“I Still Get Emotional”: With Michael Jordan Dominating Shoe Deals, Sheryl Swoopes Reminisces Her Nike “Honor”

The world of basketball has been loaded with the signature shoe lines of NBA legends such as Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. However, the scenery of women’s basketball also started developing a long time before the WNBA even existed. In fact, WNBA veteran Sheryl Swoopes was the first female baller to get her hands on a Nike signature line contract. While this was back in 1995, Swoopes has seen her remake models return in 2018 as Air Swoopes II. Nevertheless, it never gets old to reminisce about the impact she created on the basketball fraternity.

Following the same, she recently sat down with PJ Tucker on his podcast ‘Sneaker Lounge’ to discuss becoming the ultimate women’s sneakers pioneer. Talking about how it felt to fulfill her all-time dream of having a sneaker sitting in the shop to be grabbed, the WNBA icon said, “I still get emotional when I think about it. ‘Cause for me, as a kid, I said I’m going to have my own shoe. I don’t know a whole lot of people who do that or say that growing up. But, absolutely was a tremendous honor for me.”

It was undeniably a huge feat of achievement that the famously nicknamed female Michael Jordan had grabbed. Until she entered the space, the only male athletes that had a Nike deal were His Airness, Charles Barkley, Penny Hardaway, and Chris Webber. This was especially gigantic at that time because Air Jordans were an enormous name.

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While Nike Air Swoopes found a plateau after some time, they did find a niche market for themselves. But where do the NBA mogul Michael Jordan stand with his Nike deals?

The sneaker game Giants vs Sheryl Swoopes

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Nike Air Swoopes brought the net worth of the Houston Comets icon to $300,000. In comparison, the Chicago Bulls star stands atop $2.6 billion today. With the new Jordans continuously making it to the market, including the latest Air Jordan 1 low “rookie card — away, Michael Jordan has nothing to worry about.

Nevertheless, what Sheryl Swoopes did for women’s basketball is incomparable to many. She has paved the way for many other women athletes by pioneering this path. After Swoopes’ deal in 1995, Nike also signed Lisa Leslie (1998), Dawn Staley (1999), and Cynthia Cooper (1999). On top of that, Nike competitor Reebok also released “The Lobo” with Rebecca Lobo in 1998. Additionally, Fila also brought Nikki McCray to their house for an exclusive collaboration named ‘Delta’ in 1999.

Further, she is also an inspiration both on and off the court for many budding and proven basketball stars.

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