Jason Burgos
LeBron James is expected to have quite a few suitors for his services in NBA free agency this summer. Interestingly, an Ohio State insider believes the university should give chase and see if it can convince the Ohio native to be their No. 1 name, image, and likeness donor.
The 2025-26 season only ended a couple of weeks ago, but there has been a ton of activity around the NBA in the days since. Milwaukee Bucks icon Giannis Antetokounmpo was traded to the Miami Heat. Lamelo Ball was surprisingly traded from the Charlotte Hornets to the Minnesota Timberwolves. And a little under a week ago, the 2026 edition of the NBA Draft took place in Brooklyn, NY.
With NBA free agency set to begin this week, the biggest name that could be up for grabs is Los Angeles Lakers All-Star and league icon LeBron James. If he can’t agree to a new deal with LA, several contenders are expected to try to persuade him to join them for the 2026-27 season.
Should Ohio State’s Ross Bjork pursue NIL money from LeBron James?
However, outside of the NBA, Bucknuts on 247 Sports editor David Biddle told 97.1 The Fan in Columbus on Monday that the university needs to chase down the 41-year-old to see if he could be for Ohio State what Mark Cuban has recently been for Indiana football.
“I’d try to get LeBron James to be the Mark Cuban of [Ohio State]. I know LeBron didn’t go to Ohio State, but he has his own locker in the basketball locker room, and it isn’t something he doesn’t take seriously. He’s on record saying he loves that, he loves Ohio State. Grew up a huge Ohio State fan. He’s the guy, if I’m [Athletic Director] Ross Bjork, I do everything I can to get LeBron James to be the Mark Cuban, the Cody Campbell of Ohio State.”
– David Biddle
James’ name came up because the conversation at the time centered on what OSU can do to keep pace with the out-of-control NIL spending in college sports. While the university has spent a lot on the football program, if they want the basketball teams and other sports to have similar success, they need a lot more money.
Former Dallas Mavericks owner Cuban showed the power of having a billionaire among the NIL donors as Indiana has become a college football powerhouse over the last two years with his help. With James having a net worth of $1.4 billion, he could have a major influence on the school’s long-term success in several sports.
With his NBA career close to its end, it isn’t impossible that helping the growth of OSU sports could be a new endeavor for him in his post-basketball career.
