Having pretty much already cornered the basketball shoe market, it now appears that Nike will also become the NBA’s official apparel provider starting with the 2017-18 season.
adidas, the NBA’s current official jersey sponsor, recently announced that they would not pursue a new deal with the NBA after their contract with the league ends after the 2016-17 season. The NBA had reportedly narrowed down their list of candidates to replace adidas to two: Nike and Under Armour.
Now, it looks like Nike has won out. The Sports Business Daily is reporting that a “framework” for a deal is in place although the financial terms and length of the deal are not known at this time.
The only change that could be imminent in the changing of the uniform guard is that there is some talk of Nike getting its logo (or the Jordan Brand’s Jumpman) on the jerseys themselves.
Sources said that for the first time, the deal will include the rights to put a manufacturer’s logo on NBA jerseys. Currently, adidias’ logo only appears on NBA warm-ups. One source said that both Nike’s swoosh and its Jordan Brand Jumpman logo could appear on NBA jerseys.
About Ryan Wong