“Phil Knight is Going Crazy”: Shaquille O’Neal’s $15,000,000 Deal With Reebok had Michael Jordan’s Unwilling Influence

Shaquille O’Neal is clearly one of the best businessmen in NBA history. Though not quite on the level of Michael Jordan, but then who is, Shaq is certainly comparable to the likes of Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant. He has built a fortune from his endorsements and entrepreneurship.

Shaq’s success clearly started with his NBA career. Though his $3 million paycheck from Orlando certainly kicked off his professional career in style, it was actually the deal with Reebok that made O’Neal ultra-rich.

But originally, Reebok wasn’t the only one competing for Shaquille O’Neal. Nike, by then immensely successful with the Air Jordans, was dominating the sneaker scene. They also wanted to sign the 7ft 1″ monster. But O’Neal in his book revealed he was reluctant to sign for Nike because of Michael Jordan.

Shaquille O’Neal gave the Nike a cold shoulder because of Michael Jordan

In his book Shaq Uncut, O’Neal revealed how Nike was a potential landing spot for him before he endorsed a sneaker brand. But O’Neal wasn’t leaning towards them. He revealed Nike already had Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley.

So, Diesel wanted to carve out his own path instead of signing with the brand that already had two legends. He chose Reebok instead and signed a $15 million deal with them.

Shaquille O’Neal: “Obviously Nike was a giant. They had Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and my future neighbor Bo Jackson. They were really successful, but I wanted my own success story. When I visited Reebok they were all standing out front waiting for me wearing T-shirts that said, WE WANT SHAQ. We had a great day with Paul Fireman, and they wanted me to sign right there.”

Despite Shaq’s eagerness to go for Reebok, his agent Leonard wasn’t sold. He pushed O’Neal to hold off the deal a little longer and at least consider what Nike had to offer.

Shaq disrespected Phil Knight and Nike with his attire

When Shaq finally visited Nike to discuss the offer, he ended up insulting Phil Knight and his company. It was probably unintentional but to Nike, it seemed planned. Shaq, after all, wore a Reebok jacket to the meeting. He revealed the details in his book.

Shaq wrote: “Leonard said, “No, we promised Nike we’d visit.” I’ll admit my heart wasn’t in it. My father and I met Leonard on the Nike “campus” in Oregon, and I showed up wearing a Reebok jacket. All the Nike people were very friendly, but after about an hour Leonard pulled me aside and
said, “Shaq, you have to take off that jacket. It’s disrespectful. Phil Knight is going crazy over this.” I took off the jacket, but I was going with Reebok. From that day on, those Nike dudes have had it in for me.”