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Summary
- Bronny James signs NIL deal with Nike
- Nike signs a number of young college athletes
- Bronny will graduate in 2023 and is expected to join the NBA in 2024
Bronny James is wasting no time in taking after his father Lebron James and walking in his footsteps.
The 18-year-old has signed his first name, image, and likeness (NIL) deal with Nike while he is still in high school.
Nike Signs A Number Of Young Players
Besides Bronny James, Nike has also signed NIL deals with other promising young talents in basketball. The names include Stanford sophomore Haley Jones, Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and Camden’s DJ Wagner. Juju Watkins who is a teammate of Bronny James’ also inked a deal with Nike.
Speaking on his new Nike partnership, Bronny said the deal allows him to further his family legacy on the court and in the sporting community. The 18-year-old Bronny said was happy about being a part of the Nike basketball family. NBA superstar Lebron James and Nike go a long way as King James signed a lifetime agreement with the brand in 2015.
Nike released a statement and said that
signing on young athletes like Bronny James will push the company to come up with new ways to consolidate the basketball community and think about the future.
Nike said they had a lot of expectations from the new crop of young players that they had signed.
The NIL agreements, like the one signed between James and Nike, were executed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in 2021. Such deals permit young college basketball athletes to earn money based on their likeness and popularity. They will also be able to sign sponsorships and land agreements with agents. Players yet to enter the college sports scene can also sign NIL deals.
Bronny James to Graduate in 2023
Bronny James is still in his senior year and will graduate from high school in 2023. Although he has not decided which college he would attend, Bronny is considering several Division I universities to begin his college basketball career.
LeBron James has stated multiple times that one of his dreams is to play on the same team as his son before he calls it a day and retires. There is a strong possibility that Bronny could join the NBA after spending a year on the college team and play alongside his dad as Lebron and Bronny represent Nike.
