Back in December, news broke that LeBron James had signed a lifetime contract with Nike. It was record breaking, as this was the first time Nike has officially done such a thing. Sure, Nike and Michael Jordan are tied to one another from here to eternity, but nothing official on paper until LeBron.
Aside from Jordans, LeBron has the best selling Nike sneaker. But the only thing about this deal that was uncertain was the dollar amount tied to it. LeBron’s sneaker contract value with Nike haven’t always been the easiest thing to figure out each time he re-ups with them, and this lifetime deal was no different.
But then Maverick Carter, LeBron’s personal friend and business partner, sat down with GQ Stlye and all but confirmed that it is worth a billion dollars over the life of the deal.
How much was the deal for?
I can’t say.Come on, Mav! Can you ballpark it?
What are people saying?Kanye said a billion. So a billion.
[Maverick smiles and points one finger skyward.]Holy shit.
Yeah. It’s a fantastic deal. Nike feels great about the deal. That’s the most important thing. As great as I feel, as great as LeBron James feels—Nike feels fantastic about it. It’s the largest deal in the history of the company. Their hope is he makes even more. And our hope is that, too, obviously.
