words_Keith Kunis
The University of Memphis was home to this NBA season’s number one pick and possible top contender for Rookie of The Year honors Derrick Rose (I know it’s an early call, but I see your murmurs). Rose is the highest picked Tigers player ever, as the previous highest picked at number three was Anfernee Hardaway in 1993. In the last draft alone the Tigers had three players taken. What does this all have to do with the University of Memphis signing a deal with Nike? When you have a force in college basketball like the Tigers, with the caliber of players they have you would think that Nike or any other company would jump at the opportunity to sponsor the team. It took some time, but now Nike has and will sponsor all sports at the University of Memphis.
The Athletic Department at the University of Memphis has agreed to a five-year, $11.3 million, exclusive contract with Nike that would provide the university with shoes, apparel and equipment for all of their athletic teams. Not only will they receive all that, but the University will also receive product for special events and fundraisers.
So here’s the real question? What will the Memphis Tigers be wearing on the court? I love their colors and hope they get some really fresh kicks that aren’t too generic. The three likely candidates for sneakers will be the Hyperdunk, Powermax and the Blue Chip. I personally lean towards the Hyperdunk and think they can do something cool with that. There’s no telling if Nike can have something made up in time for this season so they might get some generic colorways before it’s out but I’m looking forward to next year to see what they do.
source: Sports One
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November 19th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Ideally I’d like to see the 1Cent logo on their jerseys and Memphis become a Penny school!
But…I can say that there’s gonna be a few surprises on the court this year and Nike has already cooked up a few nice home & away exclusives. Keep your eyes open for next issue…
November 19th, 2008 at 1:59 pm
Oh snap, for real. Damn I’m left out of the loop. I can’t wait.
November 19th, 2008 at 3:36 pm
saw their game last night and they were all pretty much wearing royal/white, black/white or white/blue hd’s. they also changed their jerseys up too. now they have a block of grey on the back part of their shorts and jerseys
November 20th, 2008 at 4:34 am
Ugh, really a step back IMO, the jersey design, doesn’t come together, it looks patchy, and I hate Nike’s ultra-long, ultra-baggy shorts, they look ridiculous.