Report: Adidas Offers James Harden $200 Million Endorsement Deal
Adidas is trying to make a big splash in basketball this summer.
ESPN is reporting that company has submitted a 13-year, $200 million endorsement deal to sign James Harden. The Houston Rockets' All-Star shooting guard's deal with Nike recently expired and now the swoosh has until the end of next week to match the deal or potentially lose him.
The amount is significant, considering Adidas paid half of that over 11 seasons to be the NBA's official uniform supplier, something that Nike will take over after the 2016-17 season. Harden, who signed an $80 million contract extension with the Rockets in 2012, could make more from the Adidas deal with incentives.
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Adidas has fluttered on the signature basketball shoe market, considering Derrick Rose's 14-year deal hasn't been maximized because of his multiple injuries. Other signees such as Damian Lillard and John Wall's signature shoe sales have fallen flat.
From April through June, Harden had the seventh-best selling jersey in the NBA, according to ESPN.
Harden averaged career highs of 27.4 points, seven assists and 5.7 rebounds per game in leading the Rockets to the Western Conference Finals, where they lost to the eventual NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
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