Noah Lyles has rubbed people the wrong way again. Last year, he miffed the NBA players and legends when he started the world championship debate. Now, after Team USA has brought home the gold, an old story has resurfaced about Lyles’ being unhappy over the NBA stars’ entitlement in signature shoe deals. As per the latest developments, tensions heightened between Adidas and Lyles when they invited the Paris Olympics 100m gold medalist for Anthony Edwards’ shoe launch last year. In a recent interaction with Time before the Olympics, Lyles revealed that he couldn’t swallow the bitter pill because Edwards did not even have the ‘NBA Finals’ stamp.

“You want to do what? You want to invite me to [an event for] a man who has not even been to an NBA Finals? In a sport that you don’t even care about? And you’re giving him a shoe? No disrespect — the man is an amazing athlete. He is having a heck of a year. I love that they saw the insight to give him a shoe because they saw that he was going to be big,” Lyles said.

Ultimately, Lyles wanted to prove his candidacy for a signature shoe as a 3x World Champion. However, it irked the athletic community, as usual. This time, NFL legends Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson dropped their views on the Nightcap. After going through the whole of the Adidas- Noah Lyles controversy narrative, ex-NFL star Ocho[Chad] stated, “I think that hard part is that as a track runner the market and demand for a track runner shoe, it wouldn’t be as significant as a NBA basketball player who was seen globally.”

Shannon Sharpe seemed to agree, but he had a different analogy, as he bulged in to ask Ocho, “In a course of five months how many people are going to look at Noah Lyles’ feet?” The NFL legend followed it with another question, “In the course of an NBA season, how many people are gonna look at the feet of Ant-Man feet?” There was a brief silence, following which Ocho uttered, “Every two-three days.”

Finally, Sharpe dropped an ultimate reality check for Lyles, as he said, “There’s a reason why big guys don’t normally get shoe deals because ain’t nobody buying the shoes….We could find two guys that had shoes. Michael Johnson had a shoe, and Usain Bolt had a shoe. They still don’t make those shoes. Why is that?  Kobe’s been deceased for four years, but they still make Kobes, they still make Jordans, they’re still gonna LeBron when LeBron retires, and they still gonna make KD when KD retires. There’s a reason why Noah!”

Noah Lyles’ objection to attending Anthony Edwards’ shoe launch might affect his future relationship with Adidas.

Noah Lyles’ remarks on Anthony Edwards’ shoe launch might not serve him well

Earlier this year, Lyles signed a lucrative extension with Adidas. Reportedly, it was the most expensive deal for a track and field athlete after the legendary Usain Bolt’s deal with Puma. However, just after signing the deal, releasing a statement against a fellow athlete who endorses the same brand might land Lyles in trouble. Ocho confessed the same, as he stated, “There are certain battles that you shouldn’t fight. … You pick your battles wisely as someone who is great at their sports. Stuff like this can turn brands away, can turn market opportunities away even though you’re a gold winner.”

Ocho’s partner Sharpe explained that despite his demand for a signature shoe deal, Lyles can’t promote the brand the same way as the NBA stars. The NBA stars can get their fellow teammates to wear their “shoes.” It happens quite often as the NBA players have been seen donning LeBrons and Kobes. However, Noah hasn’t got that privilege since every track and field athlete wants to don his own name on the heel, not others’.

Noah Lyles should probably carry it easy, as Anthony Edwards is already a loved name in the sports community. Despite his excellence, Lyles’ words might not seem amicable to all and it might not serve him well in the marketplace. But who knows what fate awaits? Maybe Lyles can get a signature shoe deal as the first track and field athlete, just like Anthony Edwards! What do you all think?

Before leaving, do watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where Bulldogs’ Asia Avinger details her experience with Kobe Bryant, her WNBA ROTY picks, and more in the video below.