Following a bidding war for his services, No. 1 overall NBA draft pick Zion Williamson has signed a multi-year shoe deal with Jordan Brand. Terms of the partnership were not announced.
The New Orleans Pelicans rookie chose to partner with the Nike subsidiary despite missing nearly a month of action at Duke University last season after tearing through a Nike sneaker against North Carolina in February and injuring his knee.
According to multiple reports, Nike went out of its way to sign Williamson after this nationally-televised incident, which gave the company extremely bad publicity at the time.
“I feel incredibly blessed to be a part of the Jordan Brand family,” said Williamson in a statement. “Since I was a kid, I dreamed of making it to the [NBA] and having the type of impact on the game Michael Jordan had and continues to have today. He was one of those special athletes I looked up to, and I really can’t express how happy and excited I am for this journey.”
Said Michael Jordan of Williamson: “He’s an essential part of the new talent that will help lead the brand into the future. He told us he would ‘shock the world,’ and asked us to believe him. We do.”