Musk has an asset of US$348 billion. Can he buy all NBA teams?

As the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, Musk not only achieved great achievements in the field of technology, but also accumulated huge wealth. According to Forbes' 2025 data, Musk's assets have reached US$348 billion, ranking first in the world. So, can such a super rich man buy all the NBA teams? Let's take a closer look.

Since Xiao Hua took office as the president of the league in 2014, the NBA has gradually entered the era of business internationalization. Not only are the salaries of players rising, but the team's market value has also risen steadily year by year. This year, the NBA has even reached an 11-year, $76 billion sky-high broadcast contract with ESPN, NBC and Amazon. Therefore, in a few years, the annual salary of top stars will exceed $100 million, and the market value of big-market teams such as the Knicks, Lakers, and Warriors will also exceed the 10 billion mark.

According to US media reports, the team with the highest market value in the 2024-25 season was the Warriors, with a market value of up to $8.8 billion, with the Knicks following closely behind with $7.5 billion, while the Lakers ranked third with $7.1 billion. Of course, not all teams have such a high market value. Small-market teams such as the Hornets, Pistons, and Grizzlies have a market value of only over $3 billion.

There are 30 teams in the NBA today. Calculated based on the average market value, assuming the total market value is the sum of the market value of each team, the total market value of the 30 teams in the league is about US$161 billion. If you add assets such as stadium construction and broadcast contracts, it will be about 200 billion US dollars. However, compared with Musk's $348 billion in assets, from the perspective of financial strength, he is fully capable of buying all NBA teams at one time. However, such assumptions are almost unlikely to happen in reality. As a business alliance, the NBA has strict rules and systems to maintain the balance and competitiveness of the alliance. If a consortium or individual is allowed to own multiple teams at the same time, it will seriously undermine the league's competitive balance and violate the spirit of sports. The NBA’s franchise system requires that team ownership must comply with league regulations and that teams must maintain independence to ensure fairness and viewing of the game.

Although Musk is fully capable of buying all NBA teams, due to various factors such as league rules, management challenges, and business value, such assumptions are almost unlikely to happen in reality. It is worth mentioning that Musk is actually very passionate about sports. Previously, there were reports that he is very optimistic about the prospects of the NBA's team in Las Vegas, and plans to invite James to spend $5 billion to set up a team in Las Vegas. If Musk enters the NBA in the future, he will also surpass Ballmer and become the richest boss in the league.