LeBron James Signs Unprecedented Lifetime Contract With Nike
December 7, 2015 — 5:21 PM EST
LeBron James will be in the Nike stable for the rest of his basketball career -- and beyond.
The world’s largest sporting goods company Monday signed the four-time NBA MVP to an unprecedented lifetime contract. Terms of the deal weren’t released, but sports agent David Falk, who represented Michael Jordan for most of his playing career, estimated its value at $400 million to $500 million.
Nike in a statement said the 30-year-old Cleveland Cavaliers forward provides "significant value to our business, brand and shareholders."
Nike signed James after going pro out of high school in 2003. His first contract spanned seven years and was worth $90 million, according to ESPN, with a seven-year extension in 2010. Nike has released at least 13 versions of James’s signature shoes.
James this year let lapse his endorsement deal with McDonald’s Corp., instead throwing his weight behind the Blaze Pizza chain, in which he is an investor. Last week James’s multimedia venture, called Uninterrupted, secured a $15.8 million investment from Warner Bros. Entertainment and Turner Sports.
His lifetime deal with Nike could eventually become something similar to Michael Jordan’s. Jordan, 52, is officially the chief executive officer of the Jordan Brand, which continues to release new shoes. Sales of Air Jordan brand shoes topped $2.6 billion last year, according to Forbes.
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