Lakers G Jeremy Lin has added another "tounge-in-cheek" YouTube clip, in which he is "pondering 'Lindorsements,'" according to Eric Pincus of the L.A. TIMES. Collaborating with Wang Fu Productions, Lin "parodies a number of popular advertising campaigns," including Clippers G Chris Paul's State Farm spots. Lin "even brings in teammate Steve Nash for a cameo" (
LATIMES.com, 9/27). Meanwhile, Lin said that he "left tens of millions of dollars on the table by not accepting the endorsement opportunities he was offered during the height of the 'Linsanity' era" two years ago with the Knicks. BLOOMBERG NEWS' Erik Matuszewski noted Lin "spawned an international craze known as Linsanity" during the '11-12 season. Lin: "If I had accepted everything, I don’t know the exact number, but I would have been making way more off the court than on the court. Even the next contract after." Lin on Thursday "joined the Whistle Sports Network as a content partner, adding his YouTube channel with almost 400,000 subscribers to the 8-month-old, sports-focused digital media platform." He is the first athlete "from one of the four major professional sports leagues in the U.S. to produce content for the company and received an undisclosed equity stake" (
BLOOMBERG NEWS, 9/27).
KOBE SPEAKS: Lakers G Kobe Bryant said of how the rape allegations he faced in '03 affected his life, including endorsement deals, "I was going through the Colorado situation, and it was very tough. I had to ask myself what I wanted to accomplish. I want to keep my family together. Have to focus on that. I’m a good basketball player: I want more championships. Focus on that. Every endorsement I had, they dropped me. Every marketing person said, 'You can’t be fixed.' So I start chopping the problem into smaller pieces, and I focus on them. What else are you going to do?" Meanwhile, Bryant said of his Showtime documentary, "Kobe's Muse," which will air in November, "You’ll see all the things I do, on and off the court. Every little detail, every tidbit, every improvement. And from that, we peel back the layers to get to who I am -- because you can’t understand what I do without understanding who I am" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/28).
