Then came two smaller deals for lottery hopefuls Michael Porter Jr. 1 pick, DeAndre Ayton, and it was reportedly even more than the one for Bagley. Puma used that relationship as a testing ground for its return to the NBA, having former Nike athlete Rudy Gay, also a Roc Nation client, test out Puma prototypes and offer up insights to help. Two decades have passed with Puma sitting on the NBA sidelines as Nike, Adidas, and more recently Under Armour jockeyed for a larger slice of the market.Īfter Bagley signed his deal, a contract followed for the No. Rudy Gay, YesJulz and Fabolous attends the PUMA & Basketball Star Rudy Gay Celebrity 3 Point Contest at Made In America on Septemin Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It feels quaint in retrospect, but Puma’s 1998 agreement with Vince Carter-in the penultimate Vinsanity years-ended in a lawsuit, and the then-Raptors star went with Nike right after Y2K turned out to be overwrought hysteria. 2 pick in the NBA Draft, to the largest rookie sneaker deal in over a decade.įor some perspective, the last time the German-based company signed an NBA player, the Y2K bug had America shook. After inking four high-profile prospects form this year’s 2018 NBA Draft class to shoe deals, ESPN’s Nick DePaula reports that they have also signed veteran forward Rudy Gay: Rudy Gay just appeared at Puma’s New York event and was announced as the brand’s newest signing. Midway through June, Puma shocked the basketball world when it inked Marvin Bagley III, the No. But there’s a lot more going on beneath the surface of a splashy signing. It looks stylish and is on trend, but no one in the sneaker industry is looking at the cushioning system which has the small beads imbedded in the insole and bears some similarity to the cushioning system that Nike is currently filing a lawsuit against Puma over.
The shoe he is playing in is black with a white stripe. Their recent signings have given them 19 total players, most of which are pretty big names.
They now have a slew of other NBA players using their shoes, including Kendrick Nunn, Terry Rozier, Marcus Smart, Rudy Gay, and Danny Green. It’s the most obvious reason for the recent splurge by Puma in the basketball space. The video of Rudy Gay playing in the new basketball sneaker from Puma is good. Since taking five of the top 16 picks back in 2018, Puma has exploded onto the NBA scene in a big way. The senior sports advisor for The NPD Group isn’t being sarcastic. A pink “Puma” and “1973” tag accentuate the back above the actual pink Puma silhouette.Īfter the video aired during the telecast Sean Elliott said to Bill Land that he wanted to ask Rudy what took him so long to get to San Antonio as Gay was “obviously a Spur.“If you want to be a performance basketball brand, you gotta have NBA players playing in your shoes,” Matt Powell says matter-of-factly. The all white shoes have pink soles that reflect off of the hardwood. And I had the pink accents to commemorate breast cancer awareness.” “My grandmother always liked white shoes, always wanted to keep the shoes white. Rudy Gay honored his late grandmother who battled against breast cancer by designing his new Puma shoes with her in mind.
The baller provided critical feedback behind the scenes ahead of the company’s. Posted by San Antonio Spurs on Friday, October 26, 2018 Aside from internal design and development teams, Puma recruited help by way of San Antonio Spurs forward Rudy Gay. Join the cause by liking or sharing my story. PUMA Hoops will be making a donation to Texas Wings in the continued effort to raise awareness. Rudy Gay finished the night with 28 points in 30 minutes of play. As the first person to sign with Puma Hoops, Rudy Gay spoke on Puma Hoops, recruiting players to join Puma, his upcoming sneaker plans, working with Jay Z and much more. She was a breast cancer survivor and a true warrior ! Tomorrow I honor her strength. Following the Hawks (130-127) victory over the Spurs, Terrell Thomas caught up with Spurs star Rudy Gay. In honor of his late grandmother, Rudy Gay will wear a pair of custom Breast Cancer Awareness shoes during tomorrow’s game vs. Rudy Gay to Honor Grandmother Saturday vs.