Kevin Durant doesn’t need any extra Armour, he’s decided–the goddess of victory will do just fine. Under Armour, the rising shoe and apparel brand, had offered Durant an extraordinary sum of money–by some accounts $285 million–to leave the cozy Nike fold and wear the Under Armour brand. And the reigning NBA MVP entertained the offer, even though many fans voiced opposition to KD’s settling for an inferior brand. (Fans really stick their noses everywhere–don’t they?)
But Nike apparently matched or exceeded the massive Under Armour offer over the weekend–with a 20-year deal worth potentially $350 million. Jay-Z and Roc Nation Sports, who recently signed Durant, are pretty happy with the deal. Jay-Z–just listen to any of his songs–plays hardball. And that’s just what he played pitting Nike against upstart Under Armour. But the rapper/biz mogul knew KD was just too valuable for Nike to let him walk. It was all manufactured drama, really. Again, just like in a Jay-Z song. (It’s been a while since Shawn Carter has been on the street.) Durant will make more money wearing Nike for the next few years than he’ll be paid to actually play basketball.
