Under Armour has been trying to break bigger into the NBA market for a while and they lined up some nice stars — Brandon Jennings, DeAndre Jordan — who fans know but who have never really broken into the big time.
That has changed.
Stephen Curry is leaving Nike for a new Under Armour deal, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.
Curry broke out as a genuine NBA star during last season’s playoffs, leading an entertaining Warriors team to the second round. Curry is arguably the best pure shooter in the game who also happens to be able to run the point, he averaged 22.9 points and 6.9 assists per game in the regular season then upped that to 23.4 and 8.1 in the playoffs.
Now with the addition of Andre Iguodala and with a healthy Andrew Bogut, the Warriors are flirting with contender status this season. Plus, there is a good chance Curry gets into his first All-Star Game this year (although the West is loaded with good guards). All that means Curry and his Under Armour gear are going to be on some big stages.
This is a great get for Under Armour; he’s a great spokesman and face of the brand. As for Nike, I imagine they’ll be just fine.
And for you Nike apologists out there about to suggest this makes Curry more likely to get injured, I’d look at his past ankle issues while wearing Nike and question how well that worked for him.
