NBA Sneaker Deals Have Always Been Big Business

In 1978, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar became the first NBA player to sign a sneaker endorsement, aligning with Adidas and becoming the league’s first athlete with a signature shoe.

1980s: Michael Jordan and the Birth of Modern Sneaker Culture

Michael Jordan’s 1984 Nike contract fundamentally reshaped athlete endorsements. Nike signed the rookie for five years at $500,000 per year (totaling $2.5 million)—a jaw-dropping sum for the time—and built a signature shoe line around him.

The following year, the Air Jordan I debuted in bold red and black—violating the NBA's "51% white" footwear rule. Nike capitalized on the ensuing controversy, invoking the "banned" narrative in its marketing while paying any imposed fines. This audacious move turned the shoe into a sensational success. Nike’s initial $3 million sales projection exploded to over $126 million in the first year alone.

This deal didn’t just build a brand—it created the Jordan Brand in 1997, now generating billions annually (over $5 billion in recent years, even reaching roughly $6.6 billion by 2023) with Michael Jordan still earning substantial royalties.

1990s–2000s: Expansion and Diversification

Following in Jordan’s footsteps, other stars forged lucrative footwear partnerships:

• Kobe Bryant initially signed with Adidas in 1996 before moving to Nike in 2003. His signature line, especially his low-top models, became influential and remains revered even posthumously.

• Tiger Woods transformed Nike’s golf presence with a massive endorsement starting in the late 1990s. In 2000, a five-year extension worth $105 million made it one of the largest endorsement contracts ever.

• Charles Barkley, Sheryl Swoopes, Deion Sanders, Roger Federer, and others also received signature footwear from Nike, marking its growing influence across different sports and genders.