LeBron James continues to make history, on and off the court. While he is arguably one of the greatest on the court ever, off the court the folks at Nike just made him the highest paid athlete ever to be endorsed by them. While Nike is the only line of sneakers James has worn on court in his 13 years as a NBA pro it comes as no surprise the Swoosh wants to lock down their star athlete for a “Lifetime”. The sales alone last year from his Nike shoe topped the $340 Million mark, so that should be as to some indication as to why this deal took place. Outside of Michael Jordan, LeBron is the only athlete to peak 13 different versions of their signature shoe with them all doing relatively well in the market. .
As for numbers regarding the deal, it is reported that it will be substantially higher than Kevin Durant’s deal which was 10 years/$300 Million and will mark the largest financial arrangement between an athlete and Nike in the company’s 44-year history
I think the lifetime deal is a genius move on Nike’s part and they will easily see the profit from this deal in terms of sales for King James signature shoe.
Head on over to ESPN.com as Darren Rovell reported the deal to read more in detailed the news.
