John Salley feels Nike are refusing to make Michael Jordan a majority owner on purpose

Michael Jordan has amassed an incredible net worth over his career with advertisements, brand deals and the Nike deal being his most profitable of all


John Salley feels Nike are refusing to make Michael Jordan a majority owner on purpose

Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan is one of the most successful NBA players, being a six-time and 10x scoring champion. Jordan is also an incredible businessman, as he has amassed a net worth of $2 billion from all his commercial endeavors, per Forbes. However, despite being such an integral member of Nike, he still has yet to be made a majority owner, and John Salley believes he knows why.

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Jordan has been with Nike for a long time, and his former teammate John Salley has his theory as to why Jordan isn’t an owner. “It’s the standard, but it doesn’t get to run the company that will know how to manipulate or to exploit that entity,” Salley said. “It makes sense. You don’t want any of the captives coming from the cages to be up with the emperor; it’s just not how it works,” ended John Salley.

Michael Jordan’s brand sold 5.1 billion dollars worth of items in 2022 alone, and Jordan nets 5% of that, making him a multimillionaire every year. MJ signed with Nike in 1984 during his rookie year and has stayed with them since then. Michael Jordan’s shoe line inspired the rest of the NBA, and now almost all superstars get their shoe line.

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Michael Jordan’s deal with Nike paid off like no other

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Michael Jordan (Source: Twitter)

Jordan almost did not sign with Nike as his primary focus was Adidas. Jordan was convinced by his parents to hear out Nike and they ended up making history. Nike sold 125 million dollars worth of Air Jordans in his rookie year when they expected to make just 4 million dollars. Jordan signed an initial contract of just 2.5 million dollars and that value skyrocketed with time making it one of the most profitable deals in history.

In 2022, Jordan earned $256.1 million from Nike alone from his licensing deal in his rookie year. Jordan reaches 5% of the Jordan brand’s earnings, making him a multimillionaire yearly. The Jordan brand has also increased in value with time, increasing its total earnings by 31% from 2021 to 2022.

After just one month of sales, Nike noticed Michael Jordan was a brand unto himself and that his sneakers were in high demand. From then on, he rose to fame as a cultural phenomenon that caused people worldwide to go bonkers over his shoes. This $3 million are being produced by Jordan every five hours. According to Forbes, Nike pays him $410,000 daily as of 2020.

 From shoes to all kinds of apparel, the Jordan brand has diversified since its launch in the 80s. The Jordan brand has brought in over 15 billion dollars in the last five years alone, making it one of the biggest brands in all sports. Jordan’s decision to choose Nike in 1984 is one of the most incredible examples of a ‘butterfly effect’ in the NBA, as it has led to almost every player having their shoe line today.

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The Jordan Brand completely changed the reselling market

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Michael Jordan (Source: Twitter)

Over the past 20 years, the industry for reselling sneakers has genuinely taken on a life of its own and reached unanticipated heights. What Jordan Brand makes each day is insignificant compared to what it makes through reselling. At times, some pairs sell for 400–500% more than their suggested retail price.

This is brought on by several elements, such as the model’s uniqueness, consumer desire, and the significance of the particular silhouette. Jordan unintentionally created millions of individuals worldwide who chose to enter the sneaker and sportswear industries. MJ’s most coveted shoe was the original Air Jordans which were banned by the NBA due to it being the same colorway as the Chicago Bulls jersey.

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