Michael Jordan had to pay ex wife staggering sum of money after their divorce which impacted his next marriage

Michael Jordan’s divorce from his ex-wife, Juanita Vanoy, was so expensive that it had an impact on his current marriage to Yvette Prieto.

Jordan, 62, is arguably the greatest basketball player of all time alongside Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Steph Curry.

The 62-year-old finished his playing career in 2003, having previously retired in 1993 and 1998 while still at the Chicago Bulls.

Just three years after calling time on his career, during which he won six NBA Championships, he and his then-wife, Vanoy, divorced after 17 years of marriage and three children together.

The pair met in 1985, during Jordan’s first season with the Bulls, before their relationship progressed.

Speaking of his Vanoy in 1993, Jordan said: “[She’s] very nice, very demanding. Very caring, good mother. Learning to cook. I love her to death, though. I mean, she’s got a sense of humor just by hanging around.”

But in 2005, the pair separated before filing for divorce a year later.

Michael Jordan and Juanita Vanoy in 2000 (Credit:Getty)

And the divorce was particularly costly for Jordan.

As reported by Yahoo Finance, Vanoy received a $168m settlement, which, at the time, was well over a third of the former NBA star’s net worth.

However, Jordan’s finances have since recovered, and in 2025, Forbes reported that he was worth around $3.5B.

This was largely due to the sale of his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets.

Jordan married his current wife, Prieto, in 2013 and has fathered two twins with the 47-year-old.

And despite the couple appearing happy together, if they were to divorce, Prieto could be set to pocket a fortune.

According to law specialists Kajko, Weisman and Colasanti, LLP, she could be awarded $1million for every year of their marriage.

"Under the terms of the prenuptial agreement, his wife will get $1 million for each year they remain married, but if they stay married for more than ten years, then she will receive the tidy sum of $5 million per year of marriage," states their website.

Michael Jordan and his current wife Yvette Prieto (Credit:Getty)

"In Jordan’s previous divorce, he ended up paying his wife approximately $168 million, as well as giving her custody of their three children. She also got to keep the marital home, a sprawling 25,000 square foot estate in Chicago."

The law firm added: “For people with tremendous wealth, a prenuptial agreement is a practical necessity. Jordan has a net worth of approximately $650 million, including lucrative stakes in his clothing and shoe line, as well as an ownership interest in the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats franchise. With so much at stake in the event of a divorce, calculating marital assets for the purpose of property division could be a tremendously burdensome and lengthy process.

“By having the prenuptial agreement in place, both parties know what to expect and can greatly simplify the divorce settlement process if their marriage comes to an end. But prenuptial agreements aren’t just for the mega-wealthy; they are an effective and practical tool for anyone who wants to take the uncertainty out of divorce.”