Michael Jordan’s time with the Charlotte Hornets did not yield the desired result. Jordan’s Hornets never won a playoff series, compiling a 423-600 record over 13 seasons. Yet, the off-court valuation kept on increasing thanks to the Bulls legend. The association ended after 13 years, yielding him a $2.25 billion profit, but MJ already had other succession plans in place. Alongside the Schnall-Plotkin consortium, Jordan enlisted a lifelong friend to ensure local representation.

Before the sale of his stakes in the Charlotte Hornets, Jordan flew all the way to Nashville to meet Eric Church. The American singer and the 6x NBA champion would often go golfing and share a great friendship. But the reason why MJ trusted Church was that he wanted someone from North Carolina to represent the team. Jordan sold the majority stake, a $3 billion deal, to a group led by Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin but retained a minority stake.

Church recalled that after launching Nashville’s Chiefs bar, Jordan reached out. “We opened a bar in Nashville called Chiefs, and he came up there, and then he kind of got me into being an owner with the Hornets. He was selling his stake and wanted some local people from North Carolina that would represent a percentage of the Hornets. So I did that,” said Church during the Steam Room podcast two weeks ago. Church outlined a three-to-five-year rebuild centered on draft capital, key to retaining LaMelo Ball and future stars.

Church did not divulge any details about Ball and just said, “We will see” on Bobby Bones’ YouTube channel. But he was optimistic about the future. “Our group’s really good about keeping us involved and all the decisions we’re making. So, you know, a lot of it revolves around draft picks, a lot of. We renovated the arena there in Charlotte, we did a big renovation. So you kind of have a three to five-year plan.” The plan makes sense: they rank among three (Utah, Washington, and Charlotte) realistic contenders for the 2025 No. 1 pick..

Michael Jordan’s plan might work better than expected

Even in July 2024, Church explained how ‘MJ’ was searching for some North Carolina representation for the team, and that’s how get came on board. “He’s a North Carolina kid, we’re both Tar Heels, and he talked about how important it was to have local ownership,” the 47-year-old stated. Now the Hornets have a 14% chance of winning the NBA Draft lottery. That lottery looms large for a franchise mired in its longest playoff drought. Nine consecutive seasons without postseason basketball, an active streak since 2016–17

The franchise is looking at the number 1 pick and currently owns the longest playoff drought in the NBA. Injuries have further stunted the Hornets’ young core; over the past three years, key talents missed extended time, preventing cohesion and growth. But the 2025 NBA draft could change the future. Atop the draft board sits Duke freshman Cooper Flagg, widely regarded as the consensus No. 1 prospect after averaging 19.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game in 2024–25.

Church has called building through draft picks “the best way” to reshape the roster, a blueprint famously employed by championship teams. Even if the lottery spin doesn’t go their way, Charlotte possesses several movable, expiring contracts—like Jusuf Nurkić’s 2024–25 deal and Josh Okogie’s rookie-scale extension—that could net veteran assets or additional picks via trade.

Beyond on-court moves, the ownership group has backed a $245 million renovation of the Spectrum Center, upgrading locker rooms, fan amenities, and technology to attract free agents and bolster revenue streams into 2026–27. Even though Michael Jordan sold his majority shares, recruiting a North Carolina native proved a strategic move. The Hornets would hope to improve from the debacle soon.