LeBron inks sports trading card deal with Fanatics after two decades with Upper Deck

LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James and his son, Bronny, will appear together on a unique sports trading card to herald the Los Angeles Lakers superstar’s new multiyear partnership with Fanatics.

The top scorer in NBA history has signed with Fanatics Collectibles, the trading card division of the online sports retailer. Neither side disclosed the terms of the deal announced Wednesday.

James had been partnered with Upper Deck since 2003 in the sports memorabilia sector. He famously earned his first million by signing with Upper Deck two weeks before he graduated from high school and a few more weeks before he was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Fanatics Collectibles has signed several prominent athletes across multiple sports in recent years, including No. 1 overall NBA draft pick Victor Wembanyama and quarterbacks C.J. Stroud, Bryce Young and Caleb Williams.

LeBron James and Bronny will appear together on a special card available Jan. 19 in the 2023-24 Bowman University Chrome Basketball set. LeBron will wear his high school uniform from St. Vincent St. Mary’s in Akron, Ohio, while Bronny will be in his current USC Trojans uniform.

The 100-player set also will include All-Americans Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers.

James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the NBA scoring record last year before he led the Lakers to the Western Conference finals. The four-time champion and four-time league MVP is currently in his 21st NBA season, his sixth with Los Angeles.

James teased his new deal earlier this week with an Instagram post showing him examining documents with a Fanatics logo.

Bronny James already has multiple endorsement contracts as reportedly one of the most successful athletes in name, image and likeness deals.

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