We all know just how good Michael Jordan was as a Hall of Fame player and 6 time NBA Champion on the court but sometimes it gets overlooked just how good of a businessman that the G.O.A.T has become off of the hardwood as well.
When Nike founder and recent Hall of Fame inductee Phil Knight took a chance on Jordan nearly 3 decades ago, many questioned why the future shoe mogul would take a chance and link his company’s future to a still unproven highlight reel dunker that had unlimited potential but still hadn’t figured out how to win in the NBA.
It became a fairy tale adventure sparked by 6 NBA Titles, numerous iconic commercials, and the spawning of MJ’s own Jordan Brand. Michael took the rest from there, branching out to become one of the first athletic apparel companies to expand their brand to other sports like MLB, NFL, WNBA, and even most recently NASCAR.
Jordan apparently remembers his roots as he too has taken a chance in who he endorses to wear the Jordan Brand as he also took a chance on a prized NCAA freshman named Carmelo Anthony back in 2003 that took the collegiate hoops landscape by storm, helping Syracuse win a National Title before becoming a franchise player in the NBA with Denver and now New York.
Turn the clock forward to 2012 and Jordan once again is rolling the dice on another prized rookie in the form of #2 overall pick Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. Similar to Anthony, Gilchrist was a leading player last season in helping the Kentucky Wildcats win the 2012 NCAA Title as a freshman before being drafted by Jordan’s Charlotte Bobcats. It also probably doesn’t hurt that MKG has been compared to MJ’s former teammate Scottie Pippen in style of play.
The move comes at a perfect time for the Jordan Brand as it has been widely reported that recent endorser Dwyane Wade has left Jumpman for rising Chinese shoe manufacturer Li-Ning. Other current well known Jordan Brand endorsers include Anthony and Chris Paul in the NBA, Hakeem Nicks in the NFL, and Derek Jeter in MLB.
Now before we get ahead of ourselves, like all rookies on every level, Gilchrist will probably not get his very own shoe line initially, but will have to prove his worth for a season or two which may be a tall task considering the recent underwhelming success of the Bobcats in recent years. It would be a fair assumption that we could be seeing MKG rocking some of the Jordan classics like the Air Jordan IV’s seen in the pic above.
Check out MKG’s NCAA Dunk of the Year Nominee:
Allen Moll has been a lifelong NBA and NCAA College Basketball fan who watches and studies games religiously, and coaches youth basketball in his native Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania. Allen has also provided content to Bleacherreport.com, Upperdeckblog.com, Cleveland.com, CSN Philly.com, Buckets Magazine, in addition to being a tenured NBA and NCAA columnist for TheHoopDoctors.com.
