LeBron James’ Lawyers Send Cease and Desist Letter to Bron AI Over Ad Implying He Bets on NBA Games

LeBron James’ legal team has sent a cease and desist letter to Bron AI, a sports-betting app whose ad featured a figure that looked unmistakably like the NBA star, according to reports from Front Office Sports, Yahoo Sports and OutKick. The ad appeared Wednesday and has since been removed from X.

What the Bron AI ad showed

The video depicted an AI-generated basketball player placing bets on NBA outcomes. According to Yahoo Sports, it never showed the character’s face, only a player from behind in a No. 23 jersey with “Bron” on the back. OutKick reports that the character scrolls through a list of players before stopping on Dillon Brooks, a longtime James rival, and says, “Dillon Brooks? On Kalshi? Hell nah.”

OutKick says Bron AI’s CEO, Anish Gupta, released the video. The app’s App Store listing describes it as a sports analytics and betting research tool with live odds comparisons, data-backed picks and bet tracking.

What the cease and desist letter says

The letter, obtained by Front Office Sports, states that James “neither approved any use and/or exploitation of, nor authorized or granted permission” for his name or likeness. It also objects to the “unauthorized use and illicit exploitation” of his name, nickname, image, persona and other identifying attributes.

A spokesperson for James told Front Office Sports that he is “in no way affiliated with this unauthorized use of his likeness.”

The letter also raises a league-compliance concern. By showing a James-like character wagering on basketball, his attorneys argue, the ad implies he is involved in betting on NBA games, which they call “a very serious violation of NBA rules and regulations.” It also notes that James already has an exclusive endorsement arrangement with Polymarket, a rival in the prediction-market space.

Other athletes in the ad

James was not the only target. Yahoo Sports, citing reports, says Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Dončić also asked the company to stop using his likeness, and his picture appeared in the ad. Images of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayden Daniels, Christian McCaffrey and Donovan Mitchell were reportedly included too. The sources do not say whether those players took any action.

What happens next

Bron AI took the ad down quickly, but neither report says whether the company responded to the cease and desist letter or whether James’ team plans further action. Yahoo Sports notes it is unclear whether the company will face additional consequences.

The episode shows how easily AI tools and betting marketing can blur the line between parody, suggestion and unauthorized endorsement. For athletes whose names are valuable commercial assets, and whose leagues restrict how they engage with gambling, an ad that merely hints at their involvement can be enough to prompt a legal response.

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File photo: LeBron James (51959977144) (cropped2).jpg by Erik Drost, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.