Magic Johnson’s ownership group paid just $10 million for the Los Angeles Sparks in 2014. Over a decade later, the NBA legend confessed that they thought about selling the team during the time that’s transpired since 2014. However, with the rising popularity of women’s sports as a whole, Johnson is glad his group never went through with those plans.

Last year, Johnson headlined the Invest Fest in Atlanta. Now, in light of this year’s edition just concluding, a new clip from 2025 shows Johnson explaining why he’s glad he never sold the Sparks.

“We’ve owned the Sparks for a few years. We haven’t made a dime. It’s been a tough going for the WNBA. Except now,” Johnson said, as seen in a clip of the event shared on X.

“There was a time when we said, ‘Should we sell this?’ We kept saying, ‘No, let’s hold on to it.’ Thank God we didn’t sell too early. We only paid $10 million for the franchise. When you think about the return we’re going to have, it’s amazing. Don’t sell too early. I just wanted to point that out.”

The Magic Johnson and Mark Walter-led investment group purchased the Los Angeles Sparks in February 2014. Alongside Johnson, the group included Dodgers executives Todd Boehly, Robert Patton, Stan Kasten, and Billie Jean King. They purchased the Los Angeles Sparks after majority owner, Paula Madison of Williams Group Holdings, told the WNBA that the group had lost over $12 million since 2007 and could no longer afford to operate the team.

Johnson candidly acknowledged that it wasn’t smooth sailing after purchasing the Sparks in 2014. The popularity of women’s sports was yet to explode, and it was still a decade before Caitlin Clark’s entry into the WNBA boosted it’s populaity historic levels. However, things gradually started improving.

The LA Sparks won the 2016 WNBA Championship, which was their first title in 14 years. Now, 10 years later, the Sparks’ market value continues to rise.

Last year, Forbes included the Los Angeles Sparks on their list of the most valuable teams in women’s sports, estimating the team’s value at $235 million, with $16 million in annual revenue. This year, those numbers have grown significantly, and we’re just over the halfway mark for the 2026 regular season.

In ‘The WNBA’s Most Valuable Teams 2026’ report from May of this year, Forbes ranked the LA Sparks at seventh, valued at $350 million and with revenue of $28 million.

The broader message Johnson was delivering at Invest Fest was clear: patience is one of the most undervalued qualities in investing. There will be years with no return, doubt, and times where you consider walking away. The Sparks are now a case study in what happens when you resist that impulse. 

As it stands, the Sparks also seem to be on an upward growth trajectory, especially as the WNBA continues to grow in both reach and visibility. And for Magic Johnson and his ownership group, holding on to that $10 million investment may ultimately prove to have been the right decision.