On and off the court, LeBron James has always been right on the money.

The Los Angeles Lakers star has made history, breaking the all-time scoring record previously held by one of the franchise’s greatest players Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

At this point, winning is the standard for James, who continues to add to the list of reasons why he is an NBA GOAT.

“To be able to be in the presence of such a legend and great as Kareem means so much to me; it’s very humbling,” said James, according to Forbes. “I would never ever in a million years dreamt this even better than what it is tonight.”

 

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His winning streaks are mirrored in the world of business.

As AfroTech previously told you, James is the first active player to become a billionaire, a feat he manifested back in 2014.

“If it happens. It’s my biggest milestone. Obviously. I want to maximize my business. And if I happen to get it, if I happen to be a billion-dollar athlete, ho. Hip hip hooray! Oh, my God, I’m gonna be excited,” James told GQ.

The achievement was reached less than a decade later thanks to ventures that include SpringHill Company, created alongside Maverick Carter, Fenway Sports Group, real estate properties, and his stake in the Blaze Pizza chain, among other investments.

Similar to conversations weighing in on who is the NBA GOAT, we also couldn’t help but wonder what is one of James’ best investments to date.

At age 29, James received what was deemed the largest equity cash payout at the time across sports thanks to a sponsorship deal with Beats By Dre, per The Washington Post.

Through the deal, he received $11 million more than he made per year as a professional basketball player on the Miami Heat at the time, the outlet reported.

The only criteria needed for the hefty check was simply sporting the headphones.

Ultimately, James reportedly pocketed $30 million in cash and stock when Apple purchased Beats Electronics for $3 billion in 2014.

The Washington Post reported, “While James was leading the Heat to a victory over the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals, sources say the 29-year-old was finalizing what is believed to be the biggest equity cash payout for a professional athlete in history as part of Apple’s recent $3 billion purchase of Beats Electronics. Sources briefed on the situation say James realized a profit of more than $30 million in cash and stock in the Beats sale after he had struck a deal to get a small stake in the company at its inception in 2008 in exchange for promoting its high-end headphones.”

Now, the legacy continues with his son Bronny James. 

In 2022, shortly after the young basketball player finalized his NIL deal with Nike, as AfroTech previously reported, Bronny secured another NIL deal with Beats by Dre.