Bronny James, DJ Wagner display NIL impact on McDonald’s All-American Game practices

On3 imageby:Peter Warren03/26/23

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Bronny James and DJ Wagner have brought a Nike flair to the McDonald’s All-American Boys Game this year.

The famous high school all-star game is sponsored by adidas, which means all the uniforms, gear and shoes provided for the game are adidas. But James and Wagner, two On3 five-star recruits, have signed NIL deals with Nike.

So while the other 22 All-Americans are wearing Adidas shoes handed to them, James and Wagner are wearing Nike shoes.

That impact could already be seen Sunday at the first McDonald’s All-American Game practice in Houston as shown by Krysten Peek of Yahoo! Sports. James wore a bright pink pair of Nikes and Wagner wore black kicks to the practice, a major contrast to the red, yellow and white adidas shoes of the other players.

James and Wagner were two of five players to sign Nike deals ahead of the 2022-23 basketball season. Iowa superstar guard Caitlin ClarkStanford All-American guard Haley Jones and top 2023 women’s basketball recruit Juju Watkins were the other players to sign with the Swoosh.

Wagner had also previously signed a deal with Drake‘s Nike sub-label NOCTA.,

Watkins, who attends Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon with James, is playing in Houston this week at the McDonalds All-American Girls Game as well. She is also wearing Nikes during the practices.

James is has an On3 NIL Valuation of $7.2 million, which is the top valuation in the On3 NIL 100. Wagner is sixth among high school boys basketball players with a On3 NIL Valuation of $690K.

The On3 NIL Valuation is the industry’s leading index that sets high school and college athletes’ projected annual value (PAV). The NIL valuation does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals an athlete has completed to date. It rather signifies an athlete’s value at a certain moment in time.

Wagner is committed to a Nike-sponsored school in Kentucky. James has not yet announced any decision for next season but he is only considering Nike programs.

Bronny James, DJ Wagner are On3’s top two combo guards in the 2023 class

Bronny James and DJ Wagner are the top two combo guards in the 2023 On3 150 Ranking. Wagner is the No. 6 overall recruit and James is the No. 9 overall recruit. James is also the top-ranked uncommitted recruit in the 2023 recruiting class.

Both are the sons of former top high school recruits and NBA teammates, LeBron James and Dajuan Wagner.

Wagner was one of the standouts from the first day of McDonald’s All-American practice, according to On3’s Jamie Shaw.

“This is a setting many expected DJ Wagner to thrive in,” Shaw said. “On a court filled with alphas, Wagner was the ultimate alpha dog. The 6-foot-2 guard, son of former NBA lottery pick Dajuan Wagner, was able to touch the paint at will. He has an array of counter dribbles and plays with great balance in traffic.”