LaVar Ball Wants to Give NBA, NFL Players 40% of Profit from Their BBB Sales

LaVar Ball has a new pitch for NFL and NBA prospects going forward—sign with Big Baller Brand and get 40 percent of the revenue from their merchandising sales.

"The guys that I want to be involved with, I want them to believe in themselves," he told TMZ Sports. "So, I would give them 40 percent of the profit of what they make."

"I'm not going to give them the five-year, $10 million deal," he added. "Because everybody's like, 'Oh, he's passing up $10 million!' Like, nah, if you really believe in yourself and you're going to be the head of a franchise, you'd rather have ownership."

The risk for athletes, of course, is that they not only bypass the money upfront, but they could miss out on competing in the merchandising game with more established companies like Nike or Adidas. That would include both guaranteed cash and diminished earning potential, even with a 40 percent revenue share on sales. 

And the initial run of Big Baller Brand shoes didn't end so well for the company, with Lonzo Ball even admitting in 2019 that his sneakers were low-quality—another factor for athletes to consider.

So it's an intriguing sales pitch, no doubt, but one for athletes that carries enormous risks.