Owner: Peter Holt

Wealth: Caterpillar Dealer

Peter Holt is the CEO of HOLT CAT, the largest Caterpillar dealership in the US. Caterpillar produces the dumptrucks, backhoes, and bulldozers that are common at every construction site. Oftentimes, the Holt logo is larger than the Caterpillar logo on these machines, showing the power and sway he has over the entire industry. Holt bought the Spurs in 1993 for only $75M.

Owner: Larry Miller

Wealth: Diversified

Miller started on his path to wealth by buying a Toyota dealership with a partner in 1979. He continued to purchase car dealerships through the Rocky Mountain region. He purchased a local television station to broadcast his Utah Jazz games. He later bought the Megaplex movie theater franchise, one of the largest in the Rocky Mountain area.

Interesting Note: Miller refused to let any of his Megaplex movies broadcast Brokeback Mountain. He made this decision only hours before it was to premiere in his theaters, when a radio broadcaster told him it was a gay romantic Western.

Owner: Glen Taylor

Wealth: Printing

Taylor worked at a print shop in college and persuaded the owner to sell him the business for $2M over the next 10 years. He changed the name into Taylor Corporation, an industry behemoth in invitations, stationary, and magazines. He retired as CEO, but still owns 99% of the business. He's one of the richest owners in the NBA, currently worth $2.7B.

Owner: Jerry Buss

Wealth: Real Estate

Buss originally bought an apartment building in Los Angeles in th early 60's, and from there started amassing apartments and corporate office buildings all over Los Angeles. He parlayed that income into a successful bid for the Lakers, Kings, and the Forum in 1979. His wealth currently all comes from his ownership of the Lakers and the Kings.

Owner: Robert Sarver

Wealth: Banking

Sarver founded a bank (National Bank of Arizona) immediately after graduating college in 1984. He built the bank into the largest independent bank in Arizona, and sold it in 1994. One year later, he purchased Grossmont Bank, the largest independent bank in Southern California. He bought the Suns in 2004.

Owner: Mark Cuban

Wealth: Internet

Easily the most well-known owner in the NBA, Cuban's source of wealth is very well known. While critics may point to him having good timing, Broadcast.com is actually his second successful business. Cuban founded the company MicroSolutions, which he sold to Compuserve in 1990 for $6M. In 1995, he founded Audionet (later Broadcast.com) and sold it to Yahoo in 1999 for $5.9B. In addition to owning the Mavericks, Cuban also owns the HDNet channel and Magnolia film studio.

Interesting Note: Cuban's payout from Yahoo was all in Yahoo stock. Anticipating the overpricing of the market, he hedged his entire position in Yahoo, assuring himself a payout until his contract allowed him to unload the stock.

Owner: Paul Allen

Wealth: Microsoft Co-founder

Not surprisingly for a Microsoft co-founder, Paul Allen is by far the richest owner in the NBA, valued at nearly $16B. He's also the 5th richest person in the US. Allen founded Microsoft with Bill Gates in 1975, but in 1983 was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease. He left the company for treatment, and after successfuly beating cancer, did not rejoin the company. Allen also has numerous other investments, including cable television and the SpaceShipOne flight.

Interesting Note: Paul Allen owns the 6th largest yacht in the world, at 416 ft.