LeBron James isn't ready to retire from the NBA but said Friday when he does hang up his jersey that he plans to buy an NBA franchise.
“Ain’t no maybe about it, I’m going to do that s**t,” James told The Athletic.
According to Yahoo Sports, team ownership has long been a goal of the three-time NBA champion.
Forbes reports the average NBA team was worth $1.65 billion in 2018; in a separate report, the magazine noted James' net worth is currently about $450 million.
James did not give any further details about how he'd bridge that gap, but his dear friend, colleague and previous teammate Dwayne Wade gave a hint, stating he shares the Lakers star's goal.
"Obviously, [the Heat] organization is the first one I would love to talk about when the time is right," Wade said according to Newsweek.
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However, Wade also said he'd be willing to buy teams outside of Miami.
"I live on the West Coast as well," Wade continued. "I would definitely love Seattle to come back and be a part of the NBA because it's a great sports town.”
Whether the two would pool their wealth to buy a team together (or to create their own) will likely be revealed in the years to come.
Should James and Wade be successful, they would follow in the footsteps of other NBA giants such as Michael Jordan, majority owner of the Charlotte Hornets, and Magic Johnson, president of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Johnson said he's all about James' ownership dreams.
“Having Michael in Charlotte is great and it’s special, but we need more,” Magic told The Athletic. “LeBron would be outstanding as the second player to be an owner in our league. We need more African Americans, for sure, and LeBron would just be fantastic to become the next owner — after he leads the Lakers to an NBA championship, of course.”
Johnson signed James to a three-year deal with the Lakers just last summer, as Blavity reported. The team has yet to find its footing, however, with a record of 28-29 thus far this season.
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