Judge rejects Kawhi's claim that Nike stole his logo

A federal judge has rejected Kawhi Leonard's claim that Nike unlawfully copyrighted his "Klaw" logo.

Leonard sued the apparel giant in 2019 after Nike kept the logo, which was based on a design the Los Angeles Clippers superstar sketched while he was a college student and later shared with the company.

"It's not merely a derivative work of the sketch itself," Judge Michael W. Mosman said Wednesday, according to The Oregonian's Maxine Bernstein. "I do find it to be new and significantly different from the design."

Nike later filed a countersuit against Leonard, saying it held exclusive rights to the logo, which was produced by its "talented team of designers."

Leonard left Nike in 2018 and signed with New Balance.

"Kawhi put his heart and soul into that design so we are obviously disappointed the judge ruled the logo belongs to Nike and not Kawhi," Leonard's attorney, Peter R. Ginsberg, said after the ruling. "We're considering our options to protect Kawhi's interests."