NBA Star Damian Lillard Is So Awkward in New Foot Locker Ad

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By Connor Finnegan2014-04-15 20:59:20 UTC

If you want to be a true sports star, then you'd better put a ring on it.

That's the message in a new ad from Foot Locker and Adidas featuring NBA All-Star Damian Lillard, who just inked a massive, eight-year deal with Adidas. Lillard's deal is believed to be the third-largest shoe contract in the league — behind only Chicago's Derrick Rose and Miami's LeBron James — so the Portland Trail Blazers guard is in good company.

See also: NBA Star's Sneaker Blow-Out Won't Be a Nike Ad Anytime Soon

But that doesn't stop the typically smooth Lillard from making some big-time social snafus in the new Foot Locker sport, which you can watch above. Surrounded by sports legends who never got that championship ring, Lillard makes a misstep by saying he wants to avoid becoming "one of those guys who never won a ring," then digs himself into an even deeper hole. The list of stars Lillard offends includes former Utah Jazz power forward Karl Malone and former NFL running back Barry Sanders.

After winning Rookie of the Year in 2013, the young Lillard looks to have the right combination of talent and youth to avoid becoming "one of those guys" who never put a ring on it.

Then again, players like Chris Webber and LaDainian Tomlinson probably felt the same way when they were 23, too.

Topics: adidas, advertisements, Advertising, Entertainment, humor, NBA, Sports, Video

Image: Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press