Changes considered by James

By Brian Windhorst, Beacon Journal staff writer

CLEVELAND - LeBron James might be close to severing ties with his agent, Aaron Goodwin, a league insider said.


Goodwin could not be reached for comment Friday.

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It is believed James is considering turning his management over to his close friends, the James-dubbed "Four Horsemen." The group includes James and Akron natives Randy Mims, his current road manager; Maverick Carter, a current Nike executive, and friend Rich Paul. A record company also might take over some management duties.


Such a move would likely become controversial because Goodwin is one of the league's power brokers and has helped guide James into becoming the NBA's most marketable image. With James as the product and Goodwin as the skilled and renowned negotiator, James has inked endorsement contracts worth around $135 million with much more on the way.


It is not clear whether the considered move is tied in any way to the release of James' surrogate father, Eddie Jackson, from federal prison on fraud charges, which is scheduled for Tuesday.


Goodwin's grandest achievement was a landmark $90 million shoe deal he landed with Nike for James two years ago this month. With executives from Reebok, adidas and Nike in separate suites at a downtown Akron hotel, Goodwin worked the three bidders into a frenzy, driving James' price more than $60 million above the opening bids.