If the LeBron bonds were priced with a discount reflecting James’s coolness, pensions and quasi-pensions wouldn’t rationally buy them: The pension fund doesn’t derive any benefit from that coolness.

But in the real world, there are principal-agent problems. Somebody derives a coolness benefit from lending annuity money to LeBron James. Somebody — not a dispersed pool of retail annuity buyers, but a person — is sourcing and negotiating this loan on behalf of a life insurer. That person is handing James a big check and shaking his hand and saying “pleasure doing business with you,” and is having more fun than the person handing over a similar-sized check for a pool of auto-loan receivables. Does this lower James’s borrowing cost, at the expense of the life insurance firm? Man I have no idea; just something to think about.