Congratulations Dallas Mavericks on winning the 2011 NBA World Championship!
As readers of the Think Billions blog know, we have been frequent critics over the years of Dallas owner Mark Cuban. But because we feel that he did a great job of keeping this team together and keeping them focused, we can easily say.......
Mark Cuban, billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, regarding LeBron James:
“When he was making his decision, what I told him, and I told Maverick, was that no team had ever blown up a team of all their core, then added a couple of free agents and won,” Cuban said. “It’s always taken someone to come into a good team to make it better and put them over the top. That’s what I told him.”
Current billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban, shared his thoughts with the Dallas Morning News about future billionaire Lebron James.....
"LeBron has every right to go wherever and do whatever, whatever team he wants to," Cuban said. "Going to the Heat was his choice, those guys working together. I don't even have a problem with the three of them working together, as long as they follow all of the NBA rules, which I think they did.
Where I think LeBron made a mistake, was in how he did it. I don't even have a problem that he had the tv show. But it turned out to be the largest public humiliation in the history of sports. He humiliated the organization, he humiliated the state of Ohio , the city of Cleveland. All of a sudden he became a bad guy, he lost a billion dollars in brand equity, give or take a couple bucks here or there. ...
"I told his folks that I think he got bad advice. It's not about 'Can he move?' He can move, he can play for any team. I think he picked the wrong team (chuckles). There's a team in Dallas that could have used him and that would have been better served but it's his choice. But the way he did it I thought was just a huge mistake."
In the next 15 or 20 years, I hope I'll be the richest man in the world. That's one of my goals. I want to be a billionaire. I want to get to a position where generation on generation don't have to worry about nothing. I don't want family members from my kids to my son's kids to never have to worry. And I can't do that now just playing basketball.
Yeah, we love basketball. But this article is about LeBron James Economics 101.
Welcome to class.
Four years ago, before his selection as the number 1 pick by the Cavaliers, LeBron signed an unprecedented $90 million contract with Nike at the age of 18.
Today, Nike’s $90 million investment never looked better. Never. Recently, Brian Fairben, Nike's business manager for James is quoted as saying: "The world changed for a lot of us at Nike in that Game 5 (vs. Detroit).” We are sure it has.
Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Warren Buffett has watched him play in person during several games this season. They’ve enjoyed each other’s company.
This week, Michael Jordan has not hesitated with praise for LeBron for leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to victory over the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference finals.
Everyone wants to praise and hang with LeBron.
Right now, the top athletes in the world for their endorsement value are Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods.
Currently, LeBron James is well down that list at #62. James has a number of endorsement contracts with Nike, Sprite, Powerade, and Upper Deck. Yet, his endorsements are considered relatively limited and modest---given the potential. However, that will change quickly. Very quickly.
According to a Bloomberg article, LeBron "might increase his $25 million in annual endorsement contracts by 40 percent with a National Basketball Association championship."
LeBron: portfolio manager.
Lebron James Nike Pool Commercial
Maverick Carter, James's manager and former high school b-ball teammate at St.Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio, says that LeBron is open to new endorsements. Carter’s phone is most certainly ringing 24/7.
LeBron is serious about taking his business enterprises global. LeBron is serious about the NBA title. LeBron is serious about many things.
What LeBron is serious about is what LeBron eventually achieves.
