Derrick Rose is out for the season with a torn ACL, the latest in a string of injuries to afflict the gifted Chicago Bulls superstar.
Rose, nicknamed Pooh by his family, injured himself as he attempted to leap off his left foot in the playoff game against the 76ers. As he was helped off the court, Nike designer Jason Petrie — who designed LeBron James’ sneakers — went on Twitter to tease him.
Rose signed a sneaker deal with Nike rival, Adidas, back in February.
Petrie had a Twitter meltdown as he insulted Rose, then apologized to Twitter critics, and then insulted his Twitter critics again.
For its part, Nike’s public relations team jumped in to control the chaos.
“As a brand that is passionate about sports, we recognize the intense level of play that every athlete has engaged in during this basketball season and respect the dedication it takes to compete,” Nike said in a statement Sunday. “One of our basketball footwear designers posted comments online that we feel are inappropriate, and he has since apologized. We wish anyone who is injured a speedy recovery.”
Take a look at Petrie’s Tweets.
