Stephen Curry is one of the most polarising superstars in NBA history. JJ Redick recently defined Curry as literally like a star who has an amazing gravitational pull around him.
Considering Steph is such a likable superstar, the brands with which he has signed endorsement deals benefit a lot from that as well. Sneaker brand, Under Armour, has particularly taken full advantage of that stardom.
But one might wonder why isn’t a superstar of Curry’s caliber, a Nike athlete? After all, Nike has signed the likes of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Kobe Bryant over the years. So having Steph on board with their brand should have been a no-brainer.
Well, before 2013, Curry was indeed a Nike athlete. Although he was then considered a second-tier star by the sneaker brand, they still had a chance at re-signing with them back in 2013.
But due to a messed up and when we say messed up, we mean a really bad presentation they lost Curry. Dell Curry once explained what happened behind the scenes and how Nike blundered in that presentation.
Via Bleacher Report:
“The pitch meeting, according to Steph’s father Dell, who was present, kicked off with one Nike official accidentally addressing Stephen as ‘Steph-on,’ the moniker, of course, of Steve Urkel’s alter ego in Family Matters. ‘I heard some people pronounce his name wrong before,’ says Dell. ‘I wasn’t surprised. I was surprised that I didn’t get a correction.’
Well, if you think that was the worst part of the presentation, then you are wrong. It was further revealed that Nike even reused some slides from a Kevin Durant presentation and forgot to remove the then-Oklahoma City Thunder superstar’s name from it.
Via ESPN:
“It got worse from there. A PowerPoint slide featured Kevin Durant’s name, presumably left on by accident, presumably residue from repurposed materials. ‘I stopped paying attention after that,’ Dell says. Though Dell resolved to ‘keep a poker face,’ throughout the entirety of the pitch, the decision to leave Nike was in the work.
In the meeting, according to Dell, there was never a strong indication that Steph would become a signature athlete with Nike. ‘They have certain tiers of athletes,’ Dell says. ‘They have Kobe, LeBron and Durant, who were their three main guys. If he signed back with them, we’re on that second tier.'”
Now that’s how you really mess up a chance to sign the greatest shooter of all-time. To be honest, at the time, Curry wasn’t the household name that he became in the future. It would be understandable if the brand was skeptical about going full-in with Curry.
But at the same time, mispronouncing an athlete’s name and reusing slides from another presentation is not an ethical way of doing business.
At the end of the day, this turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Curry and Under Armour. The two have enjoyed a great partnership over the years and Curry is the face of the brand.
