Days after signing a lucrative new contract to remain with the Mavericks, Kyrie Irving has also landed a sneaker deal. After being dropped by Nike in 2022, the point guard has signed with Chinese sneaker company ANTA.
Irving’s signature shoe with the company is set for an early 2024 release, and he will serve as the company’s chief creative officer as part of the deal.
“I’m incredibly excited about this collaboration,” Irving said, per Boardroom. “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.”
Irving joins Klay Thompson and Gordon Hayward as the most notable NBA players to sign deals with ANTA.
Irving previously had a signature shoe deal with Nike—and one of the best selling signature shoe lines in the league—but had his partnership with the company put on hold in November when he became embroiled in scandal after promoting a film and related book called Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America, which features antisemitic themes and tropes.
“At Nike, we believe there is no place for hate speech and we condemn any form of antisemitism,” the company said in a statement at the time. “To that end, we’ve made the decision to suspend our relationship with Kyrie Irving effective immediately and will no longer launch the Kyrie 8. We are deeply saddened and disappointed by the situation and its impact on everyone.”
A week later, Nike co-founder Phil Knight said it was unlikely that the company would re-up its relationship with Irving after the incident.
