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Najera's marketing appeal a slam dunk

Native of Mexico has at least 8 endorsement deals

James Paton, Rocky Mountain News

Published April 21, 2007 at midnight

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Eduardo Najera doesn't enjoy superstar status.

The 6-foot-8 forward, though he has a strong supporting role on the Denver Nuggets and endears himself to fans with his hustle, plays in the shadows of Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson and other headliners.

The team, facing the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the playoffs starting on Sunday, can count on Najera to score a modest six points a game.

But among the NBA's swelling ranks of international players, Najera, a native of Chihuahua, Mexico, is in the top tier when it comes to marketing appeal. With at least eight endorsement deals, he sits in an elite class with high-profile names such as China's Yao Ming, France's Tony Parker and Argentina's Manu Ginobili.

"I guess I've been lucky off the court," Najera said after a recent practice at the Pepsi Center. "I have a lot of companies supporting my career."

Talk to the corporations, and they'll cite his charisma, work ethic and commitment to children. But the 30-year-old athlete has another distinction that's perhaps even more important.

He's the only NBA player from Mexico, a key market.

Carlos Slim a fan

Recognizing his value as a Spanish-speaking spokesman, companies doing business in Mexico have courted Najera. For years, he has had endorsement agreements with Corona, Gatorade, Adidas, Telcel, Wonder Bread and Stanford Financial Group.

"I'm more popular down there," he said with a smile.

In Colorado, he's aligned with Qwest and FirstBank, which is featuring him in a new television advertising campaign, partly to cater to the growing Hispanic population. In some of the commercials, Najera speaks to viewers in his first language.

The former Dallas Mavericks player and University of Oklahoma standout also is well-connected. He's close to the family of Carlos Slim Helu, the Mexican mogul Forbes magazine has dubbed the world's third-richest man.

A soft-spoken Najera seems reluctant to talk too much about his work as a businessman.

"I don't want to get distracted," he said before hitting the locker room.

With the team on a roll and preparing for the post season, it's hard to blame him.

Still, Najera has been assertive in taking advantage of his allure back home and trying to leave a lasting mark in Mexico.

Najera, earning about $1.5 million this year from his business arrangements on top of the roughly $4.5 million he'll get from the Nuggets, now wants to own a basketball team in his home state.

He's part of a plan with the broadcaster TV Azteca and several other investors, including the well-known soccer club Chivas, to launch a professional league in Mexico, according to his manager Roberto Gonzalez. And other soccer franchises have signaled their desire to be a part of the venture.

"The wheels are in motion," Gonzalez said in an interview this week.

Najera also is in talks with Western Union, the Douglas County-based money transfer business, and PepsiCo, which is interested in making him a "health and wellness ambassador" to Mexico, Gonzalez said.

Najera, traded to the Nuggets in 2005, wants to use his youth programs and business deals to make a social and economic impact at home, his manager added. He already has a kids' basketball league that has spread across 18 Mexican states, from Aguascalientes to Zacatecas, and a foundation that helps educate children.

"Eduardo has an opportunity to leave a legacy," said Gonzalez, a member of the 1979 Michigan State team with Magic Johnson that won the national championship. "A lot of people cannot, or do not, want to do that."

Najera also has a chance to reap some large profits. While he's not in the same category as celebrities LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Melo, who makes between $5 million and $10 million a year off the court, and he doesn't have as much business as San Antonio's Parker, who has 13 agreements under his belt, Najera's endorsement portfolio is thick considering his stats.

The lone Mexican

Jonathan Wexler of sports marketing firm Playing Field Promotions in Denver said charm is only part of the equation.

"There's another reason why companies flock to him," he said. "They don't have a lot of choices."

Endorsements depend not just on a player's point totals and personality traits. Where he's from and how many of his countrymen are in the NBA also are significant factors in determining an athlete's marketing worth.

Houston Rockets center Yao Ming is the sole player from China, a huge, attractive and fast-growing market. On top of that, he's a star on the court, averaging 25 points a game this year.

A French, Spanish or Russian player has a harder time distinguishing himself and forging corporate ties. The NBA has seven French nationals, including the Denver Nuggets' Yakhouba Diawara, four Spanish and three Russian athletes. Three Turks, six Slovenians and eight Serbians add to the foreign flavor.

Like Najera, Linas Kleiza is a 6-foot-8 Nuggets forward born outside the U.S. That's where the similarities end. Kleiza is one of five Lithuanians in the NBA and, while he has had a deal with Nike in Lithuania, according to the league, he doesn't have much happening in endorsements.

Companies aren't exactly rushing into Lithuania.

"I'm still waiting," Kleiza said recently. "I got some endorsements but nothing major."

Najera wasn't Mexico's first NBA representative. Horacio Llamas played two years, averaging 2.1 points a game before he sustained an injury. He later tried to no avail to resurrect his career with the Washington Wizards.

But for now, Najera is alone.

Gatorade has worked with Najera for the past four years, putting his face on television commercials and sports drink labels. Mexico, accounting for more than a third of Gatorade's international volume, is a top priority, said Hector Huerta, the company's head of marketing in Mexico.

"Mexican consumers are looking for something relevant," he said, reflecting on Gatorade's decision to sign him. "Eduardo was a key. He was an NBA star as well as a Mexican player."

Adidas, meanwhile, has tapped Najera and other NBA players to teach children at one of its "superstar camps" in Latin America.

A newer company in his portfolio is Flex-Power, a California-based provider of "joint and muscle pain relief cream." After investing in the company, Najera introduced its executives to his friend Carlos Slim Domit, the eldest son of the Mexican mogul.

A conversation with Slim at his Mexico City offices last year led to a pact allowing Flex-Power to sell the products in the family's Sanborns stores, starting at some point in the next several months. Najera has agreed to help on the promotional side.

"Think about all the NBA players not born in this country," said Flex-Power's Bejan Esmaili, who also has partnerships with athletes in other sports, including the South Korean baseball player Chan Ho Park. "They're realizing there's a much larger market for their sport. We, too, realize it's a special opportunity."

International sport

The Latin American players - including five from Brazil (the Nuggets' Nene is one) five from Argentina and two from Puerto Rico - are important assets to the NBA in forging ties to the region.

"They automatically make our brand and our business much more relevant," said Emilio Collins, an NBA marketing executive.

Mexico is an especially important country. The NBA has held a number of games at Mexico City's Palacio de los Deportes dating back to 1992, including one regular season matchup in 1997 between Houston and Dallas.

The group of players from other nations has grown rapidly, along with their marketability. The NBA at the beginning of this season featured 83 international athletes from more than three dozen countries. A decade ago, 32 players from 18 nations occupied spots on league rosters.

At last count, 57 of those players had 108 endorsement deals, Collins said. That's double the number of marketing agreements seen just four years ago.

Najera is near the top in endorsement relationships, "right up there with some of our most popular international players," despite the fact that his stats "aren't off the charts," Collins said.

While Najera is not wasting any time in seizing the opportunity, neither is the business realm.

FirstBank's Dave Baker said he realizes Najera may not call Colorado home for long.

"When that happens, we'll just have to evaluate that with Eduardo," he said. "There are no guarantees he'll be here long-term."

The manager Gonzalez said Najera will evaluate his options.

"It's the nature of the business," he said. "For now, Eddie will get out in the community and take advantage of being here in Denver."

Asked what kind of business Najera would tend to once the Nuggets' season draws to a close, Gonzalez said, "The only business right now is the playoffs."

Foreign influence

A partial roster of the NBA's international players heading intothe 2006-2007 season:

• ARGENTINA

Carlos Delfino Detroit Pistons

Manu Ginobili San Antonio Spurs

Walter Herrmann Charlotte Bobcats

Andres Nocioni Chicago Bulls

Fabricio Oberto San Antonio Spurs

• AUSTRALIA

Andrew Bogut Milwaukee Bucks

• BRAZIL

Rafael Araujo Utah Jazz

Leandro Barbosa Phoenix Suns

Anderson Varejao Cleveland Cavaliers

Marcus Vinicius New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets

Nene Denver Nuggets

• CANADA

Jamaal Magloire Portland Trail Blazers

Steve Nash Phoenix Suns

• CHINA Yao Ming Houston Rockets

• FRANCE Boris Diaw Phoenix Suns

Yakhouba Diawara Denver Nuggets

Mickael Gelabale Seattle SuperSonics

Tony Parker San Antonio Spurs

Johan Petro Seattle SuperSonics

Mickael Pietrus Golden State Warriors

Ronny Turiaf Los Angeles Lakers

• GERMANY Dirk Nowitzki Dallas Mavericks

• ITALY Andrea Bargnani Toronto Raptors

• LITHUANIA Martynas Andriuskevicius Chicago Bulls

Zydrunas Ilgauskas Cleveland Cavaliers

Sarunas Jasikevicius Indiana Pacers

Linas Kleiza Denver Nuggets

Darius Songaila Washington Wizards

• MEXICO Eduardo Najera Denver Nuggets

• PUERTO RICO Carlos Arroyo Orlando Magic

Jose Juan Barea Dallas Mavericks

• RUSSIA Viktor Khryapa Chicago Bulls

Andrei Kirilenko Utah Jazz

Yaroslav Korolev Los Angeles Clippers

• SPAIN Jose Manuel Calderon Toronto Raptors

Jorge Garbajosa Toronto Raptors

Pau Gasol Memphis Grizzlies

Sergio Rodriguez Portland Trail Blazers

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