With Nike, Patrick Ewing was planning to launch his own shoe brand.
Even the so-called "E-Force" line, which was to be Ewing's own line, was released by the shoe manufacturer.
Everything was ready for Ewing from the Beaverton corporation, with the exception of his contract.
Adidas made Ewing a $750,000 offer, and Nike was debating matching it.
The decision to match the contract or not was put to a vote by the company's top executives, and
Peter Moore, the person responsible for the E-Force line, cast the deciding vote.
Ewing ultimately agreed to a contract with Adidas. He received the Rookie of the Year award and enjoyed a very prosperous professional career.
But it's intriguing that he didn't stick with the rival company for very long. Ewing created his own shoe line, Ewing Athletics, in 1988.
The brand initially enjoyed great success, grew quickly, and generated more than $40 million in sales.
Due to distribution problems, Patrick Ewing's shoe line eventually went out of business in 1996.
The Hall of Famer revived the brand in August 2012, and as a result, his shoes are currently sold in more than 30 nations.
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