Since Michael Jordan first retired from the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1998, several players have been named as his successors and become the face of the sport.
Some who have embraced this poisoned chalice have faded into obscurity, others have had illustrious careers but never threatened to surpass the Chicago Bulls icons, while a few have managed to live up to their name.
LeBron James, who ranks second on this year’s list of the world’s 50 most marketable athletes, could also be among the final group. He has won multiple NBA championships, including with his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers, been named MVP multiple times and holds multiple league records.
Not only that, but he managed to meet seemingly unattainable expectations while receiving intense media scrutiny from an early age. He was a high school basketball star who was drafted No. 1 overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003, and his career largely played out in an era of blanket coverage and social media.
beyond his movement
While the debate over who is the greatest player of all time will continue, perhaps forever, the fact that many are now talking about which prospects will be the “next LeBron” rather than the “next Jordan” speaks volumes. of his achievements. in his career to date. In fact, when Warner Bros. decided to make a Space Jam sequel in 2015, there was only one choice to take over from Michael Jordan as the centerpiece: LeBron James.
The future Hall of Famer not only stars in Space Jam 2: A New Legacy, but is also listed as a producer. Meanwhile, one of the production companies behind the film is The SpringHill Company, an entertainment development venture co-founded by James and his business partner Maverick Carter in 2020.
It’s no surprise that an athlete who grew up in the public eye would be so media-savvy, and the creation of SpringHill, named after the housing complex where James grew up in Akron, Ohio, cemented his status as one of the sports’ stars. Great athletes media figures.
His first exposure to the entertainment world was the 2008 documentary “More Than a Game,” which documented James’ high school basketball career. James and Carter served as executive producers, forming SpringHill Entertainment in the process. The production company would go on to produce numerous TV shows and movies, while James himself appeared on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” and tested his acting chops on HBO’s “Entourage” and the 2015 film “Trainwreck” Skill.
James tried his hand at acting, starring in the 2015 film Trainwreck
Decide
But James’ desire early in his career to harness the power of the media didn’t always go as planned. Back in 2010, James was the hottest free agent in professional basketball history. His hometown Cavaliers had hoped to re-sign James, and many other teams were courting him.
Amid intense speculation, James decided to reveal which team he would play for during ESPN’s infamous one-hour special “The Decision.” The Disney-owned broadcaster granted James primetime rights in exchange for coverage of the story, and James and his team can sell ads around the show, with proceeds donated to charity.
It was a very innovative experiment that ultimately backfired. It wasn’t until midway through the special that James revealed his “decision” to play for the Miami Heat, and the words “I’m going to take my talents to South Beach” have become immortalized in sports history for the wrong reasons. No matter how James announced his departure, Cleveland fans would have been upset, but this high-profile revelation angered them.
James controlled public opinion and raised $3 million for charity, but his reputation suffered serious damage.
Perhaps the backlash was best captured by an open letter written in Comic Sans font by Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, who declared James a traitor and vowed that his team would win the NBA championship before James did.
James made an emotional return to the Cavaliers in 2014, ultimately bringing the city its first sports championship in 2016
uninterrupted success
Contrary to Gilbert’s promise, James won two NBA championships with Miami before re-signing with the Cavaliers in 2014, winning the city’s first championship in 2016. He announced his return to Ohio State in a more modest way via an open letter in Sports Illustrated. This letter will launch a new business venture.
“He just wants to really be able to express his feelings and his thoughts and not be bombarded with a thousand questions about why he’s doing what he’s doing,” Carter told SportsPro in 2019. “He just wants to express it and express it Come out.” Once and for all.
“Literally, based on that letter, we believe there is no place for athletes to truly express themselves in this way.”
The two created “Uninterrupted,” a name that referenced James’ 2014 article that provided a direct message to athletes ranging from NFL tight end Rob Gronkowski to UFC champion and future WWE superstar Ronda Rousey. The way you address your fans. As of February 2021, Uninterrupted has received $15.8 million in funding from Warner Bros. and Turner Sports to develop a full-fledged multimedia product.
The most high-profile project is “The Shop,” a talk show featuring James and Carter set in a fictional barbershop. Now in its fifth season on YouTube, The Shop features guests from across the sports and entertainment worlds and is known for its candid and thought-provoking conversations about occasionally difficult topics.
social influence
The reputational damage caused by “The Decision” is slowly being repaired — first with James’ fairytale return to the Cavaliers, then with his move to the Los Angeles Lakers, arguably the NBA’s most iconic franchise, and fourth A championship ring is waving to the Lakers. .
Meanwhile, James has grown in prominence in the wider entertainment world. In 2020, Carter and James merged SpringHill Entertainment, Uninterrupted, and Robot Company, the marketing agency and consulting firm they founded with Paul Rivera, into SpringHill Company.
SpringHill, which just secured $100 million in funding and adds tennis legend Serena Williams to its board, promises to give unrepresented creators a voice and produce productions that serve other underrepresented audiences. Content.
While they have no hesitation in producing content involving James, they want to be seen as a serious production company and not just a vehicle for material involving the NBA star. Nor does it always want sports to be the focus of everything it does.
James remains an active member of the NBA but is moving forward with plans for post-retirement life
Importantly, SpringHill Entertainment has had a string of successes that gave it legitimacy in the media industry, and the enlarged SpringHill company successfully struck early deals with Netflix and Disney. An exclusive audio content deal has also been struck with Amazon’s Audible, with the first project focused on U.S. voter rights amid concerns that voter suppression and misinformation are disproportionately disenfranchising communities of color in the United States.
A year after the merger, SpringHill received additional investment in 2021 from the likes of private equity firm RedBird, sportswear giant Nike, video game technology developer Epic Games and Fenway Sports Group (FSG), which valued the investment at $725 million .
If you are not first, then you are last!
Ricky Bobby is at home!#TNFinTheShop pic.twitter.com/g4698TCnPg
— NFL on Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) October 13, 2023
Not content with being considered one of the greatest players of all time, James is working hard to build a media empire that will sustain him long into retirement and make a real social impact. When tennis star Naomi Osaka joined the list of athletes launching production companies in 2022, promising to focus on stories that are “culturally specific but universal to all audiences,” she chose to work with SpringHill.
A future Hall of Famer, James’ ability on the court meant that his stardom was inevitable from the moment he first stepped onto an NBA court. But twenty years ago, the idea of a basketball star becoming a semi-tycoon was absurd. Jordan and others have transcended their sports without becoming major players in entirely different industries — certainly not while they were active players.
There’s no denying that James’ fame and wealth gave him an advantage when venturing into media, but his vision was equally crucial. Success wasn’t guaranteed, and Hollywood wouldn’t automatically give him the time of day.
In an ever-changing media environment, James once again seeks to conquer everything put before him.
This feature forms part of Athletes Week. SportsPro’s latest theme week coincides with the release of this year’s list of the world’s 50 most marketable athletes, produced in partnership with NorthStar Solutions Group.Click here Access more exclusive content and subscribe to the SportsPro Daily newsletter here Get daily insights delivered directly to your inbox.