Junior Bridgeman, Louisville basketball great and successful entrepreneur, dies after collapsing at event

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Junior Bridgeman, a University of Louisville basketball star who became a prominent civic and business leader after his NBA career ended, died Tuesday after he suffered a medical emergency at the Galt House Hotel in downtown Louisville.

Bridgeman collapsed at a luncheon for the Lincoln Heritage Council of the Boy Scouts of America, according to sources with direct knowledge of the incident. The Al J. Schneider Company, which owns the hotel, confirmed the news in a statement Tuesday evening.

"Junior Bridgeman was an integral part of our community. From his athletic impact to his philanthropic efforts, he will be deeply missed," Lance George, chief marketing officer, said in a written statement. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Bridgeman family during this time."

People who attended the event said he was sharing an intimate story in his last moments, calling it the best eulogy for him.

"He realized I'm not gonna be a scout because my family doesn't have $1.25 at the time to be able to be a scout," David Tandy, former Metro Council President said. "He admonished everybody in the room to give so that others would have an opportunity to be able to become a scout."

Ulysses Lee Bridgeman, 71, was born in East Chicago, Indiana, and starred for Denny Crum at Louisville, where he was the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year in 1974-75. The NCAA didn't allow freshmen to play for the varsity until the 1972-73 season, so Bridgeman excelled on a freshman team that Crum persistently insisted was more talented than the freshman class Adolph Rupp brought to Kentucky that included Mr. Basketballs from Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio and Illinois.

Bridgeman scored 1,348 points in three seasons with the Cardinals as the program won 72 of 89 games. He led the team to the 1975 Final Four, where they lost a close game to UCLA in overtime in San Diego, California. With a victory, U of L would have played UK for the championship.

The Lakers selected Bridgeman with the No. 8 pick in the 1975 draft and included him in the four-player package they traded to Milwaukee for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Over a dozen seasons, he scored 11,517 points, crediting the coaching he received from Crum and his staff for his successful career.

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 ranks seventh in Bucks history in field goals made (4,142), ninth in points (9,892) and 10th in minutes (18,054).

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

After his playing career, Bridgeman began investing in restaurants and eventually became owner and CEO of Bridgeman Foods, which operated more than 450 Wendy's and Chili's restaurants in 20 states until 2016. He also has been an independent bottler for Coca-Cola. His family owns Ebony and Jet magazines.

Bridgeman has been ranked as one of the wealthiest former athletes in the United States by Forbes magazine.

And that success as a businessman — as well as a player — made him attractive to NBA teams seeking people to purchase stakes in their team. In September 2024, Bridgeman purchased a 10% stake in the Milwaukee Bucks, a deal that valued the franchise at $4 billion. He said at the time he hoped his new role would help him advise players on the right steps to take and the pitfalls they should avoid as they prepare for life after basketball. He's had those types of discussions with players in the past.

"Nobody wants to see guys not be successful, or as successful as they could be," Bridgeman said. "Maybe one day, they'll be sitting up here, not being a 10% (owner) but buying the whole Milwaukee Bucks franchise. You never know."

In fact, former NBA star and current TBS analyst Shaquille O'Neal remembered Bridgeman on air Tuesday as a mentor for his own career outside basketball. "This one really hit hard for me," O'Neal said. "A lot of people don't know this, but I patterned my whole business acumen after Junior Bridgeman."  

O'Neal said Bridgeman opened doors for him, including at Louisville-based Papa Johns, where O'Neal served on the board and as spokesman. 

Bridgeman was part of a group of four longtime Valhalla Golf Club members — along with Jimmy Kirchdorfer, David Novak and Ches Musselman — who purchased the club from the PGA of America in 2022.

He was active in community affairs in Louisville and served as chairman of U of L's Board of Trustees from 2003 to 2005. He returned briefly to the board after former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin reconstituted the board in 2016.

Among those who reacted to Bridgeman's passing was Sen. Mitch McConnell.

“Elaine and I were saddened to hear about the passing of our friend, Junior Bridgeman," he said. "Not only was he a proud Louisville Cardinal, he was a successful businessman and philanthropist who loved the University and the City he called home. Elaine and I send our condolences to his wife, Doris, his three children and all those who knew and loved him. He will be missed.”

Former U of L athletics director Vince Tyra said Bridgeman was an important resource when he took over the department during trying times.

"I’m blessed to have called him a good friend and grateful for all the good he did. Known and unknown," Tyra posted on X. "His story will be hard to replicate but shows what’s possible. Miss ya JB."

Bridgeman served on numerous other boards, including Fifth Third Bank, the Louisville Free Public Library, West End School and Crusade for Children Foundation. He was capital campaign co-chair for the African American Heritage Foundation, according to a biography on U of L's website. 

He was a current member of the board of Churchill Downs Inc., whose CEO Bill Carstanjen remembered Bridgeman as someone whose "entrepreneurial vision and commitment were instrumental in shaping our company."

Bridgeman was on the original board of the Louisville Arena Authority, which secured financing for what became the KFC Yum! Center during a period of sharp community debate and the national financial crisis in 2008 that roiled the project's funding plan.

Jim Host, the former longtime chair of the arena authority, called Bridgeman "one of the most instrumental people in helping get the arena done." 

Host said he can't recall Bridgeman ever missing a board meeting, even as he was involved in running his own businesses. Host gave credit to Bridgeman for helping the arena project meet its goals on minority contracting.

"He had a quiet way about him, but every solitary thing he told me that he would do he did," Host said. "He never shied away from responsibility. He was super competitive, and he would call me about various things that he thought I might have missed with the arena."

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