Kevin Durant Gets Kobe's Agent
Kevin Durant shocked those who thought of him as a wide-eyed innocent when he parted with agent Aaron Goodwin. Though such moves are normal in the fast-paced world of professional athlete marketing, nobody quite expected the young Oklahoma City Thunder star to assert himself so bluntly.
Today, Liz Mullen of the Sports Business Journal announced that Durant will be joining Kobe Bryant's agent, Rob Pelinka. Is this a savvy move for KD? I'm not privy to the wheeled-dealings of the sports agent world, but I would hazard "yes."
Based on how Kobe's fruitful arrangement with Pelinka has gone, I'm bracing for endless paeans about Kevin Durant's killer-assassin, throat-stomping clutchitude. Perhaps such memes emerged organically per Mr. Bryant, but Pelinka was present for Kobe's spectacular mythologization, a cultural understanding of Kobe's game that has been quite impervious to facts. Bryant is certainly a great player, but the folklore regarding the Mamba's late-game prowess had all the spin of a wrist-flicked Kobe jumper.
Kevin Durant is also a great player, and Pelinka will have his share of memorable late-game KD moments to work with. And what will Durant say if Rob successfully markets the Thunder star's image?
"You're welcome," probably.
