Former Los Angeles Lakers guard Nick Young left the team for the Golden State Warriors in free agency last summer, but before he departed, he put on a clinic in how to use fame, the team’s extensive reach and platform to build a successful brand.
With antics on the court and hilarious comments to the media, Young went from journeyman and internet meme to creating a following for himself that allowed him to build his clothing brand “Most Hated” into a seemingly successful endeavor.
If anything, Young’s career path with the Lakers and the way he built a base for his personal brand with only modest success on the court was proof of concept for the way Lonzo Ball and his father would later leverage the NBA’s seccond-largest media market to create endless attention for them and their family.