Monday, January 22, 2007

Mark Cuban comments on Starbury

Mark Cuban comments on Starbury

Mavs owner Mark Cuban is scheduled to be on Stephon Marbury's new talk show which will air its inaugural episode March 9th. Among the topics covered will be the $15 Starbury shoes that have been extremely popular for their low price and NBA player endorsement. Cuban thinks the shoes might be the best business idea he's seem in a long time:

"Honestly, the No. 1 business story of the year should have been the Starbury line of shoes. You would be hard-pressed to name anyone else in the business world, forget sports, who created a business that could create more cultural change than Steph. The concept of $15 shoes that are cool and hip for kids to wear could have more of an impact on family finances and culture of consumption in many households than anything that has happened in years."

Cuban definitely has a point here. I mean when was the last time kids could wear $15 kicks to school without getting made fun of? Hell, I remember being in grade school when the first Air Jordans came out, and I was ripping on one of my friends for wearing the (hideous) black, white and red first editions. He proudly (and with an 'air' of snobbery) responded, "These are Air. Jordans." To him, they were cool simply because of the price tag. I told him I didin't care how much his Mom paid for 'em, they were still ugly.

So now it seems that the opposite is true, where the Starburys are cool because they don't cost anything. One thing though, I'm not buying the notion that Starbury himself wears the same pair sold on the street to play in the NBA. Reviews suggest that the support the shoes provide is less than adequate for actual game play. For $15 though, I guess you can't complain.

Marbury the next Dr. Phil!

Marbury the next Dr. Phil

Mabury, is not only leading the Knicks offense, it now seems that he is leading a TV sports talk show! That's right kids, Stephon Marbury is going to be hosting a new TV sports show geared up not only to talk about sports, but it's about a lifestyle show.

Marbury would be the next Racheal Ray, Tyra, Dr. Phil, or even better Oprah! Can you believe this? This is something for sure to be checking out! According to a Fox SportsNet source, it's possible the shows will begin in March, on Fridays at 4:30 p.m. Kobe Bryant would be slated as Marbury's first guest. The source said Dallas owner Mark Cuban and Knicks coach/president Isiah Thomas are future guests. The shows are to air on FoxSportsNet affiliates that reach 50 million viewers.

Marbury, who branched out in the summer by marketing a $15 discount sneaker, shopped the show for a year. The Coney Island native said his motivation to be host of a talk show was rooted in displaying a different side to his personality than the scowling one depicted on the basketball court.

Marbury can appear joyless on the court, especially during losing times, making him an odd choice to be a host. Nevertheless, across the past few weeks, he's been more jovial, slapping teammates' hands after baskets.

Marbury, who's lifted his scoring average to 14 points per game, 5.4 assists and 2.2 turnovers, was fifth in All-Star voting among Eastern guards, ahead of Detroit's Chauncey Billups. That could be a result of the publicity gained from Marbury's $15 sneakers and a Steve & Barry's promotion reminding fans to vote "Starbury."