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Private equity firm BC Partners had been in talks late last year to invest in EuroLeague, but those talks ran aground as the NBA’s ambitions in the region became clearer. A separate plan to create a new competition straddling Europe and Asia — spearheaded by Maverick Carter, business partner of basketball superstar LeBron James — has also been gaining support from backers.
A proposed international league described as the F1 of basketball gained attention over the weekend when Misko Raznatovic, the agent for Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, posted a photo on Instagram of him meeting in shorts and bare feet with LeBron James and the Lakers star's business partner Maverick Carter on a yacht off the coast of the French Riviera.
Raznatovic accompanied the photo with an intriguing comment: "The summer of 2025 is the perfect time to make big plans for the fall of 2026! @kingjames @mavcarter The post triggered speculation that perhaps James and Jokic could team up on either the Lakers or Nuggets, but more likely it suggests James has more than a peripheral interest in the new league. Front Office Sports reported in January that Carter was advising a group of investors trying to raise $5 billion to jump-start the league but that James wasn't involved. That may have changed.
So what's the league about? Early discussions are of a touring model with six men’s and six women’s teams playing in eight cities, none of which is likely to be in the United States. Investors include the Singapore government, SC Holdings, the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, a Macau casino operator, UBS, Skype founder Geoff Prentice and former Facebook executive Grady Burnett, according to the Financial Times. Reports have linked VC firm Quiet Capital, tech investor Byron Deeter and Hong Kong-based Galaxy Entertainment to the effort.
LeBron James met with Nikola Jokic's European agent to discuss Maverick Carter's proposed basketball league
The mysterious boat meeting last week in France between LeBron James, his business partner Maverick Carter, and Nikola Jokić’s European agent was about the planned international basketball league being spearheaded by Carter, multiple sources tell Front Office Sports. The photo, posted to Instagram over the weekend by Jokić’s European agent Miško Ražnatović, caused speculation about whether the trio was talking about James joining the Nuggets or Jokić joining the Lakers. Sources familiar with the situation tell FOS it was not about the Nuggets or Lakers.
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Zach Lowe on LeBron's picture with agent Misko Raznatovic: I would just say — if there are any plans that are actually being planned or talked about, with whatever date you want to put on it — 'big plans for the fall of 2026,' is what it said — I don’t think I would look toward the NBA as what that plan might be about. And that's all I’ll say about that." "And then, thing number three: it's kind of about the NBA. But I would not read anything into this Instagram post — I certainly would not read anything into LeBron's future with the Lakers or another team in the NBA — as he enters his, whatever, 23rd season, whatever crazy number it is."
LeBron James made an appearance in rapper Tyler, The Creator's music video for "Stop Playing With Me," released on Monday. The Los Angeles Lakers star stood alongside his business manager, Maverick Carter, while Tyler, The Creator rapped: "Caught the plane with Mav, Bron there too." James and Carter then danced behind the SoCal native multiple times throughout the rest of the video.
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.
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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.’
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.
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