LeBron James and Kevin Durant Back a New U18 Boys League: The Futures Basketball League Plans 12 Teams, $6 Million Franchises and NIL Pay in 2027

LeBron James and Kevin Durant Back a New U18 Boys League: The Futures Basketball League Plans 12 Teams, $6 Million Franchises and NIL Pay in 2027

The Futures Basketball League launches in April 2027 with 12 regional teams for the classes of 2028 to 2031. Backers include LeBron James and Kevin Durant; players are paid through NIL deals.

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The top 150 under-18 boys basketball players in the country play for more than 200 teams across seven leagues, according to Jason Stein. His answer is a 12-team league with 120 players, NIL pay, and backing from LeBron James and Kevin Durant.

The Futures Basketball League was announced Tuesday and tips off in April 2027, according to Youth Sports Business Report, which also cites reporting by ESPN and Sports Business Journal. Forbes' Adam Zagoria reported the launch the same day, in a story republished by Yahoo Sports. Stein, the league's chairman and co-founder, said the current system "hasn't risen to their level."

Futures Basketball League Owners: Derrick Rose, Paolo Banchero and $6 Million Teams

LRMR Ventures, run by James and Maverick Carter, and Boardroom Sports Holdings, run by Durant and Rich Kleiman, are backers, and SC Holdings, co-founded by Stein and Daniel Haimovic, is providing financial backing. Teams sold so far went for $6 million each, per ESPN and SBJ as cited by YSBR. The first owners named are Derrick Rose, who will run the Chicago team, Paolo Banchero, and Gary Vaynerchuk with Ryan Harwood. Every owner gets equity in the league, and teams that do not sell will be run by the league in year one.

Former NBA executive Samin Odhwani, who was commissioner of Major League Pickleball, is president. MADE Hoops, founded by former Nike executive Chad Babel, is the operating partner, and HMBL Development of Brooklyn is the training partner. Former ESPN content chief Connor Schell is leading media rights talks. No media deal has been announced.

Who Can Play: Classes of 2028 Through 2031

Players come from the high school classes of 2028 to 2031, and the league says it has signed prospects in all four classes, with names to come. They are not paid a salary. They earn NIL compensation, in cash, league equity or both, and those deals run through the College Sports Commission's fair-market-value check, per YSBR. Players keep their high school and college eligibility and can sign their own deals, including with shoe companies.

An April to August Season Next to the Shoe Circuits

The season runs April through August 2027 over 10 weekends in major markets, ending with a national championship weekend, with games on grandstand courts inside convention centers that already host big youth events. The league says it built the calendar around the high school season, NCAA live periods, USA Basketball and the NBPA Top 100 Camp. It still lands on top of the Nike, adidas and Under Armour grassroots circuits, Forbes noted, which is where these players compete now. Coaches will hold USA Basketball Gold licenses, and the league pledged $1 million to the MADE For All Foundation.

More markets, owners and the full schedule are expected in the coming weeks. More grassroots coverage is on BallerTube's youth basketball page.