The DeAndre Jordan resigning debacle with the Clippers this summer brought up a lot of conversation as to ‘business ethics’ (word to Billy Madison) when courting a player for a new contract. While most unease stemmed over verbal agreements and intense courting that took place after the sonic signing, another issue in the Clippers/DeAndre Jordan negotiations was apparently the use of a third-party endorsement contract meant to sweeten the deal. While all these happenings were miles away from Charlotte, the NBA is apparently looking at Michael Jordan’s ability to offer players Jordan Brand contracts as a similarly unfair advantage.
Over the past few years as our own Nick DePaula points out, Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets players DJ Augustine, Bismack Biyombo, Jeff Taylor, Cody Zeller, Gerald Wallace, Stephen Jackson, Gerald Henderson, Noah Von Leh, Al Jefferson, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and most recently Frank Kaminsky have all became Jordan Brand athletes.
What makes this mostly different than the DeAndre Jordan contract situation is that the majority of these players were drafted to the Charlotte franchise and sneaker free agents coming into the situation. For an exception to that rule, like Stephen Jackson who came to Charlotte midway through his career, he credits hard work and helping the franchise thrive for getting his JB contract. “I helped the Charlotte Bobcats get to the playoffs for the first time in franchise history,” recalls Jackson in our first ever Sneak Peek, “and because of that, MJ blessed me with a sneaker contract.” Just the same, Rip Hamilton became a Jordan Brand athlete early on with the MJ-backed Wizards, and remained under endorsement for the rest of his career after being traded to the Pistons and later joining the Bulls.
Maybe it’s just me speaking as a fan of Mike, but if a player’s no longer under contract with a rival sneaker company I don’t see anything wrong with offering a contract if you’re Mike. The NBA it appears sees things differently.
As more public figures with public business ventures become involved in the NBA, more red tape is going to be put down and more boundaries are going to be established. As you may recall, Jay Z had to give up his stake in the Nets once RocNation Sports began operation as it was considered a competitive advantage/conflict of interest and Raptors Ambassador Drake got in hot water with the league at last summer’s OVO Fest for making a playful recruit to Kevin Durant. This of course is a two-way street as those athlete’s involvement with said rosters have with out a doubt raised the profile and prestige of both franchises as well as merchandise sales.
When Jordan Brand first launched in the late ’90s, one of the cool things about their NBA endorsees was the idea that they were handpicked by Mike. Whether it was Eddie Jones or Mike Bibby, it was awesome to think that MJ saw something in them. The same goes for today with Jabari and truth be told may be a little more grey with Mike signing players on his own franchise.
All business is built off relationships, so where does good business become unfair? Ultimately the NBA will decide and it will be interesting to see if this only effects the Hornets or MJ’s personal ability to be involved with signing endorsers. In either event, Jordan Brand has plenty of talent to make moves throughout the league and with the new Nike deal we may even see Jumpman logos on NBA jerseys.
Let us know your take on this situation in the comments section.
Source: Sole Collector & Darren Rovell
Lead image by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images via Zimbio
