For any athlete, especially in basketball, there aren’t many idols bigger than Michael Jordan. The Black Cat set the tone for everyone. For every athlete to become a global superstar. And he did it in the 1990s. He is so transcendent that an entire sneaker industry can simply be referred to as “Jordans”.
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The head of the Eponympous brand has a new movie in theaters, AIR. And the best part is, he doesn’t even feature in it! It is like how the Shark is in Jaws, you can feel his presence but you can’t see him.
Kevin Durant sat down with Eddie Gonzalez to talk about the influence of the Jordan brand in the modern day. They discuss the prominence of the brand in today’s sneaker culture and how it is seen as upmarket.
KD also says that now, the Jordan Brand is equal to Nike! Yes, the $192,00,000,000 corporation that he is signed to and so is MJ!
“Michael Jordan is Just as Big as Nike”: Kevin Durant Explains Why Nike Hasn’t Outgrown Air Jordan and Why MJ is Just as Big!
While talking about the cultural significance of sneakers, KD explains why Nike has not outgrown Air Jordan. In fact, since signing on MJ, the two have only grown together.
Speaking to Gonazlez on his ETC podcast, he asks him, “Would you say he is like, being visible in the shoe game, just as big as Nike? bigger than Adidas?”.
Gonzalez replies that it is true and that Nike itself did a great job of having the two brands be synonymous with one another. But with Jordans, the brand name speaks for itself.
Durant continues, “I think he has separated himself from being affiliated with Nike, although we know he still is Nike, you know it’s two separate entities.”
The prose behind Durant’s love for Jordans and why he reveres Michael is long. He spends more than 10 minutes talking about why MJ set the blueprint for everyone. Durant himself has 16 signature shoes!
Michael Jordan’s influence on Kevin Durant is nothing new
Michael Jordan has had a significant influence on Kevin Durant’s life and career. Durant grew up idolizing Jordan and spent countless hours studying his game and learning from his approach to basketball. Jordan’s drive, work ethic, and competitiveness have all been major inspirations for Durant. KD has often been compared to Jordan for his scoring ability.
Durant once said that watching, “The Last Dance,” during the COVID-19 pandemic was a huge motivation for him to get back on the court.
Jordan’s influence on Durant extends beyond basketball, as he has also looked up to Jordan as a business icon and used his success as a model for building his own brand.
