LeBron James has confirmed that Reebok offered him a lucrative check if he had promised not to visit any other brand and sign with them when he was a senior in high school.
During a recent appearance on the New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce podcast, King James confirmed the longstanding rumor that Reebok was looking to offer him a ridiculous $10 million check to sign with them before making his way to the NBA in the early 2000s. Bron recalled how the whole meeting went down, which included his mother, Gloria James, and business manager and friend, Maverick Carter.
“I’m sitting across from the table; I’m a senior in high school….I’m going back to St. Vincent-St. Mary the next day, my senior year, and the guy slides over a check to me at the end of the table,” said James. “It was me and my mom and Maverick Carter at the end of the table, and he says, ‘If you don’t go talk to any other companies, this is yours,’ and I look at it….10 million fucking dollars.”
He continued, “I was a high school senior, and they gave me a check for $10 million if I promised not to go see anybody else. I told them I needed a break. They stepped out…And my mom looked at me, and she’s like, ‘Son, trust your gut. If they’re offering you this, then who knows what the other companies may offer you.'”
LeBron added that his mother helped him realize a $10 million check could change their lives at that moment, but who knows what else he could get from other companies which could cement his future. He then closed out by saying he would meet with other companies and claimed he may have cried on his way home from the meeting with Reebok.
The four-time NBA champion’s tears must have turned into happy ones when he made history in 2003 by signing an incredible $87 million contract with Nike that later turned into a lifetime deal in 2015 worth around $1 billion.
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