is a member of the Pacific Division in the league’s Western Conference. It is ranked fourteenth on the chart of popularity and fame.
Conclusion
The richest owners of the NBA are businessmen who have inherited a lot of wealth and are trying their luck by purchasing the franchise. Most of the teams are based in the US, but the big giants of the league try their luck in other countries as well. If you are a fan of the NBA, check out these most valuable Giannis Antekokounmpo basketball cards.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Who is the commissioner of the NBA?
Adam Silver is an American lawyer, sports executive, and the fifth and current commissioner of the NBA. He was preceded by David Stern, known by most as the greatest sports commissioner of all time.
Who created the NBA?
In 1946, the Boston Garden owner, Walter Brown, found ice hockey arenas vacant most nights and thought of hosting a basketball game. The NBA is a 70-year-old organization, which started with 11 teams, including the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Washington Wizards, Golden State Warriors, and Philadelphia 76ers, and today has more than 30.
