The Charlotte Hornets will have a jersey-patch sponsor when they start their season Oct. 22 at home against the Brooklyn Nets.
New York City-based health technology company Judi Health will be one of the team’s most important sponsors, Hornets owner Rick Schnall said Wednesday. Never heard of Judi Health? The company was founded as Capital RX and announced its rebranding to Judi Health on Tuesday, along with a $400 million investment, including a $252 million funding round led by Wellington Management and General Catalyst.
Judi Health now has about 1,200 employees, along with another office in Denver. It plans to open a Charlotte office, where it expects to add between 200 to 250 employees over the next two years, says CEO A.J. Loiacono, who founded the company with Chief Technology Officer Ryan Kelly.
Loiacono says Judi Health would like an Uptown office, and will work with the Hornets and the city of Charlotte to pick out a location.
The Hornets haven’t made the playoffs in nine years, the longest active drought in the NBA. Schnall points out that only four players remain on the team that he and Gabe Plotkin bought in 2023 from NBA great Michael Jordan.
“We’re going to be the team the city of Charlotte deserves,” says Schnall, adding that’s part of the reason the partnership with Judi Health makes sense.
“We really feel strongly that we’re on the way and Judi Health is in a similar position. They’re a great company and they’re growing and they’re emerging.”
The Hornets have not had a jersey patch since Greenville’s Jimmy Donaldson’s MrBeast Feastables appeared on the left top area of the players’ jerseys in the 2023-2024 season. LendingTree was a jersey patch sponsor for several years before the Feastables one season.
Judi Health has signed a multi-year deal, although neither side would say exactly how long. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“This can be a relationship that goes for many, many years,” says Schnall. “You will not see them leave next year or the year after.”
The city of Charlotte and its NBA team offer Judi Health a platform to raise its profile as it uses technology to make healthcare more transparent for patients and easier for providers. Loiacono described the company as the “electronic connection” when someone visits a doctor or has a prescription filled. It serves millions as a pharmacy benefits manager and in medical claims processing.
Judi, short for adjudication, provides administrative workflows for millions of plan members across Fortune 500 companies, the largest unions in America, leading health systems, Medicare and Medicaid plans and top academic institutions, according to the company.