Anthony Edwards is one of the brightest young stars in the NBA, something Adidas realized last year and announced the AE1, Edwards’ first sneaker shoe under Adidas. A TIME Magazine interview with fellow Adidas athlete and 100m Gold medal winner Noah Lyles revealed that he was invited by Adidas to Edwards’ sneaker release party but was offended to see a basketball player who’s not a champion get a signature shoe before him.
“You want to do what? You want to invite me to [an event for] a man who has not even been to an NBA Finals? In a sport that you don’t even care about? And you’re giving him a shoe? No disrespect: the man is an amazing athlete. He is having a heck of a year. I love that they saw the insight to give him a shoe, because they saw that he was going to be big. All I’m asking is, ‘How could you not see that for me?’”
Lyles and Edwards are both still Adidas athletes, though Edwards is becoming a cornerstone of the brand and the face of their basketball division, following the footsteps of Derrick Rose and James Harden before him. Neither of those players became champions either, but they got the job done by helping Adidas stay relevant as a basketball brand during their prime.
Even without a title, Rose and Harden held it down, with the 22-year-old Edwards having full faith in his abilities to do the same. Adidas clearly respects that as well, promoting Edwards as much as they can.
Lyles may have the moniker of the fastest person in the world right now, but that won’t change the fact that the NBA is infinitely more popular than track-and-field, which the large majority of people only follow during the Olympics.
The comment by Lyles is even funnier when you analyze his context with other NBA players, as the sprinter is heavily disliked in the community for arrogantly mocking NBA teams who call themselves the World Champions of the sport in a national league. He had a bone to pick from. the NBA and its players, with this being the perfect opportunity to make such a comment.
Devin Booker Still Disagrees With Noah Lyles
After Lyles made his comments about NBA players not being World Champions, Devin Booker was one of the first stars in the NBA who criticized him. While Team USA was in attendance to watch Lyles run the 100m and win in a spectacular finish, he won some hearts but also ensured people like Booker respected his talent from afar.
“I still don’t agree with the comment. I feel like all the best talent in the world is in the NBA, and this is coming from an Olympic gold medalist (who believes) that being an NBA champion is probably harder to do… The statement was said. I think how it was said — you know, it was just out of context. I feel like it was something that was weighing on his heart for a long time. He’s gained a following since then. He held it down, though, so congrats to him.”
Lyles ended up winning Bronze in the 200m race while running with COVID to add to his Gold, while Booker and the USA brought home Gold.
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