Every once and while you read about someone whose life is so extraordinary that you sit up and take notice. LeBron James is one of those people. For those of you who don’t know who LeBron James is, he’s one of Americas most up and coming new basketball stars.
My wife and I usually don’t engage in celebrity worship, but LeBron seems to be truly remarkable person. James’s early career in basketball reads like something out of a Hollywood script. At the age of 18, James was the first pic in the 2003 NBA draft. He was named Rookie of the Year in 2004. In the 2005-06 season, in one nine game stretch he took home an average of 35 points per game. This last feat has only been accomplished by two other players since 1970: Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant(wiki).
Not only is James a skillful basketball player, his stated goal is to become the worlds first billionaire athlete. Recently James has taken on a minority stake in Cannondale bicycles. His endorsement deals are reputed to be more worth more than $250 million. Also, he has signed on to another three years with the Cleveland Cavaliers in return for another $60 million.
Finally, LeBron and his management team want to take his image global. This means they plan to promote him in massively populated asian countries like China and India. While this idea has been criticized in a lot of the second tier media, in 2005 LeBron’s had more than 16,000 press stories about him and 750,000 web hits, so he has a formidable presence in the media.
My sense is that you should keep an eye on Mr. LeBron. He could very well be the worlds first billionaire athlete.
Best,
