Adidas has stopped selling controversial T-shirts that they began manufacturing following Kevin Ware’s gruesome leg broken leg injury suffered last weekend, USA Today reports.
The shirts were being sold on the Louisville athletic website for $24.99. The shirts said “Rise to the occasion” on the front, and had the number five on the back. Ware’s No. 5 was not only on the back, but it was also in the place of the “S” in rise.
Adidas received plenty of backlash for attempting to profit off a player’s injury while that athlete is unable to receive any of the proceeds due to NCAA rules.
Dan Wetzel at Yahoo! Sports puts that into context of the corrupt NCAA. He also points out that Adidas likely pulled the shirt not because of the moral dilemma, but because it is illegal; schools are not allowed to profit directly off a player, according to NCAA rules.
How do they get away with selling jerseys and shirts with a player’s number? Schools argue that numerous players have worn the number throughout the years.
Ware, meanwhile, has received plenty of support and notoriety since the injury. He received phone calls from Dwight Howard and Charles Barkley among others, and he did the Top 10 on Letterman Thursday.
