Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson have a lot in common. They’re both legends in the NBA, having accomplished all that a player possibly could. The two share their initials as well as solid business acumen. We saw both balloon their net worths since retirement, and a good reason behind it is intelligent investing. In 2018, 26 years after the Dream Team, we saw the two team up again, thanks to a $26,000,000 investment into eSports giant ‘Team Liquid’.
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ESports is the wave of the future. It has had a rapid rise in popularity over the last decade and continues to grow. Team Liquid is one of the leading eSports organizations across the globe, with consistent performances across several games. In May 2018, Magic Johnson invested in its parent company via a series B funding round, and Michael Jordan joined him not just a mere few months later.
Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan saw a 220% return on investment in 4 years
Magic Johnson has had a strong business acumen ever since his playing days in the NBA. He found a way to take his $40 Million NBA salary money to $680 Million net worth now. In May 2018, Magic was a part of the group that raised $25,000,000 for Team Liquid’s parent company, ‘aXiomatic’, in a series B funding round.
At the same time, Michael Jordan turned his $93 Million NBA salary into a $2 Billion net worth. In October 2018, Michael Jordan was a part of the group that raised $26,000,000 for aXiomatic in a series C funding round. With his part in the investment, he joined Magic Johnson as a co-owner of aXiomatic.
Back when Jordan invested in the same, Team Liquid was estimated to be worth $200 Million(according to Forbes). As of 2022, the eSports organization’s value has shot up to $440 Million. This means that the two NBA legends saw a 220% return on their investment in a mere span of 4 years. Ever since the 2022 evaluation, Team Liquid has won major tournaments in various games, which might mean the return may be much higher now.
Michael and Magic formed a solid pairing on the Dream Team, and 26 years later, it seems like they did the same on Team Liquid.
Magic could have made ‘trillions’ off Jordan
Back in the days, Nike wasn’t a big basketball brand, until Michael Jordan changed that. However, before going all in on Jordan, Nike tried to sway Magic Johnson to sign with them. He was offered $100,000 upfront and $1 per sale, but Magic declined it and went to take cash from Converse. Had he accepted, the Nike deal would have earned him $5.2 Billion to date.
Magic claimed had he taken the deal, he would’ve made ‘Trillions’ of Michael Jordan. Unfortunately, quick cash from a renowned brand stopped Johnson from taking a chance at ‘running shoe’ brand Nike, and the rest is history.
