NBA has told Charlotte Hornets owner Michael Jordan that he can't choose which players get a Jordan brand shoe deal, according to a report by ESPN. The news came after the NBA’s decision, announced on Tuesday, to fine the Los Angeles Clippers $250,000 for violating NBA rules prohibiting teams from offering players unauthorized business or investment opportunities.
The league said the Clippers made a presentation to the then-free agent on July 2 that improperly included a potential third-party endorsement opportunity. League rules prohibit teams from arranging for others to provide compensation for a player unless it is included in a contract or is otherwise permitted by the collective bargaining agreement.
“The violation involved a presentation made by the Clippers to free agent DeAndre Jordan on July 2 that improperly included a potential third-party endorsement opportunity for the player,” the NBA said in a release. “While the NBA’s investigation ultimately concluded that the presentation of this opportunity had no impact on Jordan’s decision to re-sign with the Clippers, the team’s conduct nevertheless violated the league’s anti-circumvention rules.”
Those rules prohibit teams from providing or arranging for others “to provide any form of compensation to a player unless such compensation is included in a player contract or otherwise expressly permitted under the CBA”, the NBA said.
The salary cap rules are very clear about the third-party endorsements
not being allowed and Jordan brand shoe deals need to be decided by an
executive that isn't Jordan, according to the ESPN report.
In the last seven years, six Charlotte Hornets players have received Brand Jordan shoe deals, leading to speculation that Jordan may be supplementing players’ salaries with Brand Jordan endorsements, according to ESPN reporter,
Darren Rovell.
The Michael Jordan news came from a tweet: https://twitter.com/darrenrovell/status/636235970573135872
A fuller article from Yahoo Sports is here: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/nba-says-owner-michael-jordan-can-t-pick-jordan-brand-endorsers-082318632.html
