Nike's Results Put Kaepernick Gamble in Perspective

There was no shortage of armchair quarterbacking about Nike Inc.'s decision to feature Colin Kaepernick in a recent ad campaign and thus insert itself into a simmering culture war. Social media was afire with a debate over whether the sports-apparel giant made a mistake by highlighting the former National Football League player who protested police brutality against African Americans by kneeling during the national anthem.

But Nike's first-quarter earnings report on Tuesday served as a reminder of why those questions were always misguided.