NBA rankings

The best returns for owners

Each team's Forbes value today as a multiple of what the current owner paid. The Chicago Bulls lead: bought 1985 for $16M, now worth 419x that price. Teams without a clear purchase price are left out.

1Chicago BullsBought 1985 for $16M419x 2Indiana PacersBought 1983 for $11M414x 3Orlando MagicBought 1991 for $85M53x 4Golden State WarriorsBought 2010 for $450M30x 5Denver NuggetsBought 2000 for $175M29x 6Philadelphia 76ersBought 2011 for $280M23x 7Cleveland CavaliersBought 2005 for $375M15x 8Oklahoma City ThunderBought 2006 for $350M14x 9Detroit PistonsBought 2011 for $325M13x 10New Orleans PelicansBought 2012 for $338M12x 11Memphis GrizzliesBought 2012 for $377M11x 12Washington WizardsBought 2010 for $551M9.4x 13Sacramento KingsBought 2013 for $534M8.8x 14Milwaukee BucksBought 2014 for $550M8.4x 15Atlanta HawksBought 2015 for $850M6.8x 16Los Angeles ClippersBought 2014 for $2B3.9x 17Houston RocketsBought 2017 for $2.2B3.0x 18Utah JazzBought 2020 for $1.66B2.9x 19Minnesota TimberwolvesBought 2021 for $1.5B2.8x 20Brooklyn NetsBought 2019 for $2.35B2.8x 21Dallas MavericksBought 2023 for $3.5B1.7x 22Phoenix SunsBought 2023 for $4B1.5x 23Charlotte HornetsBought 2023 for $3B1.5x 24Los Angeles LakersBought 2025 for $10B1.2x 25Boston CelticsBought 2025 for $6.1B1.1x 26Portland Trail BlazersBought 2026 for $4.25B1.0x

Forbes value today as a multiple of what the current owner paid. Teams without a clear purchase price are left out.

Quick answers

Which NBA owner has made the most on their team?

The Chicago Bulls: bought 1985 for $16M and are now worth 419x that price on Forbes' estimate. Next come the Indiana Pacers (414x) and the Orlando Magic (53x).