Oftentimes when the name LeBron James is mentioned, it is associated with success, be it on the court or off the court. For 11 years running, he has maintained his spot as the NBA’s highest-paid player, making $48.7 million on the court and $80 million annually from endorsements, licensing, memorabilia, and other business endeavors, according to Forbes.
His total of $128.7 million (before taxes and agent fees) is the highest in the 15-year history of Forbes’ NBA ranking. He made $124.5 million from 2022-23.
In July this year, James re-signed with the Lakers on a two-year, $104 million deal and recently made league history as the first father to play alongside his son. Off the court, Forbes said he has added partnerships with The SpringHill Company, DraftKings, Fanatics, and Hennessy and invested in the golf tour’s new commercial arm, PGA Tour Enterprises. He also
However, it has not been all rosy for the billionaire NBA player. SpringHill, the media company he co-founded with Maverick Carter, is reportedly grappling with significant financial losses and may end the year in the red, Bloomberg reported on Sunday, citing financial documents obtained by the publication.
According to Bloomberg, the company has never posted a profit since it launched in 2020. It lost nearly $30 million in 2023, marking its most challenging year to date. A year prior, the company lost $17 million and has never made money, according to Bloomberg.
“The entertainment market shift in 2022/2023 toward profitability brought rising costs, slower buyer decisions, and impacts from industry strikes, prompting us to recalibrate, including writing off underperforming projects to position ourselves for future growth,” Carter, who operates as the chief executive officer of SpringHill, said via email.
The company came into existence a few years ago to meet the demand of the growing streaming industry. It has produced several TV shows like Survivor’s Remorse and The Wall and movies like The Shop, Hustle, and Space Jam: A New Legacy. James assisted the company to raise $15 million from Warner Bros. in 2015. Similarly, he aided the company to raise $100 million from investors including Guggenheim Partners and News Corp. heir Elisabeth Murdoch in 2020.
Amid its struggles, the company has agreed to a merger with Fulwell 73, the British production outfit behind “The Kardashians” and the Grammy Awards, according to a report by Nypost. The deal will give the combined firms more scale during a difficult business environment, the report added.
