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Updated March 31st, 2021 at 11:59 IST

Michael Jordan, Will Smith team up for $305 MILLION investment in Dapper Labs

As NBA Top Shot's popularity continues to grow, stars like NBA legend Michael Jordan, Kevin Durant and Will Smith have funded the maker Dapper Labs.

Reported by: Devika Pawar
Michael Jordan
| Image:self
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For the past few months, NBA Top Shot has been gaining a significant amount of attention. LeBron James' highlight was sold for a whopping $200,000, among many others becoming hot property. Earlier this months, it was reported that the makers of these virtual collectables for people have apparently earned over $230 million in sales. Now, big names like Will Smith and Michael Jordan have joined in as investors. 

Michael Jordan, Will Smith invest in Dapper Labs

According to recent reports, Dapper Labs – the makers of NBA Top Shot – have obtained funding of around $305 million. As per Business Insider on Tuesday, NBA stars like Kevin Durant, Alex Caruso and legend Michael Jordan have also invested in the venture. Additionally, The Chernin Group and Will Smtih's Dreamers VC have also joined the funding round for Dapper Labs. 

Now, Dapper Labs is said to be valued at around $2.6 billion. The company's value will most probably only increase, most people wanting to try their hand in virtual collecting. However, reports add that for March, NBA Top Shot is said to earn $483 million, more than 802,000 people using the platform.

That being said, reports acknowledge that NBA Top Shot's success is why people are more interested in NFTs (Non-fungible tokens). People are already looking to resell some things, one person apparently refusing to sell their NBA Top Shot NFT originally bought in January for $100,000. Apparently, $1 million had been offered. 

“NBA Top Shot is successful because it taps into basketball fandom — it's a new and more exciting way for people to connect with their favourite teams and players," said Dapper Labs CEO's Roham Gharegozlou, who spoke about how successful the venture has been. Furthermore, Dapper Labs is only looking to extend its success. 

We’re going to bring it to the masses and build out the mobile -- there’s so many things we want to do for the NBA fans. And then we’re going to take the platform we built and apply it every major sport that’s going to work with us to make an authentic fan experience,” said Gharegozlou.

Michael Jordan net worth

In 2020, Michael Jordan ranked 1001st on the Forbes annual list of richest people with a fortune of $2.1 billion. ordan retired from the NBA in 2003, where he reportedly earned less than $100 million. However, his Nike deal, endorsements and NBA team Charlotte Hornets have earned the six-time NBA champion a place as the world's richest athlete. 

As per Forbes, Jordan now has a $1.3 billion deal with Nike. In 2010, Jordan became the Hornets majority owner in a $175 million deal. In 2019, he sold 20 percent of the team to fund managers Gabe Plotkin and Daniel Sundheim for a reported $1.5 billion.  Jordan has also invested in brands like Sportrador, Muzik and aXiomatic.

Kevin Durant net worth

As per Forbes, the Kevin Durant net worth currently stands at $170 million, which makes Durant one of the richest NBA players of all time. As per reports, a major part of Durant's income goes into investments. Durant has reportedly invested in over 30 businesses in the US as of 2019. Coinbase, Rubrik, LimeBike, Postmates, The Player’s Tribune and investment app Acorns are some of the businesses Durant has purchased stock in. 

Disclaimer: The above Michael Jordan net worth and Kevin Durant net worth information is sourced from various websites and media reports. The website does not guarantee a 100% accuracy of the same.

(Image credits: AP)

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Published March 31st, 2021 at 11:59 IST

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