Nike and the NBA announced on Monday an extension of their existing partnership that will make Nike the exclusive provider of on-court uniforms for the NBA, WNBA, and NBA G League through 2037.
“Nike has always been more than a league sponsor—we’re a strategic partner with an unwavering commitment to growing the game, alongside the NBA, WNBA, and NBA G League,” said Elliott Hill, Nike’s new president and CEO, via press release. “Our collective power, global reach, and genuine love for the game will only continue to create new pathways and opportunities for players and fans.”
Nike and the NBA struck a deal in 2015 that brought the sportswear brand in as the jersey sponsor for the NBA starting with the 2017-18 season. The eight-year deal was reported to be worth $1 billion. The upcoming NBA season, which begins Tuesday night, marks the last season under the original deal.
“There was no question that from our side we were looking to continue it past the year that we had left remaining on the contract,” says Tanya Hvizdak, Nike’s vice president of global athlete sports marketing.
The 12-year extension for Nike’s NBA deal has been in the works for the better part of two and a half years, according to Sal LaRocca, the NBA’s president of global partnerships.
“We were thrilled that it came together fairly quickly and that both companies continue to share the vision of growing the game on a global basis,” LaRocca says. “So, we’re thrilled to be partnering with Nike for an additional 12 years.”
Nike says the extension includes a deeper investment in the WNBA and a commitment to grassroots basketball through programs like the Jr. WNBA and the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League.
“Nike is inextricably linked to basketball and has helped fuel the growth and innovation around our sport for decades,” said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, via press release. “With an added focus on youth basketball, our expanded partnership will create even more opportunities for aspiring players to learn and compete at all levels and for fans of all ages to engage with the NBA and WNBA.”
What does a new level of fan engagement look like for the athletes? Las Vegas Aces center and reigning MVP A’ja Wilson has been happy to see her league’s jerseys become wardrobe staples as WNBA fandom reached a fever pitch in the past year, even if it means her getting bombarded with customer service requests on social media.
“I get people tweeting at me like I’m the one that’s shipping the jerseys—that makes me laugh,” Wilson says.
She attributes the recent popularity of jerseys not only to the heightened interest in the WNBA, but also to the general resurgence of Y2K fashion. And she puts herself slightly ahead of the curve on that—Wilson incorporated Mariah Carey-style jersey dresses for her tunnel looks during the 2021 WNBA playoffs.
A’ja Wilson in the Las Vegas Aces’ ‘rebel edition’ jersey. Via Getty
Wilson, a Nike athlete with a forthcoming signature shoe, says she is very much in tune with the functional aspects of the uniforms she wears on court. She’s given Nike feedback for WNBA uniforms.
Wilson has engaged in conversations with designers about tweaking and customizing her apparel. She likes her shorts short, with just the right inseam. She needs the uniform to tuck into her sports bra perfectly. She needs enough length to roll her gear up one time and still have it work.
“I feel like I’m a nightmare when it comes to just what I wear in uniform,” Wilson jokes, “because I add my little sprinkle to it to make it more personalized to me.”
Wilson cites Nike’s black and gold “rebel edition” uniforms for the Aces as a highlight of recent WNBA jerseys.
“They were just so tough,” Wilson says.
For LaRocca, Nike’s “city edition” jerseys—the locally flavored kits that were the precursor to the WNBA’s “rebel edition” series—stick out as a crowning achievement of the NBA’s partnership with Nike over the past seven seasons. Asked which initiatives she’s most proud of from Nike’s deal with the NBA, Hvizdak points to the WIN program, which supports WNBA athletes after their playing careers, and Nike’s 2022 equity investment in the WNBA.
What will Nike and the NBA pursue in their next chapter together? Hvizdak says they are focused on growing participation in basketball globally and celebrating the sport in the moment—she uses Nike’s ad that went up right after the New York Liberty won the WNBA championship on Sunday night as an example of this. For her, the extension is about creating from the foundation that already exists rather than breaking new ground.
“It’s not what we haven’t done,” Hvizdak says. “It’s how do we build off of where we’ve been and continue to push what’s possible?”
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