Nike has landed two of the greatest and most marketable athletes in the history of the NBA and sports in general. Their partnership with Michael Jordan helped them become one of the biggest sports brands in the world. And when they also signed LeBron James, it helped them dominate the current era as well.
Sonny Vaccaro was a part of bringing MJ in, but he was at Adidas for LeBron, and his story of why it didn’t work out is incredible. He told Vanity Fair: “Sometimes it’s business for the other person. For me, it’s always been personal. My relationships are all personal. When Adidas lied to me, I quit. They told me they’d give me $100 million. They gave me $70 million. They put it [the rest] in incentives. I quit. Why?
“Because I told [LeBron’s mother] Gloria in person, LeBron in a hotel room when he was a senior in high school, you’re going to get $100 million. We get there to sign the damn contract. I opened it up and it was, you know, it wasn’t a hundred million, another 30 million total in incentives. Incentives meant nothing to me. My idea is, give all the money now. If you’re scared [and offering] incentives, don’t give the damn deal.”
Sonny Vaccaro is a legend in this business, and the story of how he and Nike landed Michael Jordan has been turned into a movie, Air. For those that have wondered why Adidas never managed to land LeBron after failing to get MJ, this provides some serious insight into the situation.
LeBron James Reportedly Made A Lot More Money Thanks To The Competition Between Nike, Adidas, And Reebok
Even before he came into the NBA, LeBron James seemed destined for greatness. Everyone that watched him knew he would become the next big thing. And the major brands all wanted to sign him, with Brian Windhorst estimating that James made an extra $50 million thanks to the competition.
“There was one game, in December 2002, where LeBron James truly exploded on the scene… I have argued that he made $50 million that night. He might have made even more. Because the stakes to get him increased dramatically, and it ended up being an all-out war between Reebok, Adidas, and Nike.”
Landing a young LeBron James was like hitting the jackpot, and the fact that Nike was able to do it goes to show why they remain at the top. There are a lot of other companies in the mix now, but when it comes to basketball shoes, Nike remains ahead of Adidas by a huge margin, and now we know why.
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