In the summer of 2010, while most of the NBA's attention was focused on new Miami Heat forward LeBron James, cable baron Chris Cohan quietly sold the Golden State Warriors to Mandalay Entertainment for $450 million.
Fifteen years later, the verdict is in: sound investment.
A Sportico list Wednesday valued the Warriors at a staggering $9.1 billion, making the once-snakebitten franchise the second-most valuable sports team in the world—behind only the Dallas Cowboys, who were valued at $10.3 billion.
Spurred by the career of future Hall of Fame guard Stephen Curry, Golden State has won four championships in the last 11 years. Riding Silicon Valley's 2010s boom years, the Warriors opened a shiny new arena, San Francisco's Chase Center in 2020, further increasing their value.
The New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers and New York Yankees rounded out the top five, while spots six through 10 were all occupied by big-market NFL teams—the Los Angeles Rams, New York Giants, New England Patriots, San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets.
More of the Latest Around the NBA
This article was originally published on www.si.com as New Top 100 Most Valuable Sports Teams List Has Surprising NBA Franchise at No. 2.