*By Max Godnick*
LeBron James is ready to add another title to his already gilded resume: Hollywood mogul.
The three-time NBA champion and four-time MVP redrew the professional basketball landscape when he announced he will join the Los Angeles Lakers. The move allows him to work and live closer to his already impressive entertainment empire. His production company, SpringHill Entertainment, is based on the Warner Bros. lot, just a few miles up the 101 Freeway from his new primary office, the STAPLES Center.
"The ease of him being in the heart of Hollywood is really setting up the next stage of what his professional career is going to be," said Sean O'Connell, the managing editor at Cinemablend, in an interview with Cheddar on Tuesday.
James's slate of upcoming projects includes a remake of the 1990 comedy "House Party," multiple series and documentaries in the works at Netflix and HBO, and the long-rumored sequel to the Michael Jordan-Bugs Bunny collaboration, "Space Jam." He'll be physically much closer to their development, production, and marketing processes in Los Angeles than he was in Cleveland or Miami.
The basketball star is still months away from suiting up as a Laker for the first time, but he's already drawing comparisons to some of the entertainment industry's biggest names.
"I think he's primarily going to become a dominant producing force and maybe becomes like an Oprah-type person who launches his own channel, and it's loaded with content that speaks to his interests," said O'Connell.
The current Hollywood landscape puts a premium on A-list talent with worldwide fan bases. The past few months have seen Winfrey ink a multi-year content partnership with Apple, while Barack and Michelle Obama signed a deal with Netflix.
ESPN recently ranked James second on its [annual list](http://www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/page/WorldFame/espn-world-fame-100-2018#) of the most famous names in sports - only trailing international soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo. While he clearly doesn't need any help expanding the scope of his fame or influence, James's new home could allow his ambitions and portfolio to reach even higher heights.
"LeBron is a household name and a household face before he even steps into the entertainment realm," said O'Connell. "He can become a true media mogul and make this transition."
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/lebron-james-brings-his-entertainment-empire-to-hollywood)
Americans are coming off big gold medal wins on Thursday from the women's hockey team to men's curling. For premiere athletes, olympic glory can also come with high-valued sponsorship deals. In this episode of Generation Trader in Partnership with E*TRADE Cheddar Anchors Hope King and Baker Machdo explore the performance of some of the top sponsors at this year's winter games.
A number of businesses are cutting ties with the National Rifle Association in the days following the Parkland school shooting. Cheddar speaks with David Hogg, a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, about the tragic shooting in Parkland and the #NeverAgain movement. In other news, General Mills is buying natural pet food maker Blue Buffalo for $8 billion in cash. And Chris Tung, Chief Marketing Officer at Alibaba, discusses the company's first official partnership with the International Olympic Committee.
Jeff Lin is the co-founder of Fanchest, a Brooklyn-based startup that ships boxes of sports gear straight to your door. He tells Cheddar what keeps him going every day.
Jeff Lin is the co-founder of Fanchest, a Brooklyn-based startup that ships boxes of your favorite team's gear straight to your door. Fanchest has high profile investors like NFL stars Drew Brees and Von Miller.
Olympic gold medalist Angela Ruggiero, CEO and co-founder of Sports Innovation Lab, discusses the U.S. Women's Hockey team's gold medal win over Canada. Ruggiero also shares her thoughts on the cutting edge technology she saw at the PyeongChang games.
Chris Tung, chief marketing officer at Alibaba, told Cheddar that his company's latest campaign stems from its core belief to support small businesses and young people around the world.
Paul Manafort and Robert Gates face 32 new charges in Robert Mueller's Russia investigation. Snap CEO Evan Spiegel gets a record-breaking payday. Teenagers across the country and politicians continues to weigh in on gun control in the wake of the mass shooting in Parkland, FL.
Vanity Fair's Hive: We’re joined by the crew from Vanity Fair's Hive to discuss the intensifying gun control debate. On Between Bells: Muppets, Olympics, Gotham, and more. With CinemaBlend, FanSided, and Chat Sports.
The Olympics are coming to a close but many top athletes who've attracted huge social media followings may have potential far off the ice or slopes and well after the games end. Gregory Galant is the Co-creator of The Shorty Awards and the CEO of MuckRack and joins Cheddar to explain the role of social media in this year's Olympics.
After a slow start in the medal count, Team USA is picking up speed late in the game at the Olympics. In a nail-biter, the women's hockey team took home gold after beating Canada in a shootout.
