07-09-2011, 02:18 PM
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Local High School Star
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 1,012
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LeBron James strikes sponsorship deal with 3 college teams
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/m...ory?aaaaaaaaaa
Quote:
LeBron James strikes sponsorship deal with UM men's basketball team
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By Steve Gorten, Sun Sentinel
6:39 p.m. EDT, July 8, 2011
CORAL GABLES— The University of Miami men's basketball team will be sporting LeBron James-branded Nike gear this coming season thanks to a sponsorship deal with the Miami Heat superstar, two sources said Friday.
James will also be sponsoring Ohio State and Kentucky.
James' publicist, Keith Estabrook, said he wouldn't comment on the matter and directed all questions to Nike, which didn't immediately return an email from the Sun Sentinel.
James, who has been active in promoting his brand, follows in the footsteps of Michael Jordan, whose Jordan Brand is the official equipment supplier of his alma mater, North Carolina.
James has no direct ties to any of the three schools he'll be sponsoring, but the Akron, Ohio native is known as an Ohio State fan. And he built a relationship with UM when he and some Heat teammates played pick-up games with Hurricanes players on campus last summer.
Larranaga also is familiar with James' representative, Maverick Carter. Soon after Larranaga left George Mason this spring to become UM's coach, he tweeted about a meeting he had with Carter and former GMU player Darren Tarver, with whom Carter is friends.
James' sponsorship and support of the Hurricanes should generate interest in a program that has continually lacked fan support.
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