He’s not a businessman, he’s a business, man!!!
If you’re not paying attention to the moves that LeBron James is making away from the court in the world of commerce, you’re missing out on one of the great burgeoning careers in the commercial sphere.
James recently sold his first scripted project to NBC, which is about a doctor who specializes in treating the worlds best and most famous athletes. According to the emerging whispers about the project, the doctor goes through an unexpected health crisis of his own, which forces him into the service of a sports psychologist, which drastically changes his approach to his professional and personal life.
LeBron and his business partner Maverick Carter will serve as executive producers, with renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews serving as a consultant.
Earlier this summer, King James entered into a collaborative lifetime endorsement deal with Nike that’s estimated to be worth more than $1 Billion. Yes, you read that correctly. That’s Billion, with a capital B!
A few weeks ago, the series Survivor’s Remorse, which James also produces, was renewed for a fourth season on the Starz network.
He’s also a partner in the agent and sports marketing company LRMR, owns a minority stake in the English Premier League football club Liverpool FC and has equity endorsement deals with a blue chip portfolio of companies that include Coca Cola, Samsung, McDonald’s, State Farm and ultra-luxury Swiss watch maker Audemars Piguet, among a bevy of others.
While most people only think about playing the game at the highest level, LeBron is reaching heights in the business world that no other active athlete has attained.
And while folks are shocked and amazed at his talents on the court, they should also be paying attention to the real moves he’s making, shaking and baking in the game of life.
When Beats Electronics approached him a few years back about promoting their headphones, he negotiated an ownership stake in the company.
When Apple, Inc acquired Beats in 2014, he realized a personal profit of more than $30 Million in that single transaction.
It’s time that we stop telling kids to emulate LeBron the basketball player, and instead point them to the true measure of him as a man.
Players gonna play, but ballers gonna Ball!!!
And no one is balling out like King James right about now. Buckets and Duckets, the man is a force to be reckoned in many more ways than one.
