Well, they have them in international soccer. And the consequences can be amusing. The Philadelphia Union's jerseys say "Bimbo" on the front, named after the multinational baking company and not a local gentleman's club. And, no, no one has a jersey that shouts "Chico's Bail Bonds" the way the backs of the jerseys did in "Bad News Bears." I did think that it was tragicomic about five years ago when AIG was the jersey sponsor for Manchester United. After all, AIG almost went broke, and the U.S. government had to help bail it out. But I'm sure that the owners of ManU did not entertain the thought of putting "USA" on the front of the jersey.
Apparently, David Stern opposed the idea, but Adam Silver approves it. And I also heard this morning that the sponsor's logo will not have the prominence on an NBA jersey that it does on, say, the jersey of Chelsea or Arsenal. That said, I am not sure that "Fly Emirates" will fly on a Knicks' jersey or a Lakers' jersey the way it does for Arsenal, PSG, Real Madrid and AC Milan. In England, you get gaming companies and the occasional corporate sponsor -- it does puzzle me why HP sponsors perennial runner-up Tottenham as opposed to a team that qualifies for the Champions League. Still, the sponsorships have worked for NASCAR for years, so it will be interesting to see what the NBA does.
My guess is that a certain TV show would sponsor the Philadelphia 76ers.
"Biggest Loser" would be pretty amusing to see on a hometown jersey.
The possibilities are beguiling.
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The retirements of Walters and Bilsky were announced long ago. Search committees were appointed by both universities, and, at least in the Princeton case, input was requested from interested parties, including alumni. Nevertheless, neither school has announced a successor, nor am I aware of any "leaks" regarding potential appointees. Mills has a lot of experience in the business of basketball and has maintained his close ties to the Tiger basketball community. If money is not an issue to him he might love the chance to go home. The Knicks party line has him staying at The Garden. Great idea, SportsProf.
Thanks, George.
I wonder if they'll want to break the men's b-ball and men's athletics influence at the top and either hire a woman or hire someone with a background in a different sport. My guess is that they had a great pool and will have an embarrassment of riches in terms of who to select. Steve would be a great choice, and perhaps would be more interested now that he has to take a back seat to Phil Jackson.
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