Which NBA players have an Adidas shoe contract? Donovan Mitchell, James Harden lead signature athletes

While Nike holds the larger share of the basketball sneaker market, German brand Adidas has made great strides in recent seasons trying to close the gap. 

First, they began by poaching James Harden away from their rival back in 2015 on a 10-year, $200 million deal. Gradually over the years, they have added players such as Damian Lillard and Trae Young to the roster — players they believe can take the brand higher. 

The most notable addition to Adidas Basketball hasn’t even been a basketball player. It’s a fashion designer. 

Adidas once again poached talent from Nike by signing lauded fashion designer Jerry Lorenzo away from the Swoosh to reignite their basketball department. 

“Under the leadership of Jerry, we will disrupt the basketball category,” said Adidas CEO Kasper Rorsted. 

As Lorenzo gets to fully makeover the basketball side of things, the brand has a number of NBA players to fall back on. 

Which NBA players still have an Adidas signature shoe? The Sporting News has you covered below.

Which NBA players have an Adidas shoe deal? 

At one point in time, Adidas had about 80 players on its NBA roster, led by the great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (the company’s first endorser). That number has dwindled down to about 50 or so at the moment. 

Some of the more notable currently active players signed with Adidas include James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Damian Lillard, Trae Young, Derrick Rose and Kristaps Porzingis.  

The German brand also had Zach LaVine on its books until his deal expired before the start of the 2021-22 NBA season. After one season of sneaker free agency, LaVine signed a multi-year deal with New Balance. 

Which NBA players have a signature shoe deal with Adidas? 

Surprisingly, Adidas currently has just as many signature shoe athletes as Nike does (five). 

James Harden, Donovan Mitchell and Damian Lillard lead the way, while Trae Young is considered the future of the brand. 

James Harden Spotted in New Adidas Signature Shoe https://t.co/yYhm1Xq3SX

— SoleCollector.com (@SoleCollector) August 4, 2022

Derrick Rose signed a mammoth 14-year, $190 million deal (!) with Adidas shortly after his 2010-11 MVP season, and just last season celebrated the release of the D.Rose 11.

While many people may wonder why Rose is still one of the brand’s featured athletes despite not being at the MVP level he was when he signed that monster deal, it’s because his shoes still sell really well in China — one of the largest markets in the world. 

Lillard, too, signed a huge long-term deal with the Three Stripes in 2014, inking a 10-year, $100 million contract.