Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley’s Contracts Forced Shawn Kemp Out of Nike Deal: “I Couldn’t Make More Money”

Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley — two of the most popular names associated with Nike. But did this popularity cost another NBA star to lead to him opting for a different option than Nike? The revelation came on a recent episode of All The Smoke podcast.

Appearing on the show, ex-NBA star Shawn Kemp faced the question of why he left Nike for Reebok. “Michael and Charles man. Had in their contract, I couldn’t make more money than they could,” he replied. In fact, no other player could make more money than MJ and Chuck with Nike, as stated by Kemp. Further explaining his reason for going with Reebok, the 6x All Star stated, “I looked at Reebok as a way to get back in the hood.” 

As for Michael Jordan’s contract with Nike, when the 6x NBA champ signed a five-year endorsement deal for $2.5 million, it was reportedly 3x more than any other deal in the NBA back then. But the most important aspect of this deal was MJ landing the offer of 5% royalties with the company. This share still earns the Chicago Bulls legend money on every Nike Jordan sale made. And His Airness had similar advice for his Olympic teammate, Barkley, when the time came.

Barkley mentioned the instance on an episode of NBA on TNT. He recalled Mike asking him why he was taking a $3 million amount for his contract. Further clearing Chuck’s doubt, MJ told Barkley to ask for $1 million and the rest in stock options. “I actually made probably 10 times the amount of money. And I’m still with Nike to this day,” the 11x All-Star had said.

However, it’s not as if Kemp is not happy with his financial run with Reebok, as he admitted on All The Smoke podcast. Notably, the 6x All-Star’s first shoe with the brand was Reebok Kamikaze, released in 1995. The podcast co-host Stephen Jackson mentioned the shoes to be legendary. “They going to always be legendary without a doubt… they still selling them,” Reign Man agreed. He may say this now, but there was a time he allegedly bashed the brand despite having Reebok’s sponsorship.

The time Shawn Kemp filed a $4.1 million lawsuit against Reebok

According to an ESPN article, the former Seattle SuperSonics star once told a reporter his all-time favorite sneakers were a pair by Nike. And that the basketball sneakers were no longer what they used to be, but just “throwaways”. What came next was differences between Kemp and the fitness footwear and clothing brand. Two months after his remarks, Reebok terminated Reign Man’s contract in June 2000.

Subsequently, he filed a $4.1 million lawsuit against the brand. As per the lawsuit, the brand owed the NBA star the claimed amount on a 5-year contract that was to expire the coming year. Meanwhile, Reebok was of the opinion that it was Kemp who owed them $1 million in advance royalties. Notably, Reign Man’s contract with the sports brand forbade him from making any disparaging remarks about the brand or its products.

Kemp claimed he made a general statement about sneakers and not specifically against Reebok. “They’re throwaways, because you can rip a shoes out in a couple of hours… I signed a contract, but not to lie for them… Telling the truth is not disparaging,” he said. However, the suit was later dropped by the 6x All Star. As of now, Kemp is planning to come up with his own line of shoes, as revealed on ‘All The Smoke’.

Stay tuned for more such updates. And to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.