Long before Gabe Plotkin met Michael Jordan at the negotiating table, the Portland native worshiped his air. A Deering High School basketball teammate watched Jordan’s famous “flu game” with a group that included Plotkin, a “die-hard” Jordan fan who “thought he could do no wrong.”
Plotkin just wanted to be “like Mike,” as the Gatorade commercial goes. What basketball-mad kid wouldn’t love that? After roughly 25 years as the Rams’ starting point guard, the 44-year-old Plotkin finally joined Mike, taking over from the basketball legend as the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets after co-leading the acquisition of the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets. The chief governor (aka owner) of the Hornets. Jordan took a majority stake in the team in the summer for $3 billion. Jordan retained a minority stake in the team.
“I think for Michael to move forward in this partnership, he has to be happy with me, which is great,” Plotkin told me during a one-on-one video call. “There’s definitely a moment when you walk into the room and see Michael Jordan for the first time and you’re like, ‘What’s going on in my life?’ “It’s special. “
Although owning an NBA team wasn’t Plotkin’s childhood dream, the opportunity appealed to the highly successful finance professional for a variety of reasons. Plotkin, who was born and raised in Portland, graduated from Deering College in 1997 and Northwestern University four years later with a degree in economics. He began his career as a private equity analyst at Henry Crown and Co. before founding Melvin Capital Management, a multi-billion dollar equity long-short fund. His career continued to climb. He later founded and continues to manage Tallwoods Capital, a Miami-based family office.
In 2019, Plotkin purchased a minority stake in the Hornets. In June, a group led by him and business partner Rick Schnall purchased a majority stake in Jordan.
Plotkin’s career rise was made possible in part by the attention of prominent investor Steve Cohen, formerly of SAC Capital Advisors (now Point72 Asset Management). Cohen officially entered the world of sports ownership when he acquired a majority stake in the New York Mets Major League Baseball team for $2.4 billion in September 2020, eventually cutting Plotkin down to $200 million and founding Melvin Capital Management Company (Melvin Capital Management).
Cohen was in regular contact with Plotkin, whom he described as “very smart,” and while professional sports ownership never entered their discussions during Plotkin’s six years with the company, he did show a passion for basketball. Interest – Sometimes requests for new information from Cohen. York Knicks tickets when the Boston Celtics come to town.
Did Plotkin’s former boss have any advice for his new venture?
“Try to find ways to connect with your fans,” Cohen told me. “Fans want to know you care about them and that you’re not just out to make money or maximize revenue. “They want to know you’re thinking about winning. “
Two of Plotkin’s Deering classmates and basketball teammates remember him as a standout defender known for his pinpoint passing and crisp ballhandling, and played a key role against Michael Jordan and the lauded Bulls teams of the ’90s. With unwavering love.
“It’s kind of every kid’s dream to be in business with him now,” said basketball teammate Ryan Jordan, who remembers watching Michael Jordan’s famous flu game with Plotkin. Ryan Jordan and Michael Jordan are not related.
“I knew he was successful, but I didn’t know how successful he was until his name was in the news,” said Tommy Doyle, a retired Army veteran who now lives outside Sacramento, California. “It’s absolutely crazy that I went to high school with someone as successful as him.”
Why not buy him, his wife Yaara Bank-Plotkin and their four school-age children some Miami Heat courtside season tickets? Why the Hornets? Like all sports fans, Plotkin weighed in on his favorite team’s moves. As his financial career flourished, Plotkin realized he had the connections and a way to defend ownership of an NBA team.
I found a “compelling opportunity” with the Hornets. A growing city. The dormant fan base is about to explode. Plotkin remembers that in the 1990s, the team often sold out arenas with 20-plus seats, but fell out of favor due to a temporary move to New Orleans and a lack of on-field success.
The sports version of the most common refrain associated with investing – buy low, sell high.
“We do view Charlotte as a top 15-plus city in the NBA, but the perception is much worse,” Plotkin said. “This is North Carolina. They love basketball. It’s a real opportunity for fans who love basketball, but in a city with a huge population and growing corporate sponsorships, they haven’t made a lot of progress on the court. success.”
New York Mets owner Cohen said some of the lessons Plotkin learned from his financial career could translate to professional sports ownership.
“He’s very thoughtful, forward-thinking and not afraid to take risks,” Cohen said. “It’s a good thing for the team.”
Plotkin first met Jordan when he was a minority owner, attending a few games and having dinner with him. Plotkin had met many CEOs and other powerful people during his financial career, but meeting Jordan was on a “different level.” Four years later, Plotkin and his team purchased Jordan’s ownership stake. When we spoke, Plotkin had attended several of the Hornets’ preseason home games. He hopes to attend 15-20 Hornets home games this year.
“There’s a lot to digest in a very exciting way,” Plotkin said. “My dream growing up was not to manage a basketball team. My dream, probably like yours, was to play basketball. I think the reality is that genetics and the difficulty of doing that really play a role. It’s really Awesome, exciting and sometimes unbelievable.”
There are only a handful of Maine players in NBA circles, but Plotkin keeps in touch with all of them, the easiest of which is with Hornets coach Steve Clifford, who A native of Island Falls and an alumnus of the University of Maine at Farmington. Plotkin met Portland native and Portland High School alumnus Josh Longstaff, an assistant coach with the Chicago Bulls. Although Deering alumnus Nik Caner-Medley did not play in the NBA, he enjoyed a highly successful 16-year career. He and Plotkin became friendly as adults, sometimes meeting for lunch in south Florida.
Longstaff, now in his fourth year with the Bulls and 14th season as an NBA assistant coach, first met Plotkin about five years ago through a mutual connection. Over coffee in Miami, they discussed Maine high school sports, Plotkin’s philosophy on business culture and its relationship to the NBA. Longstaff praised Plotkin for his approachability. As an aspiring NBA head coach, Longstaff saw similarities between Plotkin’s leadership experience as a CEO and coaching at the highest level.
“For someone who was so successful, he was kind of under the radar,” Longstaff said. “He was a quintessential Mainer. “A humble, hard-working guy who stayed out of the spotlight. “
How about Cooper Flagg in Newport? Does Plotkin hope to one day be drafted by the Hornets in the 2025 NBA Draft?
“If we’re in a position — and I hope we’re not because that means we’re not better at that point — but if we’re lucky and win the lottery and something happens, that’s going to be a Great thing,” he said. “We’ll see how it turns out.”