Michael Jordan's Sale of Hornets Stake to Rick Schnall, Gabe Plotkin Completed

The Charlotte Hornets are officially being run by Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin.

Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Michael Jordan's sale of a majority stake in the franchise to Schnall and Plotkin has been completed.

Jordan agreed to sell his stake in the Hornets to Schnall and Plotkin for an approximately $3 billion valuation in June.

The sale was approved by the NBA's board of governors in a 29-1 vote on July 23, clearing the way for the completed sale to be "executed in the next one to two weeks," per Wojnarowski.

Jordan will maintain a minority stake in the franchise and serve as an alternate governor. He issued a statement about the sale being completed:

"The opportunity to be the majority owner of the Charlotte Hornets in my home state of North Carolina for the last 13 years has been a tremendous honor. I'm proud of all that the organization accomplished: the exciting on-court moments, the return of the Hornets name, Charlotte hosting the 2019 NBA All-Star Game and HSE becoming a true pillar of this community. Through the years, the unwavering commitment, passion and loyalty of our Hornets fans has been incredible. As I transition into a minority ownership role, I'm thrilled to be able to pass the reins to two successful, innovative and strategic leaders in Gabe and Rick. I know the Hornets organization is in great hands moving forward. I'm excited about the future of the team and will continue to support the organization and the community in my new role in the years ahead."

The Basketball Hall of Famer originally purchased a minority stake in the team in 2006 when it was known as the Charlotte Bobcats. He became a majority governor for the franchise in 2010 when the NBA approved his $275 million bid to buy it from Bob Johnson.

Plotkin and Daniel Sundheim came on as minority investors for the Hornets in 2020.

Wojnarowski noted Sundheim is part of the current group that purchased the team. Schnall had been a minority owner of the Atlanta Hawks since 2015.

Since Jordan took over as the majority governor, the Hornets have made just two playoff appearances in the past 13 seasons. They have three winning seasons during that span and haven't won a postseason series.

The approximate $3 billion valuation would mark the third-highest sale price for an NBA franchise. Mat Ishbia purchased the Phoenix Suns and WNBA's Phoenix Mercury for $4 billion in February. Joe Tsai spent $3.3 billion on the Brooklyn Nets in 2019.