Trail Blazers G and adidas endorser Damian Lillard on Friday "announced on social media he will get his first signature shoe," according to Matthew Kish of the PORTLAND BUSINESS JOURNAL. Lillard on Instagram wrote, "Probably not supposed to do this, but I can't keep it from y'all any longer." In an accompanying video, he proceeded to hold up the shoe, "a low-top that reportedly does not include Adidas' signature Boost cushion technology." A signature shoe "for Lillard has been expected since this summer." adidas "now has three basketball players with signature shoes" -- Lillard, Wizards G John Wall and Bulls G Derrick Rose (BIZJOURNALS.com, 10/17). In Portland, Allan Brettman reported an adidas basketball official "confirmed the signature shoe and said it's expected to be released" in early '15. adidas in the past "has produced special editions of existing shoes for Lillard, such as the Florist City Collection that he introduced in March at Portland's Compound Gallery and the Blazers-themed Crazy 8 shoe that he introduce in late January at the Adidas Employee Store." adidas up until now "has positioned its marketing efforts" behind Rose and, "to a lesser extent," Rockets C Dwight Howard. But the company this year "has signaled a more aggressive approach." It "signed four of the top six picks in this year's NBA draft to endorsement deals" -- T'Wolves F Andrew Wiggins, 76ers C Joel Embiid, Jazz G Dante Exum and Celtics G Marcus Smart. About a month ago, it also "unveiled a signature shoe" for Wall. adidas' marketing efforts with Lillard "may have been sidetracked this summer as he tried out for the USA Basketball squad preparing to compete in the FIBA World Cup in Spain." Typically, the offseason for adidas' top basketball players "features a trip abroad to visit China, a burgeoning market for shoe sales, and Europe, including a stop" at the company's corporate HQ in Herzogenaurach, Germany (Portland OREGONIAN, 10/18).
LAMARCUS' SPOT: In Portland, Tim Brown cited a Twitter post from Trail Blazers Digital Reporter Casey Holdahl as saying that F LaMarcus Aldridge has "signed with Jordan Brand and will now exclusively wear Jordan retro and team model shoes both on and off court" after previously having a deal with Nike. Aldridge's Nike deal "expired in September and he mentioned this summer that he planned to re-sign with Nike basketball when that deal was up, but he also mentioned his affinity for Jordan Brand shoes in the same breath." Jordan Brand "continues to upgrade their roster of NBA players with the signing of Aldridge, and now boasts a team that includes the likes of Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, Blake Griffin" and recently signed Bucks F Jabari Parker "among other athletes from across the sports world" (
OREGONLIVE.com, 10/19).
