'Til death do LeBron James and Nike part. An exclusive report from ESPN's Darren Rovell has confirmed that the Cleveland Cavaliers forward has inked a new deal with the sportswear titan that will see him remain with the company for the rest of his life. According to Rovell's sources, the agreement is the 'largest single-athlete' commitment in the company's history.
James commented on the landmark deal when addressing reporters after the Cavaliers' practice session yesterday.
"I'm very humble, man," He said. "It's been an unbelievable time for myself and my family, and I'm just grateful that Nike and [Nike founder] Phil Knight and everyone over there just believed in a skinny-old, skinny 18-year-old kid from Akron, Ohio, and I'm happy to be a part of such a great company."
"It meant a lot to me even when I signed my first deal just to be with Nike, and it means even more that they've given me this," He continued. "It's like I said, very humbling and grateful, and I'm going to continue to do my job and represent the brand the best way I can, like I know how. Hopefully, people see that."
Nike has issued 13 models of James' signature shoe line since first signing him as a rookie in 2003. A March report from Forbes Magazine showed that Nike sold $340 million worth James' sneaker line in 2014. The figure is nearly double the amount of the next best-seller, James' sometime rival and fellow Nike athlete Kevin Durant.
"We've done a great job of building my brand to this point here today," Said Lebron. "We want to just continue it. If it makes sense for us to have a 'Team LeBron,' or whatever the name will be, we'll take a look at it and we'll go from there."
