The former NBA sixth man who rose from being just another pro-athlete to one of the most successful businessmen, Junior Bridgeman, has passed away. Bridgeman, who became a billionaire philanthropist and, recently, a minority owner of the Milwaukee Bucks team for which he once played, passed away Tuesday after suffering a medical emergency during an event in Louisville, Kentucky.
Bridgeman was 71.
Multiple Louisville television stations reported that Bridgeman grabbed his chest at one point during a fundraising luncheon, expressing that he believed he was suffering a heart attack. The stations, including WLKY and WAVE, reported that emergency medical personnel were called.
“I am devastated to learn of the sudden passing of Junior Bridgeman,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “Junior was the ultimate entrepreneur who built on his impactful 12-year NBA playing career by becoming a highly respected and successful business leader. He served as a mentor to generations of NBA players and athletes across sports who were eager to learn from him about what it takes to thrive in the business world. Junior was a dedicated member of the NBA family for 50 years — most recently as a minority owner of the Milwaukee Bucks, an investor in NBA Africa and as a player who set the standard for representing the league and our game with class and dignity.
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“We express our heartfelt condolences to Junior’s wife, Doris, their children, Eden, Justin and Ryan, the Bucks organization, and his many friends and admirers in the basketball community.”
His Career Started from Humble Beginnings
Bridgeman’s success was far from his humble beginnings. In East Chicago, Bridgeman wanted to join the Boy Scouts, but the $1.25 membership fee was too much for his family to afford. In high school, Bridgeman spent summers working odd jobs, making about $20 to $40 per week — money he tried to stretch throughout the school year. At Louisville, he worked summers at a farm equipment manufacturer, a steel-cutting company and the midnight-to-7 a.m. shift at a Ford truck plant a couple of times per week.
Junior Bridgeman played 10 of his 12 NBA seasons for the Milwaukee Bucks and established himself as one of the best sixth men in the league.
A native of East Chicago, Indiana, who starred on the 1971 Washington High School Senators’ 29-0 state championship team, Bridgeman became an All-American at Louisville, reaching the 1975 Final Four. The Los Angeles Lakers drafted the 6-foot-5 wing at No. 8 in 1975 then traded him to Milwaukee as part of a blockbuster deal for Bucks star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Bridgeman played 12 seasons in the NBA, 10 of them with the Bucks and two with the LA Clippers. He averaged 13.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 25 minutes per game over his career, during which he established himself as one of the game’s best sixth men. He also served as president of the National Basketball Players Association from 1985 to 1988.
He Started Getting His Money from Franchising
During his career, Bridgeman made about $2.95 million and never earned more than $350,000 in a season. But after his career, he started investing in Wendy’s restaurants and eventually built a fast-food empire with his company Bridgeman Foods Inc., owning more than 450 restaurants nationwide. He opened his first Wendy’s franchise after he retired from the NBA in 1987. A 2024 article said he lost his initial investment, and the next year, he used the rest of his savings on five franchises in Milwaukee. He then began purchasing more locations in Wisconsin, Kentucky, Tennessee and Florida.
At one point, he was the nation’s second-largest Wendy’s franchise owner. He also owned 125 Chili’s restaurants, 45 Fannie May Chocolate stores and numerous other franchises.
He also became a Coca-Cola bottling distributor with territory across three states and into Canada. He bought Ebony and Jet magazines. He invested in NBA Africa.
In September, Bridgeman purchased a 10% stake in the Bucks, and in February, Forbes reported that Bridgeman’s net worth had surpassed $1.4 billion.
In a statement, the Bucks said they were “shocked and saddened by the tragic passing of Bucks legend and owner Junior Bridgeman. Junior’s retired No. 2 jersey hangs in Fiserv Forum, serving as a constant remembrance of his outstanding play on the court and his impact on the Bucks’ success. His hard work and perseverance led him to become one of the nation’s top business leaders and, last September, Junior’s professional life came full circle when he returned to the Bucks family as an owner. His memory will always be an inspiration to the Bucks organization.”
Bridgeman was a popular fixture in Louisville after his playing days, and Mayor Craig Greenberg said the city had “lost a kind, generous and groundbreaking legend” when announcing his death.
“He was an All-American at U of L … and a self-made billionaire,” Greenberg said in a statement. “Yet I will most remember Junior Bridgeman for his quiet, impactful assistance to others in need” as well as his love for his family and his “never-ending support for our community.”
He was an Inspiration to Other Famous NBA Players
When Shaquille O’Neal retired from the NBA in 2011, he could count four championship rings and three NBA Final MVPs in his 19 seasons. He made more than $286 million on the court.
Since his playing days, his estimated net worth is more than $500 million. And he credits longtime Louisvillian Junior Bridgeman for his successful entrepreneurial playbook.
Bridgeman, who died Tuesday in Louisville, became one of the most successful retired athletes in the world. Last month, Forbes profiled Bridgeman, revealing the former Milwaukee Bucks player — and new co-owner of the team —was now a billionaire.
O’Neal spoke about Bridgeman’s impact on his career during NBA on TNT as Bridgeman’s team, the Milwaukee Bucks played the Indiana Pacers recently.
“This one really hit hard for me,” O’Neal said. “A lot of people don’t know this, but I’ve patterned my whole business acumen after Junior Bridgeman. They always tell us stories about how 75% of athletes, zero to five years after they’re done playing, go broke. And I never wanted to be that.
“So I always started looking at people, Michael of course, Magic, but I remember one time the Forbes list came out … I saw (Bridgeman’s) name, I reached out to him, we started talking … I actually just talked to him the other day, because we were getting ready to do business.”
Bridgeman leaves his wife Doris Bridgeman, a benefactor and business partner of her husband, and their three children– Eden Bridgeman Sklenar, Ryan Bridgeman and Justin Bridgeman.
