--- description: With his $20 billion fortune Steve Ballmer is set to become the richest team owner in the NBA if he buys the LA Clippers for $2 billion. title: The 13 Richest Team Owners in the NBA image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcbe6a138cbac320c/6986957aadae4454a6543779/gettyimages_489626585.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [NBA](/tag/nba/) ## NBA Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The 13 Richest NBA Team Owners  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 30, 2014 5:30 PM CUT  Steve Ballmer and NBA Commissioner Adam SIlver attends an NBA playoff game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center on May 11, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. Steve Ballmer and NBA Commissioner Adam SIlver attends an NBA playoff game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center on May 11, 2014 in Los Angeles, California.Noel Vasquez—GC Images/ Getty Images  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 30, 2014 5:30 PM CUT With a fortune [worth](http://www.forbes.com/profile/steve-ballmer/ "undefined") about $20 billion, Steve Ballmer is set to become the richest team owner in the NBA if he [buys](http://time.com/139577/former-microsoft-ceo-buys-clippers-2-billion/ "undefined") the L.A. Clippers from current owner Donald Sterling for a record-setting $2 billion. In taking the top spot on the list, Ballmer supplanted Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who’s got a $15.8 billion fortune. The next-richest team owner’s net worth doesn’t even come close to Allen’s, but at $6.8 billion, it’s still nothing to sneeze at.  Paul Allen Portland Trail Blazers Worth: 15.8 Billion Forbes Ranking: 26 Garrett Ellwood—NBA/Getty Images  Richard DeVos Orlando Magic Worth: 6.8 Billion Forbes Ranking; 60 Reinhold Matay—AP  Micky Arison Miami Heat Worth: 5.9 Billion Forbes Ranking: 70 Mike Ehrmann—Getty Images  Stan Kroenke Denver Nuggets Worth: 5.3 Billion Forbes Ranking: 84 Doug Pensinger—Getty Images  Dan Gilbert Cleveland Caveliers Worth: 3.9 Billion Forbes Ranking: 118 Mark Duncan—AP  Tom Gores Detroit Pistons Worth: 2.7 Billion Forbes Ranking: 201 Gregory Shamus—Getty Images  Mark Cuban Dallas Mavericks Worth: 2.5 Billion Forbes Ranking: 222 Jesse D. Garrabrant—NBA/Getty Images  Josh Harris Philidelphia 76ers Worth: 2.5 Billion Forbes Ranking: 222 Drew Hallowell—Getty Images  Robert Pera Memphis Grizzlies Worth: 1.95 Billion Forbes Ranking: 293 Lance Murphey—AP  Herb Simon Indiana Pacers Worth: 1.95 Billion Forbes Ranking: 293 Michael Hickey—Getty Images  Glen Taylor Minnesota Timberwolves Worth: 1.7 Billion Forbes Ranking: 327 Ann Heisenfelt—AP  James Dolan New York Knicks Worth: 1.5 Billion James Devaney—WireImage/Getty Images  Tom Benson New Orleans Pelicans Worth: 1.3 Billion Forbes Ranking: 386 Stacy Revere—Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2799702/nba-richest-owners/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2799702/nba-richest-owners/"},"headline":"The 13 Richest NBA Team Owners","datePublished":"2014-05-30T17:30:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:08:21.227Z","description":"Microsoft alums will loom large in the league","url":"https://time.com/2799702/nba-richest-owners/","keywords":["NBA","Steve Ballmer","donald sterling","Los Angeles Clippers"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcbe6a138cbac320c/6986957aadae4454a6543779/gettyimages_489626585.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Denver Nicks","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/denver-nicks/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcbe6a138cbac320c/6986957aadae4454a6543779/gettyimages_489626585.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Celebrities At The Los Angeles Clippers Game","caption":"Celebrities At The Los Angeles Clippers Game","creditText":"Noel Vasquez—GC Images/ Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/nba/","name":"NBA"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2799702/nba-richest-owners/","name":"The 13 Richest NBA Team Owners"}}]}] ```