Surprise, surprise, adidas was able to nab Kobe Bryant through the “Sole Man” with the connections, Sonny Vaccaro.
Yesterday, we showed you Vaccaro’s influence on Nike, and his huge role in persuading the swoosh to sign Michael Jordan, among other athletes. In the video below (from ESPN and Grantland), Vaccaro explains how he got ousted by Nike and made his way to adidas. You can watch to see how exactly he got Kobe his first sneaker deal with adidas, and how Vaccaro made sure Kobe landed on the Lakers.
What the video doesn’t show (and it might on the next installment from Grantland) is the fact that adidas‘ touted high school hooper was Tracy McGrady, who to this day still has connections with the three stripes. T-Mac had won the MVP at one of Vaccaro’s camps and was signed immediately out of high school to a deal that was larger than Kobe’s, this according to the New York Times.
Check out the video and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
I find it interesting how a lot of these movers and shakers are really the guys who sort of help mold the sneaker business both purposefully or sometimes even inadvertently.
Agreed
Wait, so Kobe is or is not signing with adidas?
He originally signed with adidas when he was drafted.