How LeBron James almost became Reebok's $100 million man

Jed Wells

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How LeBron James almost became Reebok's $100 million man image

For over 20 years, LeBron James has been the face of Nike basketball, signing a lifetime deal with the brand in 2015, reportedly worth over US$1 billion. 

But James' future with the Oregon-based company was far from a certainty, with the NBA's all-time leading scorer causing a bidding war between brands for his signature as a teenager. 

While Nike secured James' services, the Lakers star has revealed Reebok almost convinced him to join them, telling the New Heights podcast he was even offered a $10 million check on the spot by the CEO. 

MORE: LeBron James addresses infamous 'f**kery' tweet

How LeBron James almost became Reebok's $100 million man

Long before he had over 20 signature shoes, LeBron James was the most coveted sneaker free agent on earth, with all the top brands clamoring for his signature. 

While he eventually signed with the swoosh, James told NFL brothers Travis and Jason Kelce on their podcast New Heights that he was almost swayed by Reebok, who were offering to pay him US$100 million. 

"It was not always Nike, I took on three pitches," James said. 

"I did an adidas pitch, I did a Reebok pitch, I did a Nike pitch, the best pitch that I got where I thought I was going to end up was actually at Reebok. 

"I went to their meeting and I sat down across from their CEO and their guys that was running basketball - I'm a senior in high school, I'm going back to Saint Vincent-Saint Mary the next day my senior year.

"The guy slides over a check to me at the end of the table, it's me and my mom and Maverick Carter, and [Reebok CEO Paul Fireman] says 'If you don't go talk to any other companies, this is yours'.

"I look at it - 10 million f**king dollars. 

"My mom looked at it, and me and my mom were living in an apartment, Section 8 housing in Akron, and my mum looked at me, she says 'Son trust your gut, if they're offering you this then who knows what the other companies may offer you.'

"They come back in, I say 'Thank you, I would definitely like to continue this conversation but I would be remiss if I did not take those other pitches.'"

In 2022, current Reebok CEO Todd Krinsky reflected on this moment from the brand's perspective, saying that former boss Fireman had a flair for the dramatic that played into their stunning offer. 

"Paul was one for theatrics," Krinsky told the Complex Sneakers Show, "he was the best salesman in the world."

"We made an offer to LeBron right there, it was later at night now, we'd been there all day.

"Paul offers him, I believe it was $90 million, and then Paul stands up. 

"He walks around the table, behind LeBron, we're all like 'What is he doing?'

"He says to Gloria, LeBron's mom, 'What's the name of your bank?' This is the theatrics. 

"She says 'Akron Trust', and he says 'Okay', and he pulls out a check and he goes 'This is a live check, not part of the contract, this is a live check for $10 million.'

"I'm across the table and I see the check go out in front, and he goes 'If you sign with us tonight, you can take this check back to Akron Trust in the morning and deposit it.'

"We're all like 'Oh shit', like that was a move." 

Reebok's pitch was so convincing that even James' first agent, Aaron Goodwin, thought they had landed the future four-time MVP's signature. 

"I thought he was going to go with Reebok," Goodwin said in 2003.

"At one point we stepped outside the room and LeBron said, 'Hey, I feel comfortable with them.’ Three hours later, he chose Nike.'"

Two decades later, and James has become one of the greatest players in the history of basketball, with Nikes on his feet the entire way. 

Jed Wells

Jed is a writer and social media producer, who has a keen interest in the intersection of sports and popular culture, especially basketball.