Kyrie Irving finally finds a new home for his shoe brand. It was announced on Tuesday by Shams Charania of the Athletic that the controversial Dallas Mavericks point guard will take his talents to ANTA, a Chinese sportswear company.
The news came just four days after he decided to return to the Mavericks on a three-year deal worth $126 million.
New Deal
Irving’s Nike deal was set to expire at the end of the 2022-23 NBA season and the two were not expected to continue their relationship. The process was sped up after Irving, while still with the Brooklyn Nets, posted an Amazon link to a movie that contained anti-Semitic messages, which he initially refused to apologize for. Nike ended their relationship with Irving in November and he was a shoe free agent for seven months after making $11 million per year with his Nike deal. He still wore his signature Nike shoes but covered up the logo.
It is reported that Irving’s management company A11even negotiated the new shoe deal with ANTA. The monetary details of the shoe deal was not disclosed as of yet but it will lock Irving down for five years. He also has the title of chief creative officer. The deal gives him the ability to recruit and sign players and other collaborators as well as bring manufacturing to the United States to kick start the company’s process to fully distribute in America.
It is reported that the deal will help launch Irving’s initiative to have ‘ANTA x KYRIE’ Youth basketball camps around the world.
New Beginning
Irving is not focused on the fallout from the dissolution of his Nike deal, only on his new partnership.
“I’m incredibly excited about this collaboration. The first step in becoming partners is to share the same dreams, goals, and missions. ANTA’s rapid development over the years, openness to creativity, willingness to embrace family and teamwork, expertise in areas like product innovation and manufacturing processes have left a remarkable impression on not just me, but also my A11Even team who will work side by side with me in creating something truly generationally special,” said Irving in a statement to Boardroom.
There is no release date for his new shoe line with ANTA.
