Nike, Adidas and Under Armour have all decided against committing to an endorsement deal with UCLA star Lonzo Ball, whose father LaVar insisted that the companies license his upstart Big Baller Brand from him.
According to ESPN's Darren Rovell, in meetings with those three brands not only did LaVar insist on them licensing his Big Baller Brand, but he also showed up with a prototype of what Lonzo's first signature sneaker should look like.
In fact, LaVar says he has been working on that shoe ever since his boys were born.
Per ESPN,
"We're not going to sign with a company and then wait around for five or six years for shoe like Paul George had to wait for with Nike," Ball said.
"I've been working on that shoe ever since my boys were born."
So now Lonzo, a projected Top-3 pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, will be entering his rookie season without a major sneaker endorsement deal which is patently absurd.
Of course, LaVar doesn't regret anything though. He released the following statement, per ESPN,
"We've said from the beginning, we aren't looking for an endorsement deal," LaVar told ESPN. "We're looking for co-branding, a true partner. But they're not ready for that because they're not used to that model. But hey, the taxi industry wasn't ready for Uber, either."
"Just imagine how rich Tiger (Woods), Kobe (Bryant), Serena (Williams), (Michael) Jordan and LeBron (James) would have been if they dared to do their own thing," LaVar said. "No one owned their own brand before they turned pro. We do and I have three sons so it's that much more valuable."