GrindSession star and LSU commit Isabella (Bella) Hines has agreed to a multi-year NIL deal with Jordan Brand, becoming the only active high school player (boy or girl) to have such a deal with the iconic company.
The ABC Prep guard and 30th ranked women’s basketball player for the 2025 class (according to ESPN’s HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings) will receive cash, a regular merch allotment, and monthly Jordan packages.
She was in talks with other widely recognizable shoe companies, but ultimately chose Jordan because of the connection the brand has with her biggest role model.
“I’m a big fan of Kobe Bryant, and he always idolized Michael Jordan. So, I feel like Jordan was a no-brainer for me,” Hines said in an exclusive interview with Forbes.com.
A Jordan Brand spokesperson said, “We’re excited to have Bella Hines join the Jordan Brand Family. She’s a remarkable young talent who is joining an athlete roster that represents greatness for the next generation.”
New Mexico’s most recognizable high school basketball player, Hines announced in May that she was leaving Eldorado High School after three years to finish her prep career with Albuquerque’s flagship ABC Prep girls team.
The 5-foot-9 Hines was one of the country’s leading scorers last season, averaging 32.5 points a game. She left Eldorado as the leading girls basketball scorer in Albuquerque Public Schools history, and the school’s all-time leading scorer, regardless of gender. She also reached the rare 2,000-point plateau during her junior season.
According to Hines, who recently committed to play her college ball at LSU, she joined the Grind Session’s ABC Prep to not only help grow the girls game in New Mexico, but to also play against other highly ranked players from around the country on a consistent basis and prepare herself for the competition she will face in the SEC.
