LaVar Ball is great at grabbing headlines, but his notoriety didn’t help his case in business meetings with top brands.
Ball met with some of the biggest names in the industry such as Nike, Under Armour and Adidas back in April looking for partners to help grow his Big Baller Brand. The meetings came to no avail, though, as none of the brands were interested in teaming up.
In a recent interview with Complex, Ball explained the meetings failed since the wrong people were involved.
“This is what’s happening with them, they weren’t ready for this change,” Ball said, as transcribed by USA Today. “Every meeting was with a guy who wanted to endorse. That’s the wrong guy for our meetings. We want co-branding. I need them VPs and CEOs — just like I am.
“I’m meeting with the wrong people, so I’m sending them back and saying, ‘I don’t want no endorsement deal.’ That’s where everyone was getting, ‘Oh, LaVar wants a billion-dollar endorsement deal!’ I never said I wanted an endorsement deal. You guys endorse. I’m co-branding. Those Triple B’s will be on the shoe.”
The Ball family eventually released their signature shoe — the ZO2’s — on their own, but the lofty $495 price left most people laughing at the Ball’s expense.
Maybe the Balls and top brands will reconvene after the 2017Â NBA Draft, as Lonzo Ball is expected to go as high as No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Thumbnail photo via Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports Images
