“…Part of this discrepancy is due to a redox mismatch between O 2 and Ni(II): most known Ni–O 2 adducts require prior reduction to the Ni(I) state − or the use of already reduced O 2 units (H 2 O 2 and base). − Additional strategies to induce reactivity between Ni II and O 2 include incorporation of (1) auxiliary ligands that undergo a chemical reaction upon O 2 addition (e.g., thioether/thiolate oxygenation, ,− C–C reductive elimination, ,,, radical pathways), (2) ligand sets that impart highly reduced Ni centers, providing a driving force for electron transfer, ,,− and (3) redox-active ligands to store reducing equivalents . Incorporation of directed secondary sphere interactions provides a complementary synthetic strategy to enhance binding of otherwise inert substrates to metal sites, a design principle routinely exploited by metalloenzymes. − Although secondary coordination sphere hydrogen bonding interactions have been extensively explored for dioxygen activation, − reactivity of O 2 with complexes bearing appended borane Lewis acids is underexplored and unknown with Ni. The oxophilicity and tunable Lewis acidity of boranes provide a unique strategy to enable stoichiometric and ultimately catalytic reactions of O 2 with Ni(II) in systems that would otherwise be inert.…”