Why Kyrie Irving-ANTA deal could beat $11million/year Nike deal: A closer look at how Mavericks star's new role could help him net more
Kyrie Irving has agreed to a new endorsement deal with Chinese brand ANTA, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Per Charania, Kyrie Irving will become ANTA's chief creative officer, a move that shows how much ANTA values its new agreement with the All-Star guard.
“The lucrative new shoe deal for Irving will also give him the ability to recruit/sign players and other collaborators, and bring a level of manufacturing to the United States to kickstart ANTA’s process to fully distribute in US," Charania tweeted.
The deal between the two sides doesn't come as a surprise, given that negotiations started several weeks ago and there were rumors that Irvng and ANTA would reach a deal.
“I’m incredibly excited about this collaboration,” Irving said. “The first step in becoming partners is to share the same dreams, goalsdand missions.”
The deal comes a few months after Nike terminated its endorsement deal with Irving after his controversial and antisemitic tweets. The deal between Nike and Irving was going to expire at the end of the season and the company had no intention to renew it.
"At Nike, we believe there is no place for hate speech and we condemn any form of antisemitism," Nike said in a statement last year. "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."
Anta x Hélà x A11Even
My purpose here on Earth is #BiggerThanAShoeDeal
Everybody comes into your life for a Reason
Some people come into your life for a few Seasons
But only a few will stick by you for a lifetime.
I AM Proud to announce that I am Partnering with Anta as Chief… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/RmKLPt9nWo
Kyrie Irving/ANTA deal rules out a return to Nike
The deal between the 31-year-old superstar and ANTA is for five years and will expire in 2028. It comes a few days after Kyrie Irving agreed to a three-year deal with the Mavs, worth $126 million. It also includes a player option for the 2025-26 season, worth $42 million.
Irving joins other NBA superstars in Klay Thompson and Gordon Hayward with the company. It doesn't look like he will be going back to Nike any time soon based on the stipulations of the deal, per Nick DePaula of Board Room.
According to DePaula, "along with extensive signature product releases, the partnership will also launch ANTA x KYRIE Youth Basketball Camps around the world, with starting points in China and the United States. Irving is expected to begin the upcoming NBA season in the brand’s Shock Wave 5 sneaker, with his first signature collection releasing during the first quarter of 2024."
“Being appointed as ANTA Basketball’s Chief Creative Officer is more than just a realization of my dreams; in fact, it may be the perfect opportunity for me, an individual who always dreams big and values independent thinking, to leverage my artistic talents to build, create, and unify the culture both on and off court,” Irving said in a statement.
“As a new member of the ANTA family, Kyrie Irving will not only actively serve as ANTA Basketball’s Chief Creative Officer, but he will also seek to recruit basketball players, independent brands, influential figures in pop culture, artists, musicians, pioneers in environmentalism, trailblazers in humanitarianism and designers to also collaborate with him to create additional product lines under Kyrie’s signature line,” the brand said in a statement.
“Through these collaborations and in collaboration with ANTA, Kyrie will strive to collectively shape and introduce new vision, innovation and creativity in the signature sportswear category.”
Based on what Boardroom reports and Irving's new role with ANTA, it should be a no-brainer that he will earn a lot of money from this deal, a lot more than his deal with Nike. Kyrie Irving was reportedly making at least $11 million annually on that deal.
Kyrie Irving had 22 sneakers with Nike over the years, after being drafted No. 1 in 2011. His first signature shoe was launched in 2014, and he maintained some of the highest selling shoes in the industry for years.
After Nike dropped Irving, he still wore his signature shoes in games, but he covered the "swoosh" with tape that had written messages.
In 20 games for the Mavericks last season, Kyrie Irving averaged 27.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists. Despite his addition, Dallas collapsed in the final part of the season and missed the playoffs.