Are We Signature Sneakermaxxing?

…Because so far, March isn’t, and someone’s gotta be! Meanwhile, on the men’s (actually, both sides), the world still yearns for a proper Cinderella because what’s March without the Madness? On the women’s side, Serena Williams’ husband-slash-billionaire-investor Alexis Ohanian explained how he played a role in Virginia’s upset over second-seeded Iowa. More of that please.

And speaking of madness, it’s almost April. Do you know who’s on your WNBA team? We’ve got an expansion draft April 6 (which the new teams don’t understand still), over 100 (yes, that’s a real number) free agents looking to sign with teams right after that, the regular draft on April 13, and the start of training camp April 20, less than three weeks before the start of the regular season. Read more here and hold onto your hats. 

Social clubs for women who are fans are taking off. Between Cherry Beagles and Morgan Riddle’s 400 club, and the Chargers Social Club, the girlies are going to be locked in. I expect many more of these to pop up. Anyone want to start one with me?

I talked on Monday about how Adidas, Nike, and Puma all crushed their World Cup kit releases. This week’s pesky kid brother newsletter, I mean, SportsVerse, explains why that was important for each brand. And what they’ll gain from their successes. And we’ll hear more from Dan below on a secret second topic. 

The internet’s suddenly taking notice of Man City coach Pep Guardiola's style, but real ones claim he’s always had that sh*t on. Scarf game silly, indeed, Versus.

“Go Off” is a special edition of our daily newsletter, featuring my thoughts, takes, and general vibes, presented to OffBall readers every Wednesday.

Yesterday, we learned that arguably the most promising player in the tournament, guard Darius Acuff Jr. would be getting his own signature shoe with Reebok. Not only that, the Arkansas star would become the first NCAA men’s athlete to land such an honor while still enrolled in school.

It’s not the most surprising thing in the world for a player who AIlen Iverson has dubbed “the next HIM” to get such a deal with Reebok, but it is kind of a risk. More importantly, though, it got me thinking about where we’re at with signature sneakers as a whole. 

On Monday, news broke that JuJu Watkins was getting her own signature shoe as well. Kind of. To explain this further, I’m tagging in my colleague and editor (dare I say, friend?) Daniel-Yaw Miller, who (read his newsletter and you’ll see) is the foremost expert on this topic. 

Dan, explain what JuJu’s deal means. 

DYM: The signature shoe space is confusing even to insiders sometimes, with a lot of terminology that can get muddled. A lot of media this week had been reporting that JuJu’s signature shoe was finally here, which wasn’t quite the case… just yet. It doesn’t make what JuJu has created with Nike any less cool, though. The shoes in question were the first created under the LeBron NXXT Gen platform — a new way Nike is integrating its young stars into its sneaker pathway, and perhaps a very good indicator of those who will one day get full-on signature deals. You’d think JuJu is without doubt in line in a few years.

Thanks, Dan. Back to me in studio. With this hugely oversaturated signature sneaker market, it’s completely understandable for people to feel confused. There are regular signature shoes, like what Ant, Shai, A’ja, Dame, Stewie, and Kyrie have, and then there are PE’s, which are player editions (i.e. another player’s collaboration with a revered signature line, like Kobes). Paige Bueckers and JuJu have Nike PEs, Caitlin Clark is getting a Nike signature. 

@aliyahfunschelle

Hope this helps clear up any confusion about sneakers!! #sneakers #paigebueckers #caitlinclark #ajawilson #nike #wbb #sports

DYM: At one point in time, it was really easy to talk about this space without getting muddled. Fewer players had signature lines, and there were way fewer PEs flying about. I think brands are looking for ways to differentiate their offerings now, hence why Nike is exploring new ways to highlight the importance of some athletes with shoe deals without giving them signature lines straight away. This is where collaboration programs like the LeBron NXXT Gen platform come in. These days, breaking through the noise is harder than ever before, meaning brands are almost forced jump into the signature sneaker pipeline quicker to reach sufficient levels of media coverage, athlete buy-in and also to keep up with their competitors who are running the same race.

Dan, your genius knows no bounds. Me, on the other hand, I’m wondering how all of these athletes getting signature shoes doesn’t oversaturate the market. Are brands really seeing sales skyrocket after these shoes are released? How can it possibly be lucrative for the brands if every new shoe is in direct competition with the last? Are we sneakermaxxing (negative)? 

What do you think, Dan? 

DYM: The thing to remember with signature shoe deals is that often (counterintuitively) they’re not seen as profit or sales drivers for big sportswear brands. Brands like Nike and Adidas, with multibillion-dollar annual marketing budgets, can afford to invest in building these product lines without expecting a significant return on sales. Of course, there are exceptions when certain lines really hit — like Nike’s Kobes or Adidas’ Anthony Edwards line. But for the most part, signature sneakers are designed to be marketing tools, used to show off a brand’s association with the greatest players in the game, and also a way for a brand to show its level of commitment and investment in its most prized athletes. 

My last thoughts on this matter are, if everyone gets a signature shoe, does anyone really have a signature shoe? Michael Jordan used to be on an island, and now it seems everyone else has moved in and stolen the land. Sorry to compare it to colonization, I didn’t need to go there. Anyway, everyone has a shoe now. And to what end?! No Boomer, but back in my day, you had to earn your shoe! 

Dan, your thoughts please, before I get even more political?

DYM: It’s not just you who feels like this. I think brands are stuck in a difficult position where their young athletes are (rightfully) getting more attention and cultural relevance than ever before. To keep this talent within their ecosystems, brands know they have to invest in things like signature deals many years earlier in an athlete’s career than they probably would like to. I do think we’re getting to the stage where (even though many of these signature lines are well-deserved) it’s getting harder and harder to distinguish one from the other. I think it was really refreshing to hear the perspective of Jalen Brunson, who said he didn’t believe he needed his own signature line in the traditional sense — not because he’s not an amazing player, but simply because he respected the traditional threshold for sporting domination that usually needs to be met before such a deal is handed out to an athlete.

Baseball season is in full swing (ha ha ha…), and it’s more fun than ever. I can’t really say if that’s true, because I’m admittedly new to this sport, not true to this sport, but it is more fun for me than ever. I think it’s officially time we open our hearts to baseball.

It appears Major League Baseball is making a serious pitch for non-fans to convert. And it might be working. Now that Netflix has some of the games, the crossover memes are very fun. 

It’s Wednesday, after all. 

They’ve got the best nicknames in all of sports.

They dropped a big honking baseball on the sidewalks of both Hollywood and NYC.

And this might be the last season before a major lockout, so watch it while you can. Because even if just for today, it feels like the possibilities are endless. It even feels like someone other than the Dodgers might win it all.