The importance of Dee Brown's winning 1991 Slam Dunk Contest performance in Reebok Pumps was not lost on Nike man Michael Jordan.
In a new interview on ESPN's Dunkumentaries podcast, Brown tells a story of running into Jordan that weekend after winning the contest. He describes being locked in a corridor in a hotel with Jordan and his security, who congratulated him and then confronted him.
"Hey, you did a great job out there young fella. Nice show you put on," Brown recalls Jordan telling him. "But you know you started the shoe wars."
Brown says he asked Jordan what that meant.
"Now, as much as I want to crush you on the court," Jordan responded, "I've gotta crush you off the court."
Jordan and Nike emerged victorious in the long run, and now have a stranglehold on the global basketball sneaker market.
