On the heels of an NBA career to remember, LeBron James is allegedly aiming to deepen his involvement in the league.
According to his business manager, Maverick Carter, the 39-year-old plans to achieve this by owning an expansion franchise based in Las Vegas.
During an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Carter initially reflected on the sports ownership journey he shared with James. In 2011, their sports marketing company, LRMR, acquired a 2% minority stake in the English soccer club, Liverpool FC.
In March 2021, they expanded their portfolio by partnering with Liverpool’s majority owner, Fenway Sports Group. They acquired a 1% stake in their company for around $60 million.
This move also turned James into a part owner of the Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Penguins, RFK Racing, and Boston Common Golf.
The sports investment venture’s ongoing success in multiple sports fields soon led James to extend his commitment. In March 2023, he signed a lifetime marketing deal with FSG.
This increased LRMR’s stake in the company to 2%.
The profits surged shortly after this deal. In these past three years, FSG’s valuation has more than doubled to $12.95 billion. LRMR’s stake is now valued at approximately $260 million.
These remarkable strides made Carter grateful for FSG’s trust, saying,
“We have been involved with Liverpool since 2011. It’s been a great ride being a part of that club… Fenway Sports Group are the best, I believed, I’m biased, the best sports management company owning teams in the country, in the world, I think.”
This success fueled James’ confidence in replicating it within the NBA. His business acumen and extensive experience in the league have made him hellbent on owning a franchise.
His plans particularly centered around the NBA’s expansion talks involving Las Vegas. As per Carter, the 20x All-Star remains eager to seize this opportunity as soon as he retired, adding,
“LeBron is dead set on owning an NBA team but he is still playing and I have no idea how much longer he is gonna play. I would have thought he would be done a few years ago. But he is out there now with the beard, with the grey, still letting the young guys know grand pops is out there still balling.”
The Los Angeles Lakers talisman also opened up about this two years back. During a 2022 episode of The Shop, he declared,
“I wanna own a team [in the NBA]. Yeah, I wanna buy a team, for sure… I want a team in Vegas.”
However, James’ ambitions may face certain challenges. The NBA is set to review the expansion plan later this year.
This could soon lead to a competitive bidding war for ownership. The 4x MVP must retire before then as league rules prevent active players from owning teams.
Moreover, this franchise could become the most valuable US sports team ever. It could potentially reach $7 billion. Such a high price tag will probably attract interest from numerous other groups and drive the valuation even higher.
These uncertainties loom over James’ dream. Yet, like almost everything else James does, it holds the power to change the NBA’s trajectory.
