How an NBA player became a Mogul

Luol Deng ends his basketball career. A lucrative second mainstay has already been built up by the Brit, who was born in Sudan, with real estate.

Luol Deng looks back on a successful time.

The basketball player, who retired on Friday at the age of 34, played for 15 years in the NBA, scored almost 15 points per game and took part in two All-Star-Games.

Finally, he received a one-day contract from the Chicago Bulls to quit where he started his career. On the field, Deng earned about $151 million, with the Los Angeles Lakers making a significant contribution with a four-year contract of $72 million in July 2016.

So Deng certainly left his mark. But much more impressive is Deng’s work off-court. Because Deng developed into a businessman.

Deng successfully invests in real estate

With a first-class real estate portfolio, Deng and his company D3N9 have managed to save about 125 million dollars since his NBA career started in 2004, according to Forbes.

Born in Southern Sudan, raised in Egypt, later moved to London and finally to the USA at the age of 16, Deng invested in hotels, resorts, condominiums and apartments.

He was smart, made contacts with the country’s best real estate investors and major industrialists, learned from them and gathered clever minds in his own company.

“Our primary goal is to maximise the return on investment. Our process begins by identifying great opportunities led by teams that have demonstrated execution capabilities,” the website says.

The company, which now has seven employees, invests in both the public and private markets. Deng began investing in East Africa and London before moving successfully to the US.

Mega business with Derrick Rose?

“If you know the market, use your influence and make the right deals, there are endless possibilities,” Forbes quotes Deng, who is one of many athletes who become businessmen.

So the NBA superstars Stephen Curry and LeBron James started film production companies, Andre Iguodala and Kevin Durant are venture capital investors.

Minnesota saw the reunion of Deng and Derrick Rose last season. Deng played there for ten years and Rose, who is also active in the real estate business, became the youngest MVP in league history.

The result of the talks about the career after the career? The duo is about to conclude a massive real estate deal. The acquisition of three plots of land with 23 buildings and a total of 354 multi-family houses is on the horizon – for a mere 25.6 million dollars.

“I’ve always liked real estate and wanted to do something in Chicago for a long time,” said Deng, who also held symposia to warn active NBA players against making false investments.

Deng with great social commitment

In addition to his business acumen, the former British national player also has a social streak. In the 2006/07 season, he was the only non-American to win the Sportsmanship Award for his fair play on the court.

In 2014, Deng, who has eight siblings (including brother Deng Deng), received the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award. The prize is awarded annually by journalists to NBA players or coaches who demonstrate exceptional social commitment.

Deng is involved in countless charities, including School-Home Support, which works with children and families to increase their educational and life chances.

During the summers, Deng often took part in basketball without borders camps organised by the NBA and FIBA and travelled to Asia, Africa and Europe. With his foundation, he wants to use basketball as an instrument to give hope to children. He is also a spokesman for the United Nations World Food Programme.

A first-class basketball player, a real estate mogul and above all a role model: Luol Deng has done a lot right in his life.