LaVar and LaMelo Ball have recently been involved in a $200,000,000 case filed by LaMelo’s former business manager Alan Foster. Foster, according to TMZ, has accused the Balls as well as Puma of infringing upon various trademarks and copyrights that he owns. Previously, the co-founder of the Big Baller Brand accused Foster of cheating LaMelo out of millions.
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He had claimed that the former business manager would get LaMelo involved with companies that he himself owned, sometimes in the name of his wife. Now, as part of the Big Baller Brand (BBB), Foster claims that he came up with the MB1, LaMelo’s first signature shoes with the BBB.
The sneaker line was highly successful and Foster had registered a number of trademarks for it under his own name. However, once LaMelo signed with Puma back in 2020, the company created the MB.01 Signature shoe for him. Foster claims that this was an infringement of the existing trademarks, something LaMelo was well aware of.
While Melo eventually signed with Puma in what was said to be a $100,000,000 deal, LaVar Ball recently revealed that this was not the case, in an interview with Vlad TV. As a matter of fact, he only ended up receiving around a third of what was promised and called it the “worst deal” out there.
Hence, just weeks after he trashed Puma for the deal that they had his son signed to, LaVar finds himself being sued alongside LaMelo and the company by Alan Foster.
For now, however, it seems as if the two Ball family members will need to let go of their resentment toward Puma. With Foster alleging that he has suffered damage of around $200,000,000, the Ball family might need to join hands with the Sneaker giants in order to prepare a defense.
Alan Foster files $200,000,000 case against LaMelo, LaVar, and Puma
While Foster was initially a major figure behind the work that went into creating LaMelo’s brand, he was accused of misappropriation by LaVar. The Ball family patriarch had claimed that Foster had been guilty of using LaMelo’s brand in order to create his own.
Foster had apparently opened multiple companies in his wife’s name and would involve LaMelo in their promotion without giving him a piece of the company itself. This was also in relation to the DRNX company that saw a LaMelo-themed beverage being released as well.
While LaMelo initially endorsed BBB, he eventually decided to take the more familiar route and sign with Puma. The 56-year-old’s frustration with respect to not getting paid as much as he thought he deserved, as well as other dealings that Foster allegedly did, is justified.
However, the Ball family might find itself in legal trouble, especially if the Puma signature shoes infringed the trademarks that were already owned by LaMelo’s former business manager.
