Big game

With Kobe, LeBron and Carmelo, Nike's trophy case is full

You know the sneaker war is officially over when Nike ponies up lucrative endorsement deals for LeBron James ($90 million over seven years), Carmelo Anthony ($21 million over six years) and Kobe Bryant ($45 million over five years, presumably pending the outcome of felony sexual asssault charges) this summer -- and barely a whimper is heard from Adidas.

Now Sonny Vaccaro, head of Adidas’ basketball operations in the U.S., tells us he was never a serious player to land King James or Anthony. If anything, Adidas folks hung around James to bid up the price, as a favor to the teenager’s family.

"Yeah, that was all I did," Vaccaro offered. “That was a fact. LeBron’s family knew it. You can only go so far. The good thing Nike has is Phil [Knight] is the owner, so he can do what he wants. I can bid it up and recommend that we go to certain numbers, but it is not my dime.

“I told people for two years that there was no way Phil would let LeBron go anywhere. It is ego. It has always been ego. But it is business, too."

Vaccaro, who worked for Nike through 1991, accuses the company and its founder of throwing money at athletes, even when they have no particular use for them, simply to get them away from rivals Reebok and Adidas. The latest example, he says, is Carmelo Anthony, another young player he’s bonded with through the years.

“I’m not poking fun, but Phil and Nike collect athletes like a big game safari hunter we used to know in the '30s would collect animals," Vaccaro says. “They have names of people on their buildings [at the Nike headquarters outside Portland] that they cut from contracts, like Bo Jackson. The sad part of the basketball thing is there are so many good players up there that aren’t used in media [ad campaigns]. They are paying them well, but they’ve stymied their growth as a potential marketing person. Jason Kidd is with Nike, do you realize that? You would think he’d be all everything to everybody."

As might be expected, Nike folks offer no apologies for hoarding talent. Nor should they. It’s just business, after all.

But what we find interesting is Nike’s take that some of its hoopsters are getting stale. You suspect that may not sit well with some of these prickly marquee characters.

"When you look at the stable of talent that we had in basketball, it was starting to get old," said George Raveling, a Nike executive and former college coach. “You got the [Scottie] Pippens and the [Gary] Paytons and the Jason Kidds. What you have to do now is start to build a new stable to carry you into the coming years.

"So we got Kobe, who is a proven NBA star. With LeBron and Carmelo, there is a gamble that they might not turn out to be as good as we think they can be. Thus far, I think most people would say that LeBron has proven to be a special player. The other thing I told Phil Knight is the greatest testimony to LeBron James was that he took an average high school team and won the [mythical] national championship. It is one thing for everybody to say you are the best ever, but then when he delivered -- the case is closed."

Who’s got next?

With LeBron James off to the pros, the summer camp debate is over the rising high school seniors who might follow him into the next NBA draft, assuming commissioner David Stern doesn’t push through an age limit. Brooklyn point guard Sebastian Telfair, a cousin of Phoenix Suns guard Stephon Marbury, is already hyped as the most exciting prospect, but the consensus top player is 6-foot-11 Dwight Howard of East Point, Ga.

Top High School Seniors Player  Height  Home  College  LaMarcus Aldridge  6-11  Dallas  Texas  Daniel Gibson  6-3  Houston  Texas  Dwight Howard  6-10  Atlanta  Undecided  Al Jefferson  6-9  Prentiss, Miss.  Arkansas  Shaun Livingston  6-6  Peoria, Ill.  Undecided  Randolph Morris  6-11  Fairburn, Ga.  Undecided  Josh Smith  6-8  Powder Springs, Ga.  Indiana  Sebastian Telfair  5-11  Brooklyn, N.Y.  Undecided  D. J. White  6-9  Tuscaloosa, Ala.  Indiana  Marvin Williams  6-8  Bremerton, Wash.  North Carolina

Neither has committed to a college and may head straight to the pros, especially Howard.

“It’s not even close as far as the best [high school] player in America," Vaccaro said. “Dwight Howard will be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft next year."

Vaccaro further predicts that two other Atlanta-area big men, 6-8 Josh Smith -- who committed to Indiana -- and 6-11 Randolph Maorris, will also be lottery picks in whatever year they decide to enter the draft.

Those who’ve checked out the Nike and Adidas camps project at least three big high schoolers could declare for the next NBA draft -- Howard, 6-11 LaMarcus Aldridge of Dallas and 6-9 Al Jefferson of Prentiss, Miss. “I really don’t know," Jefferson said of his draft plans. “Right now, I’m planning to go to college [Arkansas]."

Future stars

It’s crazy enough to project high school seniors going pro, but the buzz this week at the Nike Peach Jam in North Augusta, S.C., focused on a pair of 15-year-olds -- 6-11 Greg Oden and 6-9 Derrick Caracter. Both just finished their freshman year. Oden played so impressively that courtside wags say he’ll be the No. 1 pick in the 2006 draft.

“Michael [Jordan] saw him play [at a tournament] in St. Louis, and he made a move in the post," raved Raveling, who runs the Nike camp. “Michael said, ‘Most post guys in the NBA couldn’t make that move.'"

Oden is a bright, humble sort who hasn’t yet bought into the over-the-top hype. He doesn’t appear fazed by the coaches who pull up a seat every time he steps on the court, guys like Mike Krzyzewski, Tubby Smith and Roy Williams. He refreshingly mentioned wanting to be a dentist, though one suspects he’ll have more lucrative job prospects in the NBA.

“Oh, I’m really not that good," Olden said softly, when asked about his game. “I need to get stronger [he’s a lean 229 pounds]. And a lot of the big men can shoot. They can shoot real good. I am not that great of a shooter."

But if they could, every coach in the country would gladly welcome the lad on their campus today.

Worst hand check

You’d think by now coaches would know better, but at the Peach Jam we saw Leo Papile, coach of a Boston AAU team, slap his 5-9 point guard across the back of his head after the kid erred in calling a timeout and cost his team a technical foul. Boston had already used its final timeout when the kid stole the ball with 15 seconds to play and asked for a TO.

The coach berated the player during the play stoppage and well after the game ended. In his day job, by the way, Papile is director of player personnel for the Boston Celtics.

Mating game

Nothing is sillier than strict enforcement of NCAA rules that forbid college coaches from having contact -- as in even saying hello -- with players and their AAU team coaches at these summer league camps and tournaments. At the Peach Jam, entrances to the four gyms were clearly marked for either players or college coaches. Security stood by to insure there was no mingling.

Two NCAA enforcement reps also walked the hallways and gyms. Word is one NCAA cop flagged a college coach for chatting with a travel team coach at the Adidas ABCD camp, telling him to self-report the violation or risk a reduction in recruiting time.

But don't think the kids don't notice the coaches, who come dressed in school colors, wearing knit shirts bearing their university name and logo. They sit courtside every game, so close they catch players diving after loose balls.

After one game, Indiana coach Mike Davis lingered long enough that he crossed paths with Greg Olden as he was leaving the gym. Davis abruptly stopped, politely nodded and then walked away from the young star.

Davis is among the many coaches who’d like to see the 21-day summer evaluation period lengthened, as well as being allowed some communication with prospects. Coaches argue they don’t have time to build relationships, which leads to recruiting mistakes.

“If not a longer period, then at least give us the opportunity to talk to the parents or the coach," Davis said. “You rush and rush and you don’t know where they are sometimes [about favored schools], especially when you see a new kid. You’ve got to wait until October 1 before you can talk to him. By then, you are too late.

“Heck, most of the decisions are made in April or May. Most of the kids get down to four schools before the camps even start. If somebody jumps out at you here, it’s tough because you can’t talk to him."

Mike Fish is a senior writer for SI.com.

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