WILLIAMS INKS WITH NIKE: The SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's
Josh Gotthelf reports in THE DAILY that industry sources have
Kings G Jason Williams signing a four-year, $4M shoe deal
with Nike (THE DAILY)....After his "preferred Nike model" was
discontinued, Warriors F Jason Caffey "switched to a midtops"
Nike model that he claims "left him with a sore heal."
Caffey, in a "semiserious" tone said, "Man, I'm thinking
about suing Nike" (Ft. Lauderdale SUN-SENTINEL, 3/14).
PACKERS TOP SELLER: The Packers were No. 1 in '98 NFL
team sales, selling 14.8% of all NFL merchandise. The
Cowboys finished second with 14.5%, while the Broncos,
Steelers and 49ers rounded out the top five. The Browns
finished 20th, and the Falcons and Saints finished 30th and
31st, respectively (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 3/14).
SEX SELLS? In N.Y., Lathem & Salkin examined the WTA
Tour's extensive marketing efforts around its top stars. WTA
VP/Communications Joe Favorito: "You can't just go out and be
a great athlete anymore. Now you need to blend sports and
entertainment for a sport to grow." WTA Dir of Marketing
Susan Marenoff: "We must remember that they are athletes
first and our emphasis is on the combination of beauty and
grace along with their athleticism" (N.Y. POST, 3/14).
OTHER NOTES: Pepsi is touting its Pepsi One in a series
of spots around the NCAA basketball tournament featuring Tom
Green, host of MTV's "The Tom Green Show." The BBDO-N.Y.
spots can be seen on CBS, ESPN and other network and cable
outlets throughout the tournament (Pepsi)....USA TODAY's
Steve Rosenbush reports that the city of Phoenix is "about to
become the site of one of the fiercest battles yet" in the
competition to provide TV access to consumers between phone
companies and cable operators and cites as an example Suns
Chair & D-Backs Managing Partner Jerry Colangelo's recent 30-
year deal with US West to televise the teams' games in
Phoenix beginning in 2003 (USA TODAY, 3/15)....The N.Y. TIMES
profiles FUBU clothing, as FUBU states that its revenues
"rocketed" from $40M in '97 to $350M last year, which
"catapults it beyond a niche market into a league with labels
like Donna Karan and Tommy Hilfiger" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/15).
