Ja Morant still had his endorsement deals Monday. While his latest gun video on social media is costing him plenty in public relations currency, he hasn't lost any money.
The NBA already suspended the two-time All-Star guard eight games in March for livestreaming himself holding an apparent handgun in Colorado. That cost him about USUS$669,000 in salary. Representatives of Nike, which started selling Morant's Ja 1 shoes on April 19, did not return a message from The Associated Press on Monday. Powerade pulled his ad almost immediately after the March video.
"I'm sure the people at Nike are trying to figure out, `Does this make him more relevant to a certain audience? And this is something we're going to ride out?"' said Burton, who noted Nike doesn't often give up on an athlete trending negatively. "Hopefully, the young man will figure out what he's got to do to turn the ship around if he wants to continue in not only the money, but his career in the NBA," said Rob Prazmark, founder and CEO of 21 Marketing, whose clients have included the NBA and USA Basketball.