Michael Jordan’s tortured run as an NBA owner continued on Wednesday when he missed out on an “alien” prospect by one pick.
Victor Wembanyama could have changed everything for Michael Jordan.
For more than a decade the NBA’s greatest player has endured disappointment after disappointment as the owner of the underperforming Charlotte Hornets.
But as the NBA’s draft lottery — or as it was commonly known the Wembanyama sweepstakes — drew to a thrilling close on Wednesday, Jordan’s Hornets were one of two teams left with a shot at the French basketball prodigy
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Unfortunately for MJ it was the San Antonio Spurs whose wildest dreams came true as they landed the number one pick and the rights to select the gifted 19-year-old from the outskirts of Paris.
Jordan’s Hornets landed the second pick, not only missing out on a player who is expected to quickly turn around his team’s fortunes but also hundreds of millions of dollars.
One NBA executive told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski landing Wembanyama could immediately increase a franchise’s value by $750 million (AUD).
Given Jordan has been rumoured to be considering selling the team, that could have gone straight in his pocket.
“Victor Wembanyama is the singular, greatest prospect in NBA draft history,” Wojnarowski said. “He is so advanced skill-wise that nobody has ever seen anyone like him.”
Asked for his opinion on Wembanyama last October, LeBron James said the Frenchman’s skill-set made him less a “unicorn” and “more like an alien”.
“No one has ever seen someone as tall as he is and as fluid and as graceful as he is on the floor,” James said. “He’s for sure a generational talent.”
The Wembanyama sweepstakes caused plenty of drama when the numbers were announced in Chicago.
The big loser was the Detroit Pistons, who entered the lottery with the equal best odds to land the number one pick but slid all the way down to No. 5.
NBA commentator Bill Simmons was feeling for the Pistons.
“Oh my God the Pistons need medical attention,” he wrote on Twitter.
“They just got sucker punched.”
It was the exact opposite for the Spurs, who also held a 14 per cent chance of walking away with the top pick.
Sports business journalist Darren Rovell reported the No. 1 pick has already been worth $16 million to the Spurs.
For Jordan and the Hornets it is a case of history repeating.
The team came agonisingly close to getting the top pick to use on Lakers superstar Anthony Davis at the 2012 NBA Draft and also came away with the No. 3 pick at the 2020 Draft, used to select LaMelo Ball.
Rovell also reports Wednesday’s result was a huge blow to Jordan, despite the prospect of being able to likely select Brandon Miller with the No. 2 pick.
The American journalist said the value of the Hornets would have risen to $2.1 billion ($USD) if they’d landed the No. 1 pick.
Instead the team’s value sits around $1.7 billion — meaning a loss of $400 million ($600m AUD).
With Jordan having a 70 per cent stake in the franchise, the cruel bounce of the lottery draw has cost him a minimum $420 million — and it could rise much higher, as estimated by some league executives.
Local Charlotte sports radio personality Nate Wimberly wrote on Twitter: “This is some bulls***. ARE YOU KIDDING ME! That is the most NBA BS I have ever seen. The Charlotte Hornets have the #2 pick in the NBA Draft. They have now been hosed out of Anthony Davis and Victor Wembanyama. This is a joke.”
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