Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

Chapter 916 916 553 Not Over Yet

?Chapter 916: Chapter 553 Not Over Yet Chapter 916: Chapter 553 Not Over Yet After returning to Seattle from Orlando, several star players of the SuperSonics tried hard to keep external matters from affecting them, but it was difficult to achieve.

As soon as they got off the plane, the SuperSonics’ trio was surrounded by reporters.

They were each asked to respond to Iverson’s comments.

“I don’t know, I haven’t seen Nike,” Roy quipped smartly. “You know, it’s hard to find someone wearing Nike in Seattle.”

However, this smart move backfired, as Roy intended to convey that he rarely saw people wearing Nike, so he could not judge, but his teammate Durant was all dressed in Nike.

In contrast, Yu Fei’s response was much sharper.

“I won’t tell anyone which brand is better, that’s your own business. If you like Reebok, wear Reebok, if you like Nike, wear Nike,” Yu Fei said, “If it is as AI says, that Nike is outdated, then that’s Nike’s issue, they should find a way to improve their products.”

The one who had the hardest time with this was Durant.

He suppressed his anger, restrained his desire to speak ill of Iverson, and simply repeated what his persona was supposed to say.

“I don’t see it that way. There will still be a lot of people using Nike’s products. It remains a popular brand.”

All sorts of rhetoric could not cover up the media storm that had already happened.

Iverson’s criticism of Durant and attack on Nike would be interpreted in various ways.

One thing was clear, that Reebok and Nike had now changed roles in their battle.

And ironically, the Seattle SuperSonics team that Durant played for was Reebok’s “stronghold.”

The face of Reebok was the team owner, and Roy was also one of the stars under Reebok’s banner.

Influenced by Yu Fei and Roy, Reebok had become the dominant sports goods in Seattle.

Some Seattleites might not watch the SuperSonics’ games, but they would buy Reebok products because when they chose to purchase sports goods, they would think of the glory Yu Fei and Roy brought to the city.

This was what Nike found unacceptable.

Durant was clearly the team’s second star, currently averaging 25 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists per game. Could the SuperSonics still be as competitive without him? It was a very obvious fact, yet few people faced up to it.

As if Durant too belonged to Reebok.

This was evident both in the public sphere and within Seattle.

Durant was supposed to be the darling of the skies, yet there was Yu Fei, The Chosen One, above him, and Roy, a local hero, below him. Even though Durant’s roots were red and true, chosen by the team in the draft, his status in Seattle was like James Worthy during the Showtime Lakers era.

But Durant was more powerful than Worthy; he was not the typical secondary or tertiary figure.

Iverson’s off-court blitz was the last straw for Nike.

They couldn’t end Yu Fei’s reign, even with their elite assembled, they could only watch The Chosen One climb towards Greatest of All Time status. Okay, they conceded, but that didn’t mean they would stand by and watch Durant continue as a defender of the empire’s glory.

On the surface, the relationship between the players and the sports shoe companies is that of sponsorship, but beneath this clear-cut relationship, there were many unexpected connections.

For ordinary players, sports shoe companies are indeed just sponsors. They sign contracts and get signed for various reasons, not bringing much profit to the companies, more like a signing for the sake of signing, similar to those teams that like to collect second-round picks.

Second-round picks are not important, but if a second-rounder turns into Joki? one day, then it’s different.

But the actions and choices of sports shoe companies are based on commercial needs, so they have a more realistic logic of behavior.

They will focus their resources on those players who are worth it.

And that is the hierarchy above the players, the stars.

No one heralded can become a star, those not well-liked by media are not true stars, and those without commercial value cannot become the cherished stars of sponsors. Once they have these, they will present you with a blueprint.

In the name of His Airness, to break free from the shackles of gravity, giving humanity a dream; in the name of Black Mamba, an unpopular villain can strike deadly like a viper; in the name of King, a poor, insecure kid from Akron can become the king of the basketball court, telling every American the most authentic American Dream.

They pay stars tens of millions of US Dollars in endorsement fees each year, mold them into extraordinary people, use cool labels and outstanding ads to make people believe the player on the court is the person described by the media, then earn more than ten times that money from these people’s pockets.

This mutual achievement in the intertwined interests goes beyond the regular relationship of sponsorship.

The relationship between players and the sports shoe companies they endorse is often much closer than that with the teams they play for.

Nike now wanted to do one thing, use all means possible to make Durant hate Seattle, so that he would have thoughts of leaving.

Iverson’s comments gave them an opportunity.

Reebok wanted to use it to weaken the impact of Durant’s selection as AMVP. To Nike, what could one AMVP change? They could just take this chance to shift the public’s attention to Durant, letting the young man see another side of the world.

Then, they wanted Durant to know that it was all Reebok’s doing—and possibly, Frye had played a disgraceful role behind the scenes.