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LeBron James Leaves CAA With Agent Pal; Start Of Sports Representation Shake-Up?

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Thursday September 13, 2012 @ 3:37am PDTTags: CAA, LeBron James

UPDATED: I don’t follow the daily ins and outs of the sports agency biz — but I try my best to keep up with powerhouse CAA‘s when it makes headlines. So I’ve confirmed that basketball superstar LeBron James just made another “Decision”: he has left his veteran sports agent Leon Rose at CAA and followed his childhood friend, young CAA agent Rich Paul, out the tenpercentery’s door. LeBron is joining Paul’s new representation boutique Klutch Sports Management based in Cleveland (where James played with the Cavs before infamously jumping to the Miami Heat in 2010). LeBron filed paperwork with the NBA Players’ Association on Wednesday to make it official. Meanwhile, Paul is getting officially certified to become LeBron’s third agent since the forward entered the league in 2003 and now ranks 4th on the latest Forbes’ list of richest athletes. “Paul is a good guy who’s starting a little 4-person business,” a CAA insider tells me. “We wish them well.”

The news about the three-time NBA MVP, and 2-time Olympic Gold Medallist was first tweeted by Sports Business Journal‘s Liz Mullen overnight and is causing ripples in the sports representation world. Especially because CAA was instrumental in bringing James to the Miami Heat (but did not package that TV primetime sports special The Decision about where LeBron was going to play). James’ playing contract still has $73.9 million over four years remaining. CAA will continue to reap LeBron’s rewards — until James’ player opt-outs in 2014 and 2015. This “could be the beginning of a shift of power in the NBA,” ESPN is reporting. “James was at the centerpiece of CAA’s rise to prominence in the NBA during the past five years … and made CAA a major power broker.” READ MORE »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ESPY Awards & ‘Psych’ Premiere Gain In Young Viewers

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Thursday July 15, 2010 @ 4:45pm PDTTags: Andy Samberg, Hot in Cleveland Ratings, LeBron James, Paul Rudd, Ratings, Seth Meyers, Steve Carell, Tosh.0 Ratings, TV Ratings, Video, Will Ferrell
Nellie Andreeva

The Saturday Night Live-flavored ESPY Awards, hosted by Seth Meyers and featuring current SNL cast member Andy Samberg and alum Will Ferrell, averaged 2.6 million viewers from 9-11:30 PM last night. The awards’ 18-49 audience was 1.7 million, which is up 30% from last year, when the ESPYs ran on … Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: LeBron James Is A Hit!

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Friday July 9, 2010 @ 9:42am PDTTags: ESPN, LeBron James, Ratings, Sports, The Decision ESPN, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

LeBron James’ special The Decision delivered big ratings for ESPN last night. The special, in which James announced his decision to join the Miami Heat, generated a 7.3 overnight rating from 9-10:15 p.m. ET, the highest rating for any program – on broadcast or cable – last night. It was … Read More »

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Wait, Which Agency Reps LeBron James?

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Thursday July 8, 2010 @ 9:09pm PDTTags: Agents, Ari Emanuel, Boys & Girls Club of America, CAA Sports, LeBron James, Marketing, Richard Lovett, Sports, The Decision ESPN, WME

UPDATED: You know that LeBron James hourlong primetime sports special The Decision tonight all about where he’s going to play next season? Well, it was not put together by LeBron James’ sports agency CAA. According to my Hollywood agency sources, Ari Emanuel of … Read More »

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LeBron James Day Tomorrow On ESPN

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday July 7, 2010 @ 11:15am PDTTags: Boys & Girls Club of America, Cable TV, ESPN, LeBron James, Media and Sport, Sports, The Decision ESPN, TV
Nellie Andreeva

lebron-jamesLeBron James’ decision about where he will play next season is certainly newsworthy but to devote a one-hour prime-time special on it?! That’s what ESPN is doing with the dramatically-titled The Decision tomorrow night at 9PM. (That name is usually used … Read More »

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