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LeBron James could headline $5 billion global basketball league?
Bill Simmons: And what they’re telling people is that they have a couple of major stars that are going to be joining—ones that will be jaw-dropping. And it’s pretty clear—because Maverick Carter is running this, or is one of the people involved in pushing it—that he's dangling LeBron as one of the people who will do it. Could it be Kevin Durant? My guess is it's probably older, famous superstars nearing the end of their careers, who are just going to do it for a bunch of money—probably equity in the league.
Bill Simmons: "You mentioned the alternative league. It’s being pushed by Maverick Carter—LeBron’s business guy. When I first heard about it, I thought it was bulls***. I didn’t think it was real because, initially, everyone thought those guys were getting the Vegas team. I don’t think they have any inside track at all. In fact, there are other groups I would bet on before them. I thought this was a ploy—pretending they were raising money, just to drop it if they got the Vegas team. But that’s not the case. They’ve got a s***load of money for this and a plan. Everything I’ve heard is that it’s kind of real. I don’t know if they have all the money yet, but they have enough. Could you form a six-team league and convince five, six, or seven stars to jump when their contracts are up? I think the contracts would have to be over, but look at Luka—he's locked in until 2026.
On the latest episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Ringer founder discussed the state of the NBA with Kirk Goldsberry. And in doing so, Simmons revealed that while he originally thought that Carter and Co. were attempting to leverage the NBA regarding the ownership of a potential expansion team in Las Vegas, he now thinks the prospect of a rival international league is a strong possibility. “They have got a s**tload of money for this and a plan,” Simmons said of the league. “And everything I’ve heard is that it’s kind of real. I don’t know if they have all the money yet, but they have enough that — could you form a six-team league and convince five, six, seven stars to basically jump when their contracts [are up]?”
As Smith has done extensively throughout this brouhaha with James, he opted to publicly address matters on The Stephen A. Smith Show, detailing how he believes that the Los Angeles Lakers star is more upset that he had his decisions as a father questioned than anything negative that was ever said about Bronny. “I’ve never, ever, ever been about being critical of Bronny. I’ve gone out of my way, being who I am in the position that I am in, to avoid even critiquing him for years out of respect for the James family. Rich Paul knows that, Maverick Carter knows that. Opposing agents and players, former and present, who had asked me why I wouldn’t do it, know my position. It was on the record. There are clips of it on First Take. That was my position. So when he said to me ‘Stop sh**ting on my son’, I am like what? What are you talking about?
Stephen A. Smith on confrontation with LeBron James: He told me to mind what I say about his son
Stephen A. Smith: ‘That was LeBron James coming up to me unexpectedly I might add, to confront me about making sure that I mind what I say about his son. Can't repeat the words because they ain't suited for FCC airwaves, that's what he was doing. I thought long and hard about this over the last few hours because I had no intentions, Molly, of talking about this at all, and the reason why is because it was a one-on-one... I wouldn't say a conversation, but it was a one-on-one confrontation. But then I woke up and everybody from ESPN, my agent, and everybody else were telling me that this thing had gone viral and so ultimately it was unavoidable and that is why I have to discuss it now. That wasn't a basketball player confronting me, that was a parent, that was a father and I can't sit here and be angry or feel slighted by LeBron James in any way in that regard. By all accounts he's obviously a wonderful family man and a wonderful father who cares very deeply about his son and based on some of the comments that he had heard or shall I say I think he thought he heard, he clearly took exception to some of the things that he heard me say and he confronted me about it. For the record, his agent and friend Rich Paul has my number, Maverick Carter who works on him has my number, LeBron James knows how to get in contact if he wants to. He never called, because he wanted to talk to me I would have accepted that call had he wanted to see me I would have flown out and I would have seen him and I would have had a conversation man-to-man but that is not what he elected to do. Instead, he elected to confront me while I was sitting courtside.’
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Is basketball about to face its LIV Golf moment? Perhaps, in the form of a new start-up contest brewing under the direction of Maverick Carter, the sports marketing guru and business partner of LeBron James. It is still very early days. The group has no name, no headquarters and no launch date. It only has around 30 employees, and is still in the process of raising money. UBS is running a funding round with a target of $5bn. But it has some wealthy backers, including Skype co-founder Geoff Prentice. And now it is beginning to reel in some strategic partners.
Sela, the events company owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, has agreed to become the operating partner for the proposed new league, which would feature six men’s and six women’s teams travelling to eight cities around the world. Macau and Singapore are in line to be hosts, with the Singaporean government and casino operator Galaxy Entertainment signalling their support for the project.
Basketball is huge in Asia, especially in China, and decision makers in places like Singapore, Macau and beyond are eager to add new forms of entertainment to boost local tourism. This is not a Saudi-led project. “The thesis is simple: basketball is a global game, and the world wants more of it,” said Neil Meyer, global co-head of media and telecom at UBS.
Kevin Durant could 'potentially' be open to playing in Maverick Carter's new basketball league
Front Office Sports: Maverick Carter, LeBron James’s business partner, is looking to build an international basketball league. Rich Kleiman, Kevin Durant’s manager, was asked about the league on @CNBC and if KD would be open to playing in it. “Yes, potentially.”
Maverick Carter, who was a high school teammate of James' and now heads up his entertainment company, Uninterrupted, says the late-night visit was a pivot point in James' career. "Those are massive moments when you can seek someone you admire, someone you appreciate their words, and someone who's enough of a good human being, but a realist to help you realize, 'OK, how do I handle this?'" Carter told ESPN. "We've all been through things in our life, and if you are around someone who gives bad advice or handles it wrong or thinks about themselves in those moments, it can go really bad for someone." James remembers that night -- and agrees: "I needed him in that moment and he came through for me." Says Mims: "The rest is history. From there, he took off. We never had them conversations again."
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LeBron James not involved in Maverick Carter's league project
Although Carter, who has served as a producer on more than one of James' TV and movie projects, is closely tied to the Los Angeles Lakers star, sources told ESPN that James is not involved in the efforts with this new league. James, whose current Lakers contract includes a player option for the 2025-26 season, has expressed interest in becoming an NBA owner once his playing career comes to an end.
Maverick Carter, LeBron James' business manager, has been enlisted as an adviser by a group of investors seeking to raise $5 billion to form an international basketball league that would serve as a rival to the NBA, sources told ESPN, confirming a story first reported Thursday by Bloomberg. The group -- which includes multiple private equity funds -- is looking to form a league consisting of six men's teams and six women's teams, playing games around the world, sources told ESPN.
Multiple sources tell Front Office Sports that the league does not want to compete with the NBA and is aiming to be “an F1 for basketball.” As FOS also reported, James himself is not involved in the effort—though Carter’s role will certainly lead many to assume that James has his hands in it behind the scenes, or could eventually take an active role.
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