One Careful Owner: Marc Lasry x Milwaukee Bucks

In conversation with the billionaire co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks.

One Careful Owner is a new series from the Leaders Sport Business Podcast that features exclusive conversations with the people who invest billions into teams. Who have a unique handle on where the industry is going. On media rights. On globalisation. On asset creation. On trading players. On the risks, rewards and the pitfalls. On the pressures and demands. The unique challenges and often downright weird situations that only sports owners have experienced. And all while they’re doing their day job.

Our first guest on One Careful Owner is Marc Lasry. In 2014, Marc bought the Milwaukee Bucks NBA franchise from long-time owner Herb Kohl. Kohl had paid $18 million for the team when he bought it in 1985. Marc – alongside his partners Wes Edens and Jamie Dinan – paid $550 million for it. According to the latest Forbes list, the franchise is worth $1.6 billion today.

Marc founded Avenue Capital Group in 1995, building the hedge fund over time to the point at which it now has $11 billion under management. He lives in New York with his wife Cathy and they have five children. Leaders Chair Jimmy Worrall spoke to Marc towards the back end of 2020, with the NBA having just completed its truncated 2019/20 season.