Michael Jordan tells Rick Telander of the CHICAGO SUN-
TIMES that he "no longer is in the product-endorsement
business." Jordan: "I'm getting totally out of the
endorsement aspect of things. As soon as the contracts are
up. ... It's a stage you get past. ... Now I don't want my
name just used. I can get endorsements all day.
Endorsements are good for a while -- they give you a
personality, a lot of credibility. ... But I want to
understand the business itself, see the value in something
other than just endorsing. I want my money -- my investments
-- to do what 'Michael Jordan' did." Telander writes that
"deals with dot-com enterprises are the new Jordan nectar"
and notes his partnership with John Elway and Wayne Gretzky
in MVP.com and his "sweet eight-figure deal to be on the
board of directors" at IL-based Divine Interventures.
Jordan said he "told the endorsement companies to go ahead
and use the commercials I've done. But they understand from
conversations we've had where my life is headed. They have
to gradually work their way into other campaigns. Gatorade
is doing that now with Vince Carter. I'm at the tail end of
my campaign, and I'll have a relationship with them until
they make the full transition" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 3/22).
