NBA Players Nike and Adidas Taking over Shanghai上海 China 中国
Prior to the new year, we were lucky enough to have one of our Protect the Paint correspondents embedded in Shanghai, China. Her duty was to aim her camera at all things NBA, and snap away. Also, to give us a report on the NBA influence that is quite popular and spreading faster than a wildfire throughout the world’s largest country.
The NBA is the taking over China. Simply put, basketball is the number one sport of the nation. You cannot travel very far without turning a corner and seeing one of several NBA players, or a mix of Adidas sponsored athletes in a montage together, plastered to gigantic billboards.
Also, our new correspondent Sergey Ustinov informed me that one NBA game airs on Shanghai’s television networks daily. I have an issue with this because in the United States you must either live in a NBA local market or watch whatever TNT or ESPN decides to air nationally. Without purchasing the NBA League Pass or the Broadband package, you are at the mercy of local cable networks.
Li Ning, the Chinese domestic athletic apparel brand, has billboards of its NBA Players who they sponsor and provide signature gear for. Inside a local Li Ning store, we were lucky enough to find a display of Baron Davis of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Baron Davis has his own shoe display? China must not discriminate!
That is correct, no typo here, Baron Davis has his own signature shoe and promotional displays inside Li Ning stores. When a Los Angeles Clipper can be featured in a display you know the NBA is impregnating China.
Jose Calderon of the Toronto Raptors also has his own signature. It is ironic he is endorsed by the Chinese company after the Men’s Spanish Basketball team took that infamous racist photo prior to the 2008 Summer Olympics. It seems apparent that the rest of the world has a sense of humor, and can take a joke.
The Chinese obviously can take a joke, and endorsed Calderon.
Shaq remains a modern enigma in China, and dominates the Li Ning brand in local athletic apparel stores. His shoes might be found in discount stores like Ross Dress for Less here stateside, but in China his shoes can be found in display cases along with other various apparel hyping up the the “Big Diesel.”
Shaq might be able to fit his big toe in this pair of his signature shoes.
Deeper analysis of the Li Ning brand, when you study it long enough, you will begin to notice some striking familiarities, with their logo and their mission statement, to the Nike and Adidas brands.
The Li Ning logo looks quite similar to the Nike Swoosh if it were reversed and made more square in design.
Can you see the reversed Nike swoosh and blatant rip off of Adidas' campaign?
The statement “Anything is Possible” is quite possibly the most similar slogan to “Impossible is Nothing” that Adidas has ran in campaigns with its endorsing athletes.
Compared to any other major American sport, the NBA is taking China by storm with a gigantic disparity. It is easier to find a basketball outdoor court with constant full-court games there than it is here. The Kobes, Dwights, LeBrons, etc, are all well known and beloved by the basketball fans in China. The game has a presence and is not slowing anytime soon.
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Thu, Jan 7, 2010 by Adam Sedie
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