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The basketball world has lost a great as Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman passed away at 71.
According to Kentucky’s WAVE, Bridgeman was attending an event at the Galt House in downtown Louisville on March 11 when he grabbed his chest and said he thought he was having a heart attack. The room was cleared as medical personnel attempted to intervene in the medical emergency. Later that day, the Al J. Schneider Company, which owns the Galt House, confirmed his death with the Courier-Journal and expressed their sympathies.
“Junior Bridgeman was an integral part of our community. From his athletic impact to his philanthropic efforts, he will be deeply missed,” said Lance George, Chief Marketing Officer. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Bridgeman family during this time.”
Bridgeman was a beloved member of the basketball community after getting his start at the University of Louisville, where he led the Cardinals to the NCAA Final Four in 1975. From there, he was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks, and after nine years, he went to the Los Angeles Clippers for a bit before ultimately retiring with the team that drafted him.
But as the sixth man, he earned only around $350,000 a season for most of his career, but it was all he needed to become a billionaire business magnate after leaving basketball behind. He used the offseason to educate himself on the intricacies of business and ended up owning 100 Wendy’s and Chili’s before selling them off in 2016, which earned him the title of the fourth wealthiest retired athlete by Forbes.
As CEO and president, he led his own Bridgeman Foods Inc., and later, through his Bridgeman Sports and Media company, he bought iconic black media companies Ebony and Jet. Then, just last year, his business career had a full circle moment as he purchased a 10% stake in the Bucks, which is evaluated in its entirety at $4 billion.
The franchise released a statement after news of his passing, praising his business acumen and his on-court success.
See how social media is reacting to Bridgeman’s death below.