Tag: Roc Nation Sports

Brandon Smith signs NIL deal with Roc Nation Sports

Penn State linebacker Brandon Smith is partnering with Roc Nation Sports, which also has Saquon Barkley as a client

The era of Name Image and Likeness is creating many new opportunities for college athletes like never before, and Penn State players are among those taking advantage of those new outlets for exposure. On Tuesday, Penn State linebacker Brandon Smith announced he had agreed to a deal with Roc Nation Sports, the entertainment agency founded by Jay-Z that also has former Penn State running back Saquon Barkley as a client.

“Excited to join the Roc Nation Sports family for NIL,” Smith announced on his Twitter account this week. “I’m excited to explore opportunities off the field when time permits.”

Smith is one of the thousands of college athletes marketing themselves and signing with sports agencies to explore their potential opportunities. The NCAA gave in to years of pressure and mounting intimidation and challenges from individual states regarding the power of student-athletes to capitalize on their name, image, and likeness. Pennsylvania was one of the final states to sign into law NIL rules to benefit student-athletes before the NCAA made a drastic and widespread change to its decades-long stance.

Smith is one of Penn State’s fixtures on defense this year, pegged as a starting linebacker once again in 2021. Smith recorded 37 tackles and two sacks last season, and he added an interception to his stat line for the 2020 season.

Penn State opens its season on September 4 at Wisconsin for FOX’s first Big Noon Kickoff of the 2021 season.

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Report: LaMelo Ball finalizing endorsement deal with Puma, leaves Big Baller Brand

LaMelo Ball is reportedly finalizing an endorsement deal to join Puma, leaving Big Baller Brand ahead of the 2020 NBA Draft.

Projected top prospect in the 2020 NBA Draft LaMelo Ball is reportedly finalizing a deal with Puma, according to a report from The Athletic’s Shams Charania on Wednesday. The move also signals the end of Ball’s involvement with Big Baller Brand.

There does remain a possibility that Big Baller Brand is absorbed into Puma in some capacity but there have been no indications of that happening yet.

Puma has stepped up its footprint in the basketball scene in recent years, signing the likes of Marvin Bagley, RJ Barrett and DeAndre Ayton ahead of previous drafts. DeMarcus Cousins, Kyle Kuzma and Danny Green are also signed to the brand.

The move isn’t entirely an out of the blue, though there were no official rumors of Ball and Puma prior to Wednesday. However, the connection between Roc Nation Sports, which the family signed with during the pandemic lockdown, and Puma made this deal a forecastable one.

Roc Nation Sports founder Jay-Z also holds a position within Puma’s basketball department. Ball met with Roc Nation Sports on Jay-Z’s private jet in March with some speculating that it could be part of a future Puma deal.

As recently as April, reports still indicated Ball was “wide open” on shoe endorsements. LaVar Ball hinted at a potential Puma-Big Baller Brand collaboration that added more fuel to the fire.

Most recently, Ball’s comments on Big Baller Brand for his recent ESPN piece likely indicated that he was leaving the brand in hindsight.

Where the rest of the family, particularly Lonzo Ball, goes from here remains to be seen. Lonzo had a recent lyric in his new album that indicated he was with the brand, but he also admitted in an interview that those songs were written in 2018, before the Alan Foster situation.

LOOK: Jamal Crawford, Lonzo Ball, Onyeka Okongwu send LaMelo Ball birthday wishes on social media

LaMelo Ball celebrated his 19th birthday on Saturday and, as one of the most popular teenagers in the world, many people took time to send him birthday wishes on the day.

LaMelo Ball celebrated his 19th birthday on Saturday and, as one of the most popular teenagers in the world, many people took time to send him birthday wishes on the day.

Jamal Crawford, current Brooklyn Net and one of the best NBA sixth men of all-time, sent out a tweet Saturday morning wishing Ball a happy birthday.

Brother Lonzo took to Instagram to wish his youngest brother a happy birthday while also playing the big brother role.

Ball’s former NBL team, now known as The Hawks, sent Ball a happy birthday tweet as well.

Ball’s new agency, Roc Nation Sports, tweeted out a graphic for Ball’s birthday.

Roc Nation officially announces signing of Lonzo, LiAngelo, LaMelo Ball

Roc Nation Sports officially announced the signing of Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo Ball on Monday.

On Monday morning, Roc Nation Sports officially announced the signing of Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo Ball. The family reportedly chose to sign with the Jay-Z-founded agency in late April. Though it wasn’t confirmed, LaVar Ball’s slew of comments in the aftermath seemed to provide all the confirmation needed.

The Ball family has bounced from agency to agency in recent years. After Lonzo parted ways with Harrison Gaines, the family signed with Creative Artists Agency and were reportedly represented by Leon Rose, former agent of LeBron James. Rose’s appointment as president of the New York Knicks paved the way for the family to depart once again.

While LaVar admitted to considering signing with Klutch Sports, the family ultimately made the move to join Roc Nation Sports. Raymond Brothers will also reportedly represent the family.

Brothers will have some important hurdles and decisions to navigate in the coming months. LaMelo is set to be one of the top picks in the 2020 NBA Draft. Lonzo, meanwhile, can begin negotiating a contract extension with the Pelicans in the off-season.

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LaVar Ball talks decision to join Roc Nation: ‘They’re doing exactly what we want to do’

The Ball family made a surprising move to align with Roc Nation Sports. LaVar Ball recently explained the decision in joining the agency.

LaVar Ball and the Ball family made a bit of a surprising move with their decision to join Roc Nation Sports after leaving Creative Artists Agency (CAA) earlier this year. While some expected the family to align with Klutch Sports, Jay-Z’s agency landed the Balls in what could be the first of multiple moves of the two sides linking up.

In an interview with TMZ, Ball talked about the thinking behind the family joining Roc Nation Sports.

“I think you have to go through different agencies to see the one that you need that’s going to have the same mindset as you. I feel like Roc Nation is trying to move in the direction we’re moving in.

But like I said…Roc Nation wants to do exactly what me and my boys want to do.”

The family has jumped around agencies multiple times in recent years. Following the Alan Foster laundering allegations, Lonzo Ball parted ways then agent Harrison Gaines in an unrelated move. Lonzo then joined CAA along with brothers LiAngelo and LaMelo, but that partnership lasted roughly a year before the family left to join Roc Nation Sports.

But the Roc Nation partnership already has a different feel to it. LaVar never had the things to say about CAA that he has said about Roc Nation. With that in mind, it could be the start of a blossoming partnership between the two parties.

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LaMelo Ball posts Jay-Z song to Instagram story, hints at potential next move

With his deal with Roc Nation Sports announced, LaMelo Ball could be hinting at his next move with a shoe company on social media.

On Monday, Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo Ball signed with Roc Nation, ending multiple weeks of speculation as to which agency would be the family’s next stop after leaving Creative Artists Agency. While the family will be represented by Raymond Brothers, Roc Nation is obviously known for its founder, Jay-Z.

Also notable is Jay-Z’s involvement in PUMA. In early 2018, Jay-Z was named the head of PUMA Basketball. Around that time, the company began a more aggressive approach in bringing in basketball talent, landing DeAndre Ayton, Marvin Bagley and RJ Barrett.

LaMelo took to his Instagram on Tuesday to upload a series of posts to his story with Jay-Z’s “Song Cry” in the background.

Shortly after, Ball tweeted another cryptic message foretelling more moves to come for him and his family.

Ball’s next big move will likely be his shoe deal, which will almost certainly be the biggest one of his draft class. His manager Jermaine Jackson noted that he is still fielding offers but aligning with Roc Nation and Jay-Z likely gives PUMA an inside track.

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Report: LaMelo Ball still ‘wide open’ on potential sneaker deals

LaMelo Ball remains a sneaker free agent but following Monday’s decision to sign with Roc Nation, a shoe deal could be next in line.

While there was certainly much speculation as to which agency the Ball brothers would next align with, a decision that was made on Monday as they joined Roc Nation, the move that had much more intrigue regarded only LaMelo and his sneaker future. With the youngest Ball sibling being the most globally popular, his shoe deal will be one of the biggest in recent memory.

In ESPN’s piece by Jonathan Givony on the brother signing with Roc Nation, it was revealed that Ball was still listening to offers from shoe companies and that decision would be next in line.

Roc Nation will be tasked with negotiating marketing opportunities, including LaMelo Ball’s sneaker contract. Jay-Z was named creative director of Puma Basketball in June of 2018, but according to Jackson the Balls are speaking to several sneaker companies vying for his endorsement.

“He’s still wide open,” (LaMelo Ball’s manager Jermaine) Jackson said. “He hasn’t signed with anyone. Everyone is kicking in the door. Melo is open to whatever. With this pandemic going on, we don’t know what things are going to look like.”

Naturally, Puma likely moves to the front of the line after the brothers signed with Roc Nation. Puma was likely one of the teams already chasing Ball given their increased involvement with NBA players a la Marvin Bagley, DeAndre Ayton and RJ Barrett in recent years.

Nike would also likely have a foothold in the game as well given the fact Ball nearly exclusively sported the brand’s sneakers during his time in the NBL.

It’ll also be interesting to note if LaMelo signs independently of brother Lonzo. Both are sneaker free agents and while the latter won’t have quite the demand of the former, both would certainly be big additions to any brand. If the pair sign with Puma, for example, they would almost certainly be the two lead athletes on the basketball side of the roster.

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Report: Ball brothers to sign with Roc Nation, Raymond Brothers

After multiple weeks of searching for representation, the Ball family will sign with Roc Nation and Raymond Brothers, Roc Nation’s President of Basketball.

After multiple weeks of searching for representation, the Ball family will sign with Roc Nation and Raymond Brothers, Roc Nation’s President of Basketball, as reported by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony on Monday.

Givony spoke with Jermaine Jackson, LaMelo Ball’s manager, on the decision to sign with Roc Nation.

“This was a family decision. This is now an extended family. They put together a beautiful game plan with Jay-Z. The basketball game is about to change. They are going to create something totally new.”

Roc Nation Sports was founded by music mogul Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter was founded in 2013, kickstarted by Robinson Cano’s signing with the New York Yankees. Since that date, it has grown to represent athletes such as Kyrie Irving, Markelle Fultz and Saquon Barkley.

Jackson and LaMelo appeared to have held a meeting with Roc Nation in late February. Pictures posted by Jackson to a secondary Instagram account showed Carter’s private jet.

The three brothers were formerly represented by Creative Artists Agency. The trio left the agency in early March. Some reports suggested that Leon Rose, who potentially represented LaMelo, leaving to take a front office position with the Knicks led to departure of the family.

The move to Roc Nation comes at a critical time with the family. Lonzo can begin negotiating an extension in the upcoming off-season. LiAngelo, meanwhile, will be looking at potential Summer League and G League deals in the off-season and into next season as well. And, most obvious, LaMelo will be one of the top draft picks in the 2020 NBA Draft.

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Video: Georgia Bulldog Todd Gurley is coming home

Georgia Bulldog legend Todd Gurley signed with the Atlanta Falcons and is returning home. He released a video to celebrate.

Georgia Bulldog legend Todd Gurley is returning to the Peach State. Gurley signed a one-year deal to join the Atlanta Falcons. With Gurley and a couple of other free agent additions the Falcons could become the first team in NFL history to start 11 first-round picks on offense.

It didn’t take Todd Gurley much time to pick a free agent destination following his surprise release from the Los Angeles Rams. Gurley knew he wanted to return to Georgia.

To commemorate his return to Georgia, Todd Gurley and Roc Nation Sports released an awesome video celebrating his career and his exciting return to the state of the Georgia:

What an amazing video. It’s worth a couple of views. Todd Gurley was a joy to watch at the University of Georgia and has been outstanding in the NFL. Despite some injury concerns, Gurley still has a lot left in the tank.

Gurley will be fun to watch on the Atlanta Falcons, who are coming off a disappointing 7-9 season. The Falcons are in a stacked division with Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints and Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Atlanta is going to need an epic season from Gurley to make the expanded NFL Postseason.

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Look: Leonard Fournette attends Pre-Grammy Roc Nation Brunch with Jay-Z, Meek Mill, and more

With the Grammy’s coming up this weekend, Jay-Z’s Roc Nation entertainment agency held it’s annual Pre-Grammy brunch Saturday with several celebrities like Jay-Z himself, Meek Mill, Diddy, DJ Khaled, and Kevin Hart, all making an appearance amongst …

With the Grammy’s coming up this weekend, Jay-Z’s Roc Nation entertainment agency held it’s annual Pre-Grammy brunch Saturday with several celebrities like Jay-Z himself, Meek Mill, Diddy, DJ Khaled, and Kevin Hart, all making an appearance amongst notables. Jacksonville Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette was also amongst the group, making the best of his time off from the gridiron after putting up a career high in yards and average on the carry.

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Fournette has seemingly gotten close with Jay-Z and the Roc Nation family over time as he’s signed to their sports agency. Yannick Ngakoue is also represented by the group and shares the same agent with Fournette, Ari Nassim.

Fournette’s career years comes after he changed his offseason approach and decided to become more of a leader in the locker room. On the field, he was able to accumulate 1,152 total rushing yards on the season and register an average of 4.3 yards per carry. He also improved from an availability standpoint playing in all but one game.

This upcoming offseason will be another key one for Fournette as the Jags have to decide to pick up his fifth-year option. Regardless of what they decide, he definitely could be up for a new contract in 2021 if he continues to trend upward.