PDA

View Full Version : Endorsements MYTH



RockyMtDevil
04-07-2011, 09:43 AM
It seems every few years when we lose a player like Kyrie early to the draft, the DBR folks talk up the notion that since "player x.y.z" has such sterling character, etc.. that it's a no brainer to leave and cash in not only on the lottery, but maybe more importantly the huge cash endorsements. It's mentioned again with Kyrie and I just don't see it.

CNNSI has a site listing the top 50 paid athletes with endorsement deals included, their isn't a Duke player on the list. Yes, Shane Battier recently signed a shoe deal in China, but c'mon, this is only because he is riding Yao's wave. I've yet to see any Duke player on a Nike, Addidas, etc.. commercial. There may be local money being made by these guys in their own market, but please stop using this as some way to pat ourselves on the back for producing great kids. Marketing gurus don't care, see Stephen Marbury and Stevie Francis, both making millions on endorsements and you couldn't find two greater thugs in the league.


Can we put this myth to bed please, it drives me crazy.

yancem
04-07-2011, 09:50 AM
I'm pretty sure that Grant Hill made a few endorsement bucks.

MChambers
04-07-2011, 09:55 AM
I've seen Bobby Hurley endorsing Dove Men Care products. Don't think that was because of his NBA career, which was far too short.

davekay1971
04-07-2011, 09:57 AM
I'm pretty sure that Grant Hill made a few endorsement bucks.

Grant Hill drinks Sprite?!

The national commercials go primarily to the top 5-10 guys in the league. We've had great players come through Duke since Grant, many of whom are making very nice careers for themselves in the League, but we haven't had a one-name all-league guy since Grant. That's why you don't see the national commercials with Duke guys right now. Kyrie could very well be an all-league guy and, if he is, he'll be pitching soft drinks and sneakers.

It's that household name status that defines who does the ads, not necessarily character. Bad character will cost players endoresements, but I don't think sterling character necessarily gets them endorsements, at least not without that all-league performance.

thewoosh31
04-07-2011, 09:57 AM
Yeah. You have to be a potential superstar to get major endoresment deals. Adidas saw that with J-Will when he was a rookie. I don't doubt that Kyrie may get the same type of treatment.

Sir Stealth
04-07-2011, 11:07 AM
Marketing gurus don't care, see Stephen Marbury and Stevie Francis, both making millions on endorsements and you couldn't find two greater thugs in the league.


There's that word again. What do you know about these players other than how they look or play basketball? Have they been known to be violent or intimidating? What makes them thugs?

magjayran
04-07-2011, 11:35 AM
There's that word again. What do you know about these players other than how they look or play basketball? Have they been known to be violent or intimidating? What makes them thugs?

Stephon Marbury may have had some notable episodes where he went a little loopy for 72 hours on a webcam but he is far from a thug and I think it's insulting and borderline racist to say that he is. Growing up in the inner city and developing a taste for hip-hop and diamonds doesn't make you a thug. Having issues with coaches doesn't make you a thug either. I won't pretend like he's always made the best decisions (although someone should have known better than to pair him with Brown and D'Antoni for a second time) but he's not a thug by any stretch of the imagination. Please choose your words more carefully.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/116425-open-your-eyes-stephon-marburys-respected-career-has-been-ruined-by-the-media

http://www.sportsbusinessnews.com/_news/news_355106.php

DallasDevil
04-07-2011, 11:43 AM
Yes, there's definitely no reasonable basis for believing that a projected number 1 pick will get a decent endoresement deal.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=aw-wallreebok060910

UrinalCake
04-07-2011, 11:58 AM
My understanding is a little different from that of the OP. From what I've seen, whenever a guy who's a projected lottery pick but not top 3-5 range is thinking of leaving, the argument is made that he should STAY because even though he'll have to wait an extra year before he starts earning money, he can make that up by improving his stock, moving up to the top of the draft, and therefore realizing more endorsement money. The argument typically goes something like "would you rather leave now and make $1-2 million per year, or wait a year, make $5-6 million, plus an unlimited amount of endorsement money." Note that I just made those numbers up, I have no idea what the rookie salary scale is or will be.

This argument would actually be proven by the OP's article, since Duke has not had a top 3-5 guy in several years.

RockyMtDevil
04-07-2011, 12:41 PM
Not sure when "thug" became synonomous with a racial slur, but hey, you made that jump, I didn't. How about punks, can we concur that Francis and Marbury are punks? Or worse yet, maybe they are right wing conservatives...Either way, they are far from being mainstream role models whose endorsement of any product would be suspect at best.

Poincaré
04-07-2011, 02:51 PM
Not sure when "thug" became synonomous with a racial slur, but hey, you made that jump, I didn't. How about punks, can we concur that Francis and Marbury are punks? Or worse yet, maybe they are right wing conservatives...Either way, they are far from being mainstream role models whose endorsement of any product would be suspect at best.

Exactly. There is absolutely no legitimate reason for "thug" to be considered a racial slur. Gotta admire your conciliatory tone though. However, what are you going to do when you find out that people consider "punk" to be a racial slur?

theAlaskanBear
04-07-2011, 03:08 PM
Exactly. There is absolutely no legitimate reason for "thug" to be considered a racial slur. Gotta admire your conciliatory tone though. However, what are you going to do when you find out that people consider "punk" to be a racial slur?

Well yes and no. Though I didn't say anything, I reacted harshly to the phrasing of the OP. Unless RockyMtDevil knows Steve Francis and Marbury personally, I don't think its fair at all to call them thugs, truth is he has NO IDEA what they are like; he just has a perceived image of them.

As far as the racial aspect -- I never heard a white bb player called a thug. The word seems to be reserved for black basketball players with less than sterling media images. This conversation is hitting all too close to home after the Fab 5 doc.

I agree with the OPs general intent; that endorsements tend to get overplayed.

Sir Stealth
04-07-2011, 03:27 PM
Exactly. There is absolutely no legitimate reason for "thug" to be considered a racial slur. Gotta admire your conciliatory tone though. However, what are you going to do when you find out that people consider "punk" to be a racial slur?

I didn't see where I or anyone said that it was a a racial "slur." I do however, think that it is a racially charged code word. Its use to criticize black players a) who have no history of violent or brutish behavior (the traditional use of "thug") and b) who the person using the word almost certainly does not know much about from a personal standpoint is racially charged and should be criticized. What exactly is "thuggish" about them? Is it the fact that they come from urban backgrounds? Their style of play? Tattoos? Does being a ball hog make a person a "thug" now? If so, is Jimmer Fredette a "thug" for hogging the ball?

The comment about giving the same treatment to "punk" is of course willfully ignorant of the way that many people, especially on the internet, use the word "thug" nowadays.

To be clear, this response is intended for the second comments by just a lemma, not to pile on RockyMt Devil, who I do not intend to accuse of being racist or of malicious intent in using the word. I just dislike seeing the word used this way on a Duke message board.

AnotherNYCDukeFan
04-07-2011, 03:36 PM
As far as the racial aspect -- I never heard a white bb player called a thug.

Apparently, you've never had a conversation with a Duke-hater about Christian Laettner. I heard him called it twice at lunch today alone!:(

MChambers
04-07-2011, 03:45 PM
Apparently, you've never had a conversation with a Duke-hater about Christian Laettner. I heard him called it twice at lunch today alone!:(

You need to eat with a better group!

Scorp4me
04-07-2011, 04:03 PM
Oh for goodness sakes. Political correctness has ruined this nation. Now it's ruining our basketball message boards?:(

Ima Facultiwyfe
04-07-2011, 04:13 PM
Oh for goodness sakes. Political correctness has ruined this nation. Now it's ruining our basketball message boards?:(

yep.

Sir Stealth
04-07-2011, 04:34 PM
Oh for goodness sakes. Political correctness has ruined this nation. Now it's ruining our basketball message boards?:(

Yeah, the world would be so great without all of this durn political correctness. There would be no racial code words, and everyone would be free without having to worry about being respectful or not labeling people that they do not know. No one would ever be offended, because they would know that words and the way we use them are completely meaningless and do not ever actually affect people. We could just call people whatever we wanted without having to back it up. Everything would be perfect just like it was back in the day when life was better for everyone.

If anyone wants to tell me (without hiding behind the accusation that the nation is too politically correct) what they know about Stephon Marbury or Steve Francis that actually makes them "thugs," that would be welcome.

theAlaskanBear
04-07-2011, 04:45 PM
If anyone wants to tell me (without hiding behind the accusation that the nation is too politically correct) what they know about Stephon Marbury or Steve Francis that actually makes them "thugs," that would be welcome.

http://www.stevefrancisfoundation.com/

You mean that is not a tell-tell sign of a thug??! /sarcasm off

-jk
04-07-2011, 05:24 PM
Well, this thread got thoroughly derailed.

-jk