Lakers G Kobe Bryant is on the cover of the current
issue of Forbes that features the cover story, "The New
Stars of Money." Forbes' Brett Pulley said the "primary
reason that we decided to focus" on Bryant is because "not
only is he one of the dozen or so bona fide superstar
athletes who's also high paid," he "epitomizes ... a
movement towards this entrepreneurship." Pulley:
"Typically, [if] athletes wanted to make a lot of money,
they've had two streams of revenue -- there's salaries and
endorsements. Now, there is this growing third stream of
revenue, which is through ownership, through equity
positions in various entities." CNBC's Jim Paymar reported
that Bryant's five-year contract with adidas is "valued at
roughly" $40M and is "believed to be the second highest
sports endorsement deal to date after Michael Jordan's Nike
partnership." Bryant also has business affiliations with
Columbia Records, Upper Deck and Broadband Sports, as well
as his Kobe Entertainment. Pulley: "Kobe, as a total
package, is really showing some moves, if you will, that
Michael Jordan certainly didn't show this early on in his
career." Pulley added Bryant "epitomizes ... this new trend
towards doing" business deals "at a much earlier stage" than
previous athletes ("Business Center," CNBC, 2/28).
