Kevin Durant Buys A Professional Pickleball Expansion Team

Kevin Durant is a versatile phenomenon who has spread his arms in variable fields. Fans adore his desire to make his foot engraved in the industry. Currently, Kevin Durant purchased a professional pickleball expansion team; LeBron James is one of the league owners.

The Major League Pickleball league revealed on Thursday that NBA star Kevin Durant has purchased an expansion franchise, adding him to the roster of owners that already included several billionaires and some of the most well-known athletes in the world.

NBA star Kevin Durant and his business partner Rich Kleiman founded 35V, an investment firm, which on Thursday announced that it has acquired a Major League Pickleball expansion franchise.

“[Pickleball] was a small passion that’s just gonna keep building. We’re gonna be operating this ourselves, being tasked with building this brand from the ground up. It should be a fun project.”

Advertising

Advertising

“I never thought I would get into pickleball until Rich convinced me to go to the court one day, I played a few games, and I was like, ‘I understand now.’”

Steven Kuhn and Mellie Price formed MLP, which finished its maiden season last November with BLQK being named the first champions. In recent months, the league has begun to pick up considerable steam thanks to a number of well-known investors.

According to Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic, other players who have invested in MLP include LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers, Tom Brady of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors, and Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

In 2023, the 35V expansion team will enter the league. Additionally, the group wants to assist the league in enhancing its sponsorships, marketing, and retail sales. Subsequently, Kuhn mentioned the plan that would change the game while Kleiman talked about the future 35V planning that they intended to carry out.

“35V is committed to investing in the future of sports and emerging opportunities and Major League Pickleball is a league we are incredibly excited about. We can’t wait to build this team from the ground up as well as work to elevate the sport and the league to unprecedented heights. As an avid pickleball player and fan, the interest in the sport was a natural fit.”

“Kevin Durant, Rich Kleiman and 35V are going to be game-changing partners for Major League Pickleball. They not only bring passion for the game, but also unrivaled expertise to help us to continue to grow. We’re especially excited about their plans to bring pickleball to underserved communities—something they have done with basketball for years.”

In addition to expanding to 16 teams from 12 in 2023, MLP plans to increase its schedule to six events from three, with a prize pool of more than $2 million for competitors. Other sports-related investments made by 35V include ownership shares in/NY Gotham of the NWSL and the Philadelphia Union of the MLS.

Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft and a multibillionaire, has long favored pickleball. In a blog post from July, he referred to it as a “sophisticated” sport and predicted that it may someday be included in the Olympic Games. However, what’s your take on Kevin’s new step? Let us know in the comments. For further updates stay tuned to Thirsty.

What’s your take on it? Sound it in the comments.