Floyd Mayweather is attempting to extend his legend as the best boxer businessman by buying an NBA franchise. Mayweather spoke during Market Mondays, a popular podcast hosted at a sold-out Madison Square Garden last week, where he discussed how he pivoted from a Top Rank promotional star to the head of Mayweather Promotions and now a multi-faceted entrepreneur.
Floyd Mayweather To Buy NFL Franchise?
There is another challenge he hopes to conquer, and that is becoming a majority owner of a basketball franchise.
Exclusive: Floyd Mayweather currently trying to purchase an NBA team, says he got over $2 billion to spend 💰 pic.twitter.com/tYS8DwDaXK
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“I’ve been working on buying an NBA team outright,” Mayweather said to the hosts of the “Earn Your Leisure” podcast event. “One of my other business partners, Brent Johnson, he’s here. So we’ve been working on the NBA team for a while now. It’s kind of; it’s rough.
“It could be the Vegas franchise,” Mayweather continued. “It could be the Seattle franchise or I could be buying a franchise that’s already up and running. So the first offer, we offered them a little over $2 billion for majority ownership. Do I have it? Absolutely, I have it, but it didn’t happen overnight. It didn’t happen overnight. It’s a lot when you have so many different businesses all around the world. It’s a lot.”
Where Money May Land
Now the only question is, which team is Mayweather looking to purchase? Currently, the only NBA team known to be for sale is the Phoenix Suns after disgraced owner Robert Sarver’s “ousting.” The team owner was mired in bad press after the NBA discovered his penchant for using racial epithets and misogynistic terms. In late September, the NBA suspended and fined him $10 million after an investigation found he committed workplace violations, shortly after he announced his intention to sell the team.
The team is estimated to be sold for around $2.5 billion, 523 percent more than the $401 million Sarver paid in 2004, per reports. It would become the second-highest sale price in NBA history. Additionally, Portland is currently out of stock, but many expect it will become available in the coming years. Mayweather, a Las Vegas local, would be an ideal owner for an expansion franchise. Cities like Seattle and Las Vegas have been mentioned in the NBA expansion conversation, but there is no telling when that will happen.
Full Circle Sin City Moment?
Franchise expansions must have the votes to approve them a few years out, followed by a couple of years of build-up for the move. The price tag for entry into one of those franchises may be well above $2 billion, but Mayweather has friends who have also expressed interest. During the 2022 preseason, LeBron James floated the idea for NBA commissioner Adam Silver to add a team in Las Vegas, adding that he would like to own the team if the league does expand to Sin City.
“I would love to bring a team here at some point. That would be amazing,” James said to the media. “So, I want the team here, Adam. Thank you.”
Mayweather has been at the top of the Forbes richest athlete’s list as an active professional boxer. He also joined the club of athletes who have made a billion or more dollars and, in retirement, is revolutionizing the exhibition boxing showcases into an internationally lucrative spectacle. Mayweather wants to buy an NBA team, and “Money” usually gets what he wants, adding another entertainment level to the hardwood.
