LaVar Ball had a chance to double his son’s rookie salary with a major shoe deal with a company such as Nike, Adidas or Under Armour.
He apparently turned them all away and decided to roll with his Big Baller Brand.
ESPN’s Darren Rovell confirmed the notion, according to Brad Crawford of 247Sports:
“We said Tiger (Woods) might be the next Jordan taking over, but there is no next Jordan in basketball or probably no next Jordan anywhere. I know that’s going to disappoint LaVar Ball, but I think you have to say that.”
As many have already guessed, this decision looks extra strange after the Los Angeles Lakers landed the second pick in the draft:
“It’s strange to me that LaVar didn’t at least fold some of his cards and go back to the shoe companies in earnest,” Rovell said. “After the Lakers thing goes down and the perfect scenario is going to unfold, the new deal, Nike (to) five years and $20 million. But what does LaVar Ball do? Instead of saying he now wants $1 billion, he now wants $3 billion.
No matter which way LaVar went, this is a ton of cash for a rookie point guard who hasn’t played a minute of pro ball. Lonzo is the best passer we’ve seen enter the NBA in a long time, but issues like his shot form and athleticism could hold him back if the wrong team asks him to do too much. Keep in mind the Lakers haven’t even assured him they’ll make him the pick.
We knew LaVar turned down big companies. Now we know how much they walked away from—so stay tuned.
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