Reigning NBA MVP Kevin Durant was reportedly on the verge of leaving Nike to sign a megadeal with Under Armour. But at the last minute, the shoe giant just couldn't let the Oklahoma City Thunder superstar go and exercised its right to match any rival shoe company's offer.
According to ESPN, Nike has countered Under Armour's offer that was reportedly between $265 and $285 million. With Durant's seven-year, $60 million deal with Nike about to expire, it was widely believed that Nike would be unable to match Under Armour's huge deal. Nike had initially made an offer to re-sign Durant at $20 million a year, which Durant, who is represented by Jay Z's Roc Nation Sports, was not happy with.
But Durant proved too valuable a client with star-power continuously rising, and Nike contacted him on Saturday saying they intend to keep him. The exact deal isn't yet known, but ESPN reports that Nike believes it will keep Durant for the next 10 years and he will make more than the $41.2 million he'll make with the Thunder over the next two seasons.
Durant has been loyal to the Nike brand since his first deal in 2007. That same year, he turned down an offer from Adidas that would have been for $20 million more than what he signed with Nike.
Nike, the world's largest shoe and apparel company, also has endorsement deals with basketball superstars LeBron James and Kobe Bryant.
Durant's potential move to Under Armour caused a lot of speculation that he'd leave Oklahoma City to sign with his hometown Washington Wizards when he becomes a free agent in 2016.
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