What’s the old adage, buy low and sell high? With principal LeBron James set to open Warner Bros.’ Space Jam: A New Legacy this weekend, Bloomberg has confirmed a report that James and longtime business partner Maverick Carter are exploring a sale of their SpringHill Entertainment. The news was first reported by The Information.
Conversations are said to be in the early stages, with a valuation as high as $750 million. Nike is reportedly among the suitors.
James and Carter may only be looking for investors, however, rather than an outright sale. Whatever the case, the fact that Lakers’ superstar and his business partner formed SpringHill Co. just last year after raising $100 million and now could conceivably cash out at a profit is remarkable.
James, of course, has longtime ties to Nike. At 18, he signed a seven-year $90 million endorsement deal with the shoe brand. It made him the highest-paid player in the NBA.
In 2016, James signed a “lifetime” contract with Nike. Carter, according to GQ, hinted that the deal is worth north of a billion dollars.
The advent of SpringHill brought together a group of the duo’s businesses under one roof: their Robot marketing agency, SpringHill Entertainment, which is responsible for Space Jam and Uninterrupted LLC, which produces “The Shop: Uninterrupted” for HBO.