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Signature sneakers have been a cornerstone of the basketball business since Michael Jordan signed with Nike in 1984. As the saying goes, everybody wants to ‘Be Like Mike.’ But the shoe game has come a long way since Nike willingly paid MJ’s fines for wearing Air Jordans in “unapproved colors.”
Turn on an NBA game today, and you’ll see players rocking shoes in every color and style imaginable, each pair making a unique statement. Now, Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry — one of Jordan’s fiercest challengers for the title of basketball’s most influential player — aims to revolutionize the sneaker world just as he transformed the game itself. And we all know how deadly Curry’s aim is.
From competitors to collaborators
In December, Curry Brand introduced its first signature athlete, Sacramento Kings star De’Aaron Fox, with the launch of the Fox 1, marking an interesting milestone for the rapidly growing brand. De’Aaron Fox, who holds the season’s highest-scoring game with 60 points, signed with Under Armour in 2023 after leaving Nike, becoming Curry Brand’s first non-eponymous signature athlete.
Fox’s deal is unique in that active players aren’t typically signed to another active player’s label. They often wear each other’s shoes, but being signed to a brand where your rival is the acting president is unusual, to say the least.
“There are people in the industry and the world who have tried to poke at that, but we see it as a benefit,” says Curry Brand head of marketing Nana Dadzie. “For De’Aaron, joining the brand of someone you’ve admired since high school is special. Michael Jordan was the defining figure for my generation, and in terms of influence on today’s game, Curry is the only one with that kind of impact.”
Like Jordan Brand with Nike, Curry Brand is Under Armour’s only standalone label. It launched in 2020, though Curry has been with the company since 2013.
Dadzie joined in 2022 after 16 years working in higher education. “I’ll never forget meeting Steph for the first time at Curry Camp, just a few weeks into the role,” Dadzie recalls. “We were in an elevator, and I told him, ‘I didn’t come here for the glitz, glam, or just to be your friend — though we’ve become friends. I’m here to help you build a legacy brand.'”
Curry Brand takes a distinctive approach to marketing its products: building narratives around an athlete’s signature skill. Curry’s legendary shooting has been front and center in campaigns like the memorable Curry 2 ad (featuring another famous Fox — Jamie).
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Speed is key
For De’Aaron Fox, named the NBA’s fastest player in the 2024 GM survey, speed is key. As such, the campaign for his debut shoe, the Fox 1, is titled “Speed that Scares.”
“People know me for pushing the ball and playing with pace, so I felt like the tagline ‘ was a perfect fit and something that would make a statement with this being my first signature shoe,” said Fox.
The emphasis on signature skills is far from a coincidence in Curry Brand’s marketing. “One thing I always remind my creative teams is that we’re in the business of selling basketball shoes,” Dadzie explains.
“It’s easy to get carried away with wild ideas, but we must create with intent. When working with dynamic players like De’Aaron and Steph, the key is leaning into what people know about them.”
Along with building around an athlete’s signature skill, Curry Brand leans on humor to stand out. The iconic three-second ads featuring Curry himself highlight his shooting prowess by showing him bewildered at the sight of a brick or producing steam after dunking his signature hot hand in a bucket of water.
The “Speed that Scares” campaign follows a similar approach, kicking off with the first 30-second spot, “Any Shoes.”
In the ad, Fox stands at center court, surrounded by a sea of shoes, playfully musing about how fast he is in all of them. But it’s the final pair — the Fox 1s — that defenders should truly fear.
“I love how we took something so inherent to him — his on-court speed — and built around it, incorporating his personality along the way,” Dadzie says.
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The second ad, “The Janitor,” is even more creative. This one puts a playful twist on a familiar basketball scenario: when a janitor interrupts your workout. Here, the janitor braces himself, donning goggles as fast-paced music sets the tone. Fox then proceeds to blaze through drills with such velocity that he sends the janitor’s cleaning supplies flying and leaves him dazed. The spot ends with Fox casually walking away, waving as the stunned janitor watches in disbelief.
“I absolutely love the ‘Janitor’ spot,” Fox says. “It’s so relatable to any basketball player who has stayed late at their high school or middle school gym and had the janitor come in while they were still working out. We had a ton of fun filming that one, and I think people will really enjoy it.”
While Steph Curry has defied logic on the basketball court, even he can’t defeat Father Time. The 36-year-old superstar has spoken publicly about the ticking clock on his career several times recently, acknowledging that “the end is near.”
For the NBA, it means saying goodbye to the greatest shooter ever. For Curry Brand, it marks a new beginning. And the Fox 1s are the first step.
“Our goal is to build a legacy brand like Jordan’s that lasts well beyond his playing days,” says Dadzie. “Legacy isn’t just about what you leave behind; it’s about inspiring others to carry it forward. Players like De’Aaron Fox become part of Steph’s legacy. Just as Michael Jordan’s influence endures, Steph’s impact is already cemented. His Hall of Fame career will be remembered forever.”
