Nike has matched Under Armour's mammoth offer to Kevin Durant and believes it will be able to retain Kevin Durant as a marquee endorser, reports Marc Stein and Darren Rovell of ESPN.com. UA had been reported to have offered the reigning NBA MVP as much as $285 million over 10 years to switch from the swoosh to the Baltimore-based apparel company. But ESPN reports that Nike believes its counter-offer with keep Durant with the shoe company he's endorsed his entire NBA career.
Kevin Durant to stay with Nike over Under Armour, according to report
A report suggests that the swoosh has matched UA’s mammoth offer.
David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
As has been noted, the shoe deal would appear to pay Durant more than the Thunder do. KD makes about $20 million per season in NBA salary.
One aspect of interest in the Under Armour dance is that Durant is from Washington, D.C. and will be a free agent in 2016. The Wizards are expected to pursue Durant hard, and having KD's second major employer based in the area could have been a nice asset. That said, it's not as if Nike regularly helps land the Portland Trail Blazers land stars, so it's unclear of UA's corporate proximity to the Wizards would have been relevant.
The ESPN report claims KD’s Nike shoe line generated $165 million in revenue last year. Durant pulled out of USA Basketball participation this summer at the last minute, with rumors suggesting he wanted to focus on completing his endorsement deal.
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