WNBA Washington Mystics G Natasha Cloud in late May became the "first women's basketball player to sign a shoe deal with Converse," but when she told Converse she "wasn't comfortable with announcing the deal right away, the company not only postponed but also made a $25,000 donation to a racial justice organization in Philadelphia," according to Kareem Copeland of the WASHINGTON POST. Converse also will "release a film featuring Cloud advocating for change." Cloud "knew the timing wasn't right to announce a sneaker deal, but she also couldn't stay silent" during the current protest movement, so she "took to the Players' Tribune." Cloud's "outspokenness is why Converse wanted her on its roster." The shoe company, once a "dominant force" in the NBA, is "getting back in the basketball business." Converse signed Cloud, Suns F Kelly Oubre Jr. and Warriors F Draymond Green to deals "as much for their personalities as for their on-court success." Cloud believes her Converse deal is "another step toward gender equality in the marketplace." No current WNBA player "has her own signature sneaker," although Mystics C Elena Delle Donne, a two-time MVP, "does have a well-promoted Nike campaign" (WASHINGTON POST, 6/8).
