We all figured that John Wall would get swept up in the LeBron James/Leon Rose/John Calipari/William Wesley/Nike conglomerate once he entered the league. James is reportedly very friendly with Wall, after all.
But contrary to my suspicions, Wall has done a lot to distance himself from that group. First, he chose Dan Fegan as his agent instead of Rose, even though there were reports that Wall could join LeBron's marketing firm. Now, Wall could really be stepping out. According to Michael Lee, he's meeting with Reebok (yes, Reebok) today to discuss a new shoe deal.
Now, I'm not a shoe geek, but this much I know: Reebok is fading. Its previous headliner was Allen Iverson, and that hasn't turned out well recently. Once upon a time, Reebok was a big player, but now, it's Nike and Adidas that dominate the market. So why is Wall talking to Reebok?
There's only one explanation: Wall desperately wants to create his own persona. If he went to Nike or Adidas, he'd be but one cog in a well-oiled machine. They wouldn't promote him as the face of their company. But with Reebok so desperately needing a front man, they'd will pour all their resources into Wall right off the bat.
It's almost blasphemous to say this, but ... it's almost like how Michael Jordan went with Nike way back in the early 80s instead of the more-established Converse. Jordan wanted to go to a shoe company that would market him as their face right away instead of one where he'd be one of many stars. Twenty-five or so years later, John Wall could potentially be doing something similar.
Okay, I'll calm down now. Sorry guys.