Steph Curry, Underarmour MVP
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Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry, responding to Under Armour’s CEO calling President Donald Trump an “asset” to the United States earlier this week, jokingly told The Mercury News that he agreed – if you remove “the ET from asset.”
On Tuesday, Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank expressed support for Trump in a CNBC interview, saying: “To have such a pro-business president is something that is a real asset for the country.”
The comments quickly became a hot topic on social media, with a hashtag calling for a boycott of the company. Plank released a statement Wednesday clarifying his comments, saying they were from a business perspective and not reflective of the company’s social stance.
“I spent all day yesterday on the phone, with countless people at Under Armour, countless people in Kevin Plank’s camp, my team, trying to understand what was going on and where everybody stood on the issue,” Curry told The Mercury News on Wednesday. “Based off the release that KP sent out this morning and what he told me last night, that’s the Under Armour that I know. That’s the brand I know he’s built and one that, as of Wednesday afternoon, is something that I’m standing on.”
“…If I can say the leadership is not in line with my core values, then there is no amount of money, there is no platform I wouldn’t jump off if it wasn’t in line with who I am. So that’s a decision I will make every single day when I wake up.”
I thought that last quote was interesting. I read that as “every day I wake up and think about whether my life is in line with my core values”. While noble, certainly, it does beg the question if he is troubled by his business relationships, to be thinking about them every day.
Remember during the finals when Currys wife lashed out at the officiating and then backed off, citing her husband’s endorsements as the main reason why? Just think how many more athletes might be activists if their endorsement money wasn’t silencing them.
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Also, this intersects with ESPN as they struggle to find an identity that resonates with people in a larger context than just sports. Unfortunately their dependence on advertising revenue drives story lines too. Can athletes speaking out against corporate America sell shoes, jerseys, Sprite, Gatorade, etc? By proxy through their spokes-people, can these companies go the Altria (Phillip Morris) route and create the equivalent of the Massey Cancer center and publicly support smoking cessation while continuing to peddle their superfluous products?
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MJ was able to avoid politics or anything controversial throughout his career. And look at how the advertisers love him. He’s still the biggest shoe salesman for NIKE. Hell, I still love him. It’s great to watch basketball and not have to think of anything important. I don’t wanna be bothered with politics during a GAME I’m trying to watch. If I want politics I will watch much more qualified people than athletes give their educated opinion.
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@dylans Michael Jordan, the 90’s and being a kid are all inseparable in my mind. I agree, it was easy to idolize Jordan, he was charismatic and amazing, and it was great not having to think about endorsements or politics watching him work.
