Former NBA player Junior Bridgeman, who brought $600 million beverage center to Montgomery, dies at 71

FILE – Former Milwaukee Bucks player Junior Bridgeman talks to the media before an NBA basketball game between the Bucks and Brooklyn Nets, March 1, 2014, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps, File)

Ulysses “Junior” Bridgeman, a former basketball star who became a billionaire businessman and brought a $600 million beverage production and distribution center to Montgomery, has died at 71.

Bridgeman was managing partner for Manna Capital Partners, which is building its “beverage park” on a 180-acre site near Interstate 65 at the Hope Hull exit. It is expected to create 280 full-time jobs with the first products rolling off the line later this year.

When the project was announced in 2022, Bridgeman said, “Our goal is to be the leading total beverage supply chain company in North America while operating with the highest quality, sustainable capabilities needed to produce beverages for world-class brand owners. MB&V fills the gap for major brands who want to be asset light, nimble and make a difference in their communities by hiring minority and women-owned businesses.”

The beverage park will include a 1.7 million-square-foot production facility capable of producing both alcoholic and non-alcoholic products, along with distribution operations.

In his younger years in Kentucky, Bridgeman was a basketball standout who led the University of Louisville to a Final Four appearance in the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament, starred for the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks and then launched his business career.

Bridgeman had suffered a medical emergency at a Louisville hotel during a fundraising event Tuesday.

Bridgeman, a native of East Chicago, Indiana, played for Hall of Fame coach Denny Crum at Louisville. In three seasons, he scored 1,348 points, grabbed 657 rebounds and in his senior season led the Cardinals to the 1975 Final Four, where they lost to eventual national champion UCLA in a 75-74 thriller.

Bridgeman was involved in one of the biggest trades in NBA history at the start of his professional career. After the Los Angeles Lakers selected Bridgeman with the eighth pick in the 1975 draft, they sent him to Milwaukee as part of the trade that brought Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to the West Coast.

Bridgeman’s 711 games played for Milwaukee ranks third in franchise history, behind only Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton. His No. 2 jersey was retired by the Bucks in 1988.

“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,” the Bucks said in a statement. “His memory will always be an inspiration to the Bucks organization.”

The Bucks announced Bridgeman had bought a stake in the team last year at a news conference that included co-owner Jimmy Haslam, coach Doc Rivers, general manager Jon Horst and many players. Bridgeman said afterward he had a 10% stake.

“The opportunity to get back involved with the team in a different way and take advantage of it was something that was kind of a dream,” Bridgeman said at the time.

Bridgeman played for the Bucks from 1975-84 and then spent two years with the Los Angeles Clippers before coming back to Milwaukee for his final NBA season in 1986-87. He scored 11,517 points (averaging 13.6 per game) in his career. He ranks seventh in Bucks history in field goals (4,142), ninth in points (9,892) and 10th in minutes (18,054).

After his playing days, Bridgeman turned that same drive into a successful business career.

Bridgeman was a longtime franchisee for Wendy’s and Chili’s restaurants, at one time operating more than 450 locations in 20 states, the university said. He became a bottler for Coca-Cola and bought Ebony and Jet magazines, the school said.

“I had the privilege of playing against him, and I’ll never forget how he had one of the sweetest jump shots in the NBA,” retired Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson wrote on X. “What people don’t realize is Junior didn’t make a fortune as a player, but he turned what he earned into something extraordinary, becoming a billionaire African American businessman in this country.”

Bridgeman was part of the foursome that owns Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville. He also served on the boards of Churchill Downs racetrack, the University of Louisville and Fifth Third Bank, among others. He and his wife, Doris, hosted a Kentucky Derby party that served as a fundraiser.

“He is the blueprint to so many current and former athletes across sports that success doesn’t end when you’re done playing,” Johnson wrote.

Besides his wife, he is survived by children Eden, Justin and Ryan.

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