Stephen Curry Switches to Under Armour Shoes
Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry arrived at his team's media day wearing something radically different. Instead of wearing Nike shoes, as he had been doing for the past four years, he was wearing Under Armour.
The speculations that Curry was switching shoe sponsors were flying thick and fast until Under Armour themselves announced that the sweet-shooting playmaker was indeed joining their endorser pool.
"Under Armour (NYSE:UA) today announced the addition of dynamic NBA point guard Stephen Curry to their roster of world-class athletes. As part of the multi-year partnership, Curry will be wearing the new UA Micro G® Anatomix Spawn basketball shoes and featured in upcoming marketing campaigns via digital, social, print, in-store and out-of-home," the company said in a press release.
It was reported that Curry will be wearing the Anatomix Spawn shoes in a special colorway that will go with the Warriors' team colors of gold and blue. There has been no indication yet of a signature shoe for Curry, although trade observers are predicting it will happen within the coming NBA season.
Curry is joining a top-flight class of Under Armour endorsers inside and outside basketball, including multiple Olympic swimming gold medalist Michael Phelps, football players Tom Brady and Cam Newton and NBA players Brandon Jennings and DeAndre Jordan. The sportwear company also sponsors football and basketball teams in the NCAA Division I, including Boston College, Texas Tech and the University of Maryland, and was chosen by the Japan national basketball team for their uniform requirements in the recent FIBA Asia tournament in Manila.
With Curry's signing, the value of Under Armour stock jumped 4.08 percent to $82.69 per share. Under Armour currently holds 0.35 percent of the market for basketball shoes, a market that has been dominated by Nike and Brand Jordan. Nike's closest competitors, And1, Adidas and Reebok, account for just over 7 percent of the market.