Overview:
Junior Bridgeman had a close connection to Missouri and Kansas residents that most of them didn't know about.
Junior Bridgeman, a basketball standout who led Louisville to a Final Four, starred for the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks and then launched an even more successful career as a businessman with stakes in restaurants, publishing and the Bucks franchise, died Tuesday. He was 71.
Bridgeman died unexpectedly after suffering a health emergency at an event in his adopted hometown of Louisville, KY.
Why his death may matter to you if you reside in Kansas or Missouri, is because if you’ve had a Coke, Sprite, Fanta, Powerade, Dasani, Body Armor or any Coca-Cola brand drink since 2017, you’ve Junior Bridgeman had a hand in producing it.
Since 2017, Heartland Coca-Cola, owned by Bridgeman, has had the Coca Cola bottling contract for Kansas, Missouri and Southern Illinois. It’s just one of several businesses Bridgeman owned that contributed to his $1.4 billion net worth and to him reportedly having the most successful post-playing business career of any professional athlete.
He did this despite never making more than $350,000 a season during his 12 year NBA career.
Bridgeman’s Player History
Bridgeman came from modest beginnings in East Chicago, IN. He starred on the 1971 Washington High School Senators’ 29-0 state championship team and went on to become 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 the 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.
Bridgeman the Entrepreneur
Bridgeman established his business interests by purchasing three Wendy’s franchises. He worked all facets of the business from flipping burgers to mopping the floors. He recognized very early that the key to a successful business was to take care of your people and your customers.
He built a fast-food empire that, at its peak, totaled more than 450 Wendy’s and Chilis Restaurants. He expanded his business portfolio with the Heartland Coca-Cola bottling agreement, a natural expansion of a relationship he began when he was playing basketball for the Milwaukee Bucks. During the off season he would volunteer at local basketball clinics sponsored by Coke. Giving back to the community was always been very important to him.
In 2020 he bought Ebony magazine for $14 million, after the publication went bankrupt earlier that year. The magazine had documented Black life in America since 1975.
He invested in NBA Africa and in September, the Bucks announced Bridgeman had purchased a 10% interest in the team, with the deal valuing the franchise at $4 billion. According to Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam, Bridgeman purchased the interests of several minority owners at an undisclosed discount from the stated value.
A dedicated family man, his three children are all involved in the business. His son Ryan manages the restaurant business, Justin manages the bottling business and daughter Eden Bridgeman-Sklenar heads up the family’s publishing business.
Bridgeman also wanted athletes to consider the concept of generational wealth — the idea of players stretching their earnings into future generations of their family. Long after his playing career, Bridgeman spoke to NBA players — rookies, veterans and entire teams — about financial literacy, a topic he was deeply passionate about after seeing a number of notable athletes across sports face financial ruin.
As the years went on, and as salaries rose in the NBA, Bridgeman preached caution.
“Money can disappear,” he told ESPN last summer. “Whether it’s $80,000 or $80 million, it can still disappear on you.”
His Death
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.
In a tribute, Magic Johnson posted about Bridgemen the person. “ …it was his character, his kindness, and his gentle soul that truly left a lasting impression on me. He was one of the nicest guys you would ever want to meet.
“Thank you, Junior, for being an inspiration on how to be a man, a husband, a father, and a businessman. You spent so much of your post-playing career mentoring and educating athletes and I always reference your journey when I speak to young athletes about transitioning from the court or field to the boardroom. Your legacy will transcend beyond your financial success to the doors you opened for so many and inspiring generations to come. Rest in peace, my friend.”
