The man who helped bring Michael Jordan to Nike has strong opinions on young Zion.
Zion Williamson has become known to every basketball fan in the world thanks to his play with the Duke Blue Devils this year. At 6’7″ and 285 pounds, Zion has shown freakishly good athleticism and has been known for his posterizing dunks and blocks. With all this in mind, it’s no surprise that pretty well every pundit on the planet has Williamson going number one in the NBA Entry Draft this summer. Zion is also due for a pretty big payday when it comes to sneakers. Reports say there is currently a bidding war when it comes to the star player, with Nike leading the charge.
TMZ Sports spoke to Sonny Vaccaro who was instrumental in bringing Michael Jordan to Nike back in 1984. Of course, Jordan ended up creating his own shoe brand within Nike and the rest is history. Vaccaro believes in Zion so much that he’d give him a $100 million deal.
“There are particular, singular athletes that can move the needle,” Sonny explained. “Zion Williamson has moved the needle before he even became a pressional.”
If Zion were to be signed for nine figures, he would break LeBron James’ record for largest sneaker deal before playing an NBA game. Coming out high school in 2003, James made $90 million with Nike. Vaccaro explained why Williamson is actually worth more than the King.
“Zion Williamson is known to 14-, 15-, 13-, 60-, 70-, 80-year-old people because his brilliance, his charismatic presence. That’s why he’s different,” Vaccaro exclaimed.
Do you agree? How much do you think Zion will get?