NBA Live 20 Cover Rumors: Zion Williamson Received Offer to Appear on Cover of New Game
The NBA Live 20 cover has yet to be officially revealed. However, it appears that one of the top prospects in recent memory nearly graced the upcoming game’s cover. New NBA Live 20 cover rumors have arrived regarding the Duke Blue Devils’ Zion Williamson. He’s been pegged as the No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft, and looks like he was on pace to have at least one million dollar endorsement or sponsorship in his young career.
Zion Williamson nearly had cover, per NBA Live 20 rumors
A report from Forbes’ Brian Mazique cites an industry source as saying that Zion Williamson was offered to be on the cover of the upcoming game. Mazique mentions that the source had knowledge of the situation and indicated there was a one million offer made to Zion to be the cover athlete for NBA Live 20. However, there was a “disconnection”, and based on these NBA Live 20 cover rumors the deal didn’t happen.
Based on the source mentioned, the sticking point in a deal could have to do with Williamson suing Prime Sports. He signed a deal with them once he declared for the NBA Draft, but that agreement didn’t have the proper “state-requirement verbiage.” At the end of May, he signed with CAA as his agent representation ahead of the 2019 NBA Draft.
So that means that Duke’s Zion Williamson may not be the cover star for the upcoming game. He’ll still be the No. 1 overall pick for all intents and purposes as just about every analyst believes he’s the best prospect available in some time. That should mean he’ll be in a New Orleans Pelicans jersey for the 2019-20 NBA season, barring some sort of trade ahead of or during the draft.
Who will the next cover athlete be?
With Zion Williamson out, that leaves it open to more NBA Live 20 cover rumors to swirl. One would have to think EA Sports won’t use another rookie in the upcoming draft as there aren’t any with the sort of profile that Zion has, yet.
For the NBA Live 19 cover star, the Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid graced the game’s box front. Embiid was an All-Star this past season and continues to be one of the game’s popular stars.
The Houston Rockets’ James Harden was on the cover for NBA Live 18 and ended up having a 2019 NBA MVP season. He enjoyed another great season this past year in which he led the league in scoring and is once again up for the MVP Award.
Other cover stars for the NBA Live series have included Kyrie Irving (NBA Live 14), Damian Lillard (NBA Live 15), and Russell Westbrook (NBA Live 16). Joel Embiid is a two-time cover star who was also on the NBA Live 17 game.
A few guys who have yet to appear on the NBA Live cover are LeBron James and Stephen Curry. Both seem like good candidates, as does the Toronto Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard. The Raptors’ All-Star has risen his profile during the NBA Playoffs and Finals. Even though he represents a Canadian franchise, his popularity is there.
One could also look to the past year’s rookies as potential cover stars. International phenom Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks and point guard Trae Young from the Atlanta Hawks could both appear on the game’s cover.
Zion could still appear on the game’s front
While these NBA Live 20 cover rumors seem to indicate Zion won’t get the cover, it’s always possible something could happen with his new agency. The NBA Live game typically arrives in September based on the last three game’s release dates. If he lands the cover, it could also block NBA 2K20 from using him. So far, they don’t have a cover athlete either, but they have the cover star on their Legends edition, Dwyane Wade.
It’s worth noting that many analysts and experts believe Zion Williamson is going to enjoy quite a lucrative basketball career either way. Some are already saying he’ll be one of the few billion-dollar athletes in history, joining the likes of Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and ultimately, LeBron James.
Passing up a million dollars could seem silly now, but Zion appears like he’ll be on pace for decent deals in his career.
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