In every generation, one athlete makes a bold move, laces up a new pair of shoes never seen before, and does something that turns the footwear industry on its head.  In 1936, Adi Dassler came to the Berlin Games with a suitcase of track spikes and persuaded Jesse Owens to give them a try.  When Owens won 4 gold medals, he was catapulted to superstar status along with the adidas shoes he was wearing.

32 years later, when Tommie Smith took the 200M gold in the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, he stood on the podium with a clenched fist high above his head and a pair of Puma suede shoes at his feet.  Walt Frazier would also don Puma shoes that year, triggering a fan base a million strong to follow “Clyde’s” impeccable style.

On the heels of Michael Jordan, basketball-newcomer Nike soared past the competition in 1985 with the release of the Air Jordan line.  As we approach the silver anniversary of MJ’s grand entrance into the NBA, Nike still reigns supreme in the sporting goods industry.  History tells us that can change instantly when a star athlete bucks the norm to begin a different movement.  The next seismic shift in the shoe landscape could be on the horizon, or overseas to be more exact.

Brandon Jennings has been a trendsetter since he skipped out on college hoops to play professionally in Italy for his “purgatory year” between high school and the NBA.  On the business side of the game, Jennings signed a deal to be Under Armour’s first basketball endorser.  The Maryland-based company is betting millions that Jennings can be a catalyst for a new generation of shoes and are promoting Brandon with his very own website (wheninrome.underarmour.com) and the “Young Money” prototype kicks that have all the sneaker blogs buzzing.

The Under Armour of today parallels the pre-Jordan Nike in many ways.  Both built strong brands in other markets (Under Armour in performance apparel and football, Nike in running) before breaking into hoops.  To gain entry into the lucrative basketball shoe market, they signed young standout players on the cusp of entering the league.  Both Jordan and Jennings were innovators mentored by the sneaker guru himself, Sonny Vaccaro.  Will the similarities end there?  We won’t know for some time, but the battle over the feet of ballplayers and the thousand of kids that follow their steps is overdue for the next big shoe craze.  Maybe the next big shoe tagline will read, “Be Like Brandon.”

Book to Read:  Sneaker Wars by Barbara Smith (http://www.amazon.com/Sneaker-Wars-Brothers-Founded-Business/dp/0061246573)

Article to Read: The Last Don by Ric Bucher (http://espn.go.com/magazine/vol5no23vaccaro.html)

For a long time now, LeBron James has tried to stay out of the spotlight when it comes to politics.  Although James has been shining bright in the media ever since entering the league, he has been rather dull when it comes to his affiliations with politics and other support groups (much like Tiger Woods has been).  James and other celebrities are afraid that they will lose fans and money by endorsing a particular side or view that differs from that of their fans.  Michael Jordan’s famous words “Republicans buy sneakers too,” shows that athletes do think about politics in advertising and when they speak publicly.

Some believe that an athlete or someone who has a large influence over many people like an athlete, should not speak out on public topics.  Leigh Steinberg believes that athletes are role models and have to step up and show people what they believe.  But when should athletes speak up?

Last week the Los Angeles Times reported that LeBron James donated $20,000 to the campaign of Illinois Senator, Barack Obama, joining his “shy” buddy Tiger Woods’ donations to Obama’s team. With LeBron James and Tiger Woods on your side, what can’t you do?

The presidential race is about to heat up as many celebrities are choosing sides publicly.  LeBron might not have wanted anyone to talk about his donation, but he is certainly not the first athlete to endorse a presidential candidate.  Troy Aikman was a HUGE Bush supporter.

Darren did a post in March titled Publicly Endorsing Political Candidates, which tells a little more about athletes sponsoring candidates and speaking out publicly.  It tells Greg Oden’s views and shows what Steinberg set up for athletes and Obama.  Jason Belzer recommends the website Ballers4Barack.com, which is specifically dedicated to basketball players who endorse Obama.

With the Packers out of the running, should Favre really come back?  Or is this just an old man who wants to keep playing the game he loves?  As Favre was contemplating coming out of retirement, it made me think of other great athletes who came back after calling it quits.

Mario Lemieux, Sugar Ray, Ryne Sandberg, Floyd Mayweather, Zinedine Zidane, Lance Armstrong, Michael Jordan…did it twice.  Why do great athletes retire only to shortly return to the games they retired from?  Do they all have that “itch” to return as Brett Favre recently stated?  Why do they even retire in the first place?

Although the reasons vary for each individual player as to why they retired, the one thing they all have in common is that they were still key contributors to whatever team they rejoined.  After retiring to play baseball, Michael Jordan came back to lead the Bulls to win several more championships before he retired again.  His second comeback to Washington was not as successful but he still averaged over 25 ppg and helped build the Wizards franchise.  Zidane, retired from International soccer in 2004, only to come back three years later to help the French barely make the World Cup in 2008.  ”Zizou” went on to lead the French to the World Cup finals before his famous head butt.  We all know about Lance Armstrong.  One of the great stories in all of sports, Lance came out of retirement after successful cancer treatment to win seven yellow jerseys in the Tour De France. Many other athletes have come back to still be successful; however, others (like Ryne Sandberg) have returned to show their age and struggle.

After an amazing 13-3 season allowing Green Bay to host the NFC championship game last season, some questioned why Brett retired. It seemed as if the Packers pushed him out.  Now, after preparing UC-Berkeley product Aaron Rogers to start the 2008 campaign, Brett wants back in.  The Packers seem to be moving on without Favre, but would they release him and watch him lead another team to a possible championship?  Only time will tell, and the sooner the better for Brett Favre’s career and the Packers organization.

Let me know what you think.  Should Favre return to the NFL with another team? Will the Packers release him? Does he have the arm strength to play another year?

Michael Tillery: Hypothetically, I’m 19-22, entering your office and looking to retain your services. What are you going to get across so I know I’m doing the right thing by signing with B.J. Armstrong?

BJ Armstrong: I’m here to listen to what you have to say. I’m not here to tell you about what I did or what it’s going to take to be a pro, I’m here to listen to what it is you want to do. I’ve done my thing. I’ve seen the so called best player in Michael Jordan. I give you no illusions to what this is really all about. There is no fantasy of “Come with me, I’m going to get you drafted” or “Come with me I’m going to do this or that.” My work starts when it gets rough. When you are up by twenty, everybody looks good. My game starts when a kid gets hurt or in a crisis type situation. That’s what I do. I’m not here to sell you a bag of goods. Telling you look how many players we’ve gotten drafted. People that get drafted in lotteries, that’s a blessing. I’m here to ask you what is it you want to do. Let’s get organized and execute the plan. If you don’t want to execute, then I’m not the person to deal with. I’m not much of a talker about selling points of what I can do for you. We know what we can do. We are going to work hard at it. It’s about attracting people with that same mentality. They are going to work hard and maximize their talents at this particular time in their life. I want people who want to be the best at what they do. I don’t want anyone telling me something illogical. I want people to give me information that is prevalent with logic and people that will work hard. We are going to stick by our clients 1000% no matter if they are the first pick in the draft or someone undrafted. It’s about integrity and excellence. We are going to do both. I get to the core of things. This is a very simple operation. We are going to go at it and we are going hard after it.

• It would be tough for me to publish this Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up without mentioning that Bruce Pearl is “Jewish and proud” [Pearl takes Tenn. to the top].
• Chris Paul signed with Nike’s Jordan Brand and will be unveiling his first shoe on March 1st [Jordan Brand Launches First Signature Shoe For Chris Paul].
• Speaking of Jordan, I honestly do not think that even his endorsement will get me to buy a pair of Levi’s 501 jeans [Michael Jordan wants to touch my butt…and yours too!].
• Don @ With-Malice, put up my predictions for the 2008 NBA Finals. I took the Celtics over the Lakers, with a close eye on the Spurs [NBA Finals - History Repeats?].
• Canadian Universities may soon be incorporated into the NCAA [NCAA Goes International].
• The mega conglomerate known as IMG has just revealed plans to start a new sports league called SLAMBALL [IMG and Mike Tollin Productions Announce New Joint Venture to Create 'SLAMBALL' Sports League].
• Did you know that it was actually American Idol’s creator Simon Fuller and his agency called 19 Entertainment, who secured David Beckham his $250 million deal with the Los Angeles Galaxy? [Business lessons from David Beckham]
• Consequence of pleading guilty to bank fraud charges related to a $5 million counterfeit check scheme? Six months of home detention [Agent of Marion Jones sentenced in bank fraud case].