“Air” is an entertaining dramatization of how Nike signed Michael Jordan in 1984

Air 2023

In 1984, the Chicago Bulls drafted Michael Jordan with the third pick in the draft. Many fans and basketball experts thought he would be special, but few staked so much on their analysis as Nike marketing executive Sonny Vaccaro.

The Nike of 1984 wasn’t the Nike that we know today. The company was built on running shoes, not basketball shoes. The market for basketball shoes was largely dominated by Converse and Adidas. Converse had Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. Nike wanted to grow their basketball market share, and they knew they needed to sign some rising NBA stars to help elevate the brand.

“Air,” released earlier this year, tells the story of how Vaccaro (played by Matt Damon) became obsessed with signing Jordan to Nike, despite incredibly long odds. Jordan had zero interest in signing Nike. He was choosing between Converse and Adidas. And his agent, David Falk (Chris Messina), had no interest in helping Nike even get a meeting.

Read the rest of this entry »

Follow the Scores Report editors on Twitter @clevelandteams and @bullzeyedotcom.

2008 NBA Preview: #24 Charlotte Bobcats

Offseason Movement: The Bobcats re-signed Emeka Okafor to a big contract, which will keep the big man in Charlotte for the foreseeable future. The team hired Larry Brown to take over as head coach.
Keep Your Eye On: D.J. Augustin, PG
The Ray Felton Era may be over in Charlotte. The team drafted Augustin #9 overall, and it looks like they want him to be the point guard of the future. Brown is notoriously tough on his guards, so it will be interesting to see how this position battle evolves over the course of the season. The team has talked about playing Felton at off guard, but he doesn’t shoot the ball well and Jason Richardson will likely get most of the minutes there, so I’m not sure how that’s going to work.
The Big Question: Does Larry Brown still have it in him?
Brown is known for turning teams around. With the team building around Okafor, Richardson and Gerald Wallace, he does have some talent to work with. Can Brown get something out of Adam Morrison? It’s not a given that the 68 year-old has the energy or the stamina to succeed during the grind of another NBA season.
Outlook: The potential is there for a playoff berth in the East. If Brown can coax good play out of Augustin/Felton at the point, Richardson provides efficient shooting at off guard, and Wallace and Okafor continue to produce on the front line, then the Bobcats might be in business. The bench is a question mark, but that’s true for most of the teams in the league. If the team doesn’t buy in to what Brown is selling, we could be looking at another season of New York Knicks-style griping and complaining, only no one will care because it’s Charlotte.

Check out our NBA Preview page for a look at every team. We’ll be posting three previews per business day, which will take us up to the start of the season on Tuesday, October 28th.

Related Posts