So something very strange I have noticed about this years Final Four: there have been no Nike swooshes on the court. None, nada, zero. This is very unlike college basketball, where Nike has dominated the market since virtually the days the swoosh replaced the Chuck Taylor seal. 

Kansas - Adidas

UCLA - Adidas

Memphis - Adidas

Carolina - Jordan

Yes, Jordan is produced by Nike, but UNC does not wear the swoosh. We have been donning the jumpman, and it’s something that no other team is allowed to do. Although the Adidas apparel is attrocious and I would never be caught dead in a pair of their basketball shoes, they have done a clever marketing concept.

Earlier this month Adidas released “team shoes”, where you can purchase the exact shoe that your team wears. Would I shell out $150 to wear the same style of Jordans as Hansbrough? Um, YES! It’s amazing what putting one logo on a shoe can do for their value.

And value for Adidas, after this national championship, will be tremendous considering a Nike logo hasn’t been visible on a player this entire semifinal weekend.  

This entry was posted on Monday, April 7th, 2008 at 2:19 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.