Michael Jordan and Nike created one of the most iconic collaborations in the history of sports. The Air Jordan concept became a household name in the fashion industry as well. In a way, this also helped Mike’s rise to stardom too. But a few years ago, the individuals involved in his signing back in 1984, had a bit of quarrel. They argued over who needed to be given credit for giving birth to Jordan Brand, which is worth billions today.
Sonny Vaccaro, the former basketball advisor of Nike once claimed that he was the key piece in the multi-million dollar signing. However, the founder of Nike, Phil Knight spoke against Vaccar.
He said, “The signing of Michael Jordan, yeah, success has a thousand fathers and failure is an orphan. A lot of people want to take credit for signing Michael Jordan, most obviously Sonny Vaccaro. On ESPN he said he was the key to the thing. Sonny helped, but he wasn’t the MVP in that process.”
While completely disagreeing with Knight’s take on the signing, Vaccaro clapped back at the founder claiming that he deserved credit for being the “savior” of Nike. Sonny accused Knight of lying through his teeth saying none of the other board members even wanted Jordan.
During the late 70s, Vaccaro joined Nike and worked with them through the 80s as well. He was involved in several major signings which included Charles Barkley and Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon. However, he was released from Nike in 1991 and the reason remains undisclosed.
Michael Jordan had no intention to sign with Nike
Michael Jordan battled his way through the NCAA and his game earned himself a lot of recognition. He declared for the NBA Draft in 1984 and was selected third overall by the Chicago Bulls. It was at this time Mike was approached by several brands waiting to endorse him. Even though he ended up with Nike, they were never on his radar as he preferred their rival companies, Adidas and Converse.
Michael Jordan Rookie Original 1985 Nike Air Jordan 1 Shoes “Chicago” size 10 eBay https://t.co/DF1s3pOKlo pic.twitter.com/taK0K8fZjd
— Men Shoes (@MenShoeUK) May 14, 2023
“In all honesty, I never wore Nike shoes until I signed with Nike. I was a big Adidas, Converse guy coming out of college. Then actually my parents made me go out… to hear their proposal,” he told USA Today.
To everyone’s surprise, Jordan also revealed who he believes deserved all the credit, and it was not Sonny. The former NBA Champion claimed that a Nike Executive named George Raveling was responsible for his change of heart. “He used to always try to talk to me, ‘You gotta go Nike, you gotta go Nike. You’ve got to try,'” Jordan said.
He also appreciated Rob Strasser who presented the entire concept of Air Jordan. Mike claimed that Sonny had no particular role in the concept and that he simply crafted the deal. Jordan also admitted that it was Ravelling who had introduced Sonny to him. According to Jordan, until then, Sonny barely had any idea of who he was as a player.