Vince Carter will always be remembered as one of the greatest dunkers in NBA history. Carter quickly rose to prominence in the NBA as one of the bright young stars in the league. As a result, many shoe companies wanted to sign him as a representative. But Carter quickly found himself in trouble with one shoe company.
Vince Carter signed with Puma heading into the NBA as a rookie. However, after his rookie year, Carter broke his agreement with Puma, announcing that he would wear upcoming sneaker company And1's shoes. Puma took him to court and was awarded $14.5 million in damages.
Luckily for Carter, he inked a deal with Nike worth $30 million that year, which would allow him to pay Puma the damages the courts declared he owed them as restitution. While $30 million was a very lucrative amount of money, especially from a shoe deal at the time, Carter wasn't able to fully reap the financial benefits that came with the high-profile Nike deal.
Heading into the 2000s, with Michael Jordan only playing for 2 seasons in what was effectively a ceremonial run, Nike was in the hunt for some young superstars to represent the brand. Carter had similarities to Jordan, in that he also played for the University of North Carolina and was similarly, an explosive two-guard rising in the NBA.
Vince Carter became one of the faces of Nike in the NBA during the 2000s, along with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James in 2003, who both joined the brand that year. While Carter never reached the heights of Jordan, he was certainly a popular figure and a fan favorite, which made him a very valuable asset to Nike.
Carter is considered the greatest dunker of all time, and few can argue his place at the top of that list.
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