Dirk Nowitzki is the King of the Market - and still he is not interested – NBA Special Report
The man who was the principle reason for the Dallas Mavericks first ever NBA World Championship has taken yet another crown, that of the most marketable player in the NBA today. This is according to a research, conducted after
the NBA Finals.
Although in NBA, most of the endorsement deals go the flashier, high flying players rather than big men like Dirk, he has proved that with the right ingredients, one can conquer this front as well. Talking about the most marketable
players, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant would immediately spring to mind, however Dirk has left them trailing in his wake, following his star turn in the NBA Finals.
The N-Score, around which the claim is based, measures name and image awareness, both at the U.S. national and local levels. Also taken into account are other attributes such as sincerity, approachability, experience and influence.
Dirk has an N-Score of 130. Bryant is behind him by a gaping 59 percent. LeBron James as expected is further behind. The fact that Nowitzki is soft spoken, friendly and viewed around the league as a loyal and nice guy stacks up
in his favour against the other two super stars, who are largely considered greedy and give each other competition for the most arrogant player around.
They weren’t at the top even before Dirk took over this year, with the recently retired “Superman” Shaquille O’Neal occupying the spot.
Despite the huge potential for making money, Nowitzki still maintains that he is not interested in mega endorsements. True to his word, the shy 7-foot German has largely stayed away from such deals throughout his career and doesn’t
even have an agent or a business manager. To put that into perspective, consider that Rookie players have those, often more than one.
“I always wanted to be a basketball player. Nothing more. Nothing less,’ said Nowitzki. ‘I have never really considered myself to be a ‘brand.’ Sure there are a few things that I wouldn’t mind endorsing and maybe someday it will
work out. For now, I am happy with where I am.”
Happy where I am, is simply something we do not get to hear from professional athletes these days. Not only in basketball, in any and every major sport the top athletes are always clamouring over new and more lucrative sponsorship
deals, trying to make the most of their popularity among the general public.
Add to it the fact that finances are getting even tighter due to the current NBA lockout plus Nowitzki’s lesser contract last year, and one can’t help but take their hats off to the big German sharp-shooter.
Dirk truly is truly a class of his own.
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