Kyrie Irving’s standing with Nike was already on shaky ground. Now, it seems to have finally fallen through.
The company suspended its deal with him last week amid his failure to outright disavow antisemitism. But even before that, his signature shoe line’s future was in question dating back to last season. His latest exploits were just the nail in the coffin.
But a suspension isn’t necessarily forever. At least, it didn’t seem to be that way. But, according to former Nike chairman Phil Knight, it does seem to be forever in this case.
Knight told CNBC that he doubts Nike would go back to working with Irving in any capacity after he “stepped over the line” with his retweet of an antisemitic film.
"Kyrie stepped over the line. It's kind of that simple… I would doubt that we go back. But I don't know for sure."
Nike founder Phil Knight on severing ties with Kyrie Irving
(via @CNBC)pic.twitter.com/BwZ3IaETpB
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) November 10, 2022
“Kyrie stepped over the line. It’s kind of that simple. He made some statements that we just can’t abide by and that’s where we ended the relationship. And, yeah, I was fine with that…I would doubt that we go back. But I don’t know for sure.”
If that’s not 100% certainty, it’s awfully close. Knight isn’t necessarily the end-all, be-all decision maker at Nike anymore — he retired a long time ago and is chairman emeritus now. However, he still holds influence and power as one of the co-founders of the company. What he says matters.
And what he’s saying here is that Kyrie Irving is done with the swoosh. At least for now. So there you have it, folks. Don’t expect to see Kyrie sneakers coming down the line anytime soon.
