The one and only LeBron James is out here promoting a sportsbook for the Super Bowl.
LeBron announced a DraftKings partnership two weeks ago that will see him make college and NFL picks for the fantasy and sports betting behemoth. However, on Super Bowl Sunday, he kept it straight to the point by simply shilling a promo code.
James did not give out his pick for the Big Game between the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs this time around, instead just promoting DK and his promo code.
What DraftKings really needed to do was convince James to give out one of their Taylor Swift themed prop bets for maximum pop culture engagement. LeBron + Swifties would make for an unstoppable combo.
As for the broader partnership, you can tell James is going to be selective in his approach to what he does and does not do with DK. He posted an Instagram video on his phone instead of an official commercial. We'll see if James appears in a Super Bowl commercial or any further content on Super Bowl Sunday, but for now, it's one of the first official partnerships between James and the sportsbook after the latest NBA-NBPA collective bargaining agreement paved the way for active players to take larger roles in partnership agreements with sportsbooks.
You also have to wonder how James feels about Kansas Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes who is going for his third title in five years. Just like LeBron has chased Michael Jordan for much of his career, Mahomes is now chasing Tom Brady for the title of football GOAT. Does James identify with Mahomes? Is he just happy to side with Mahomes because Mahomes ousted the rival of James' Cleveland Browns two weeks ago, Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens?
Or is James more partial to the classic titan in the San Francisco 49ers even though they were the rival of the team he used to claim in the Dallas Cowboys?
We'll have to wait and see if James makes an official prediction for Super Bowl LVIII.
