As the 2016-17 season winds down more teams are agreeing to jersey sponsorship deals with companies. Next season will be the first year in which these sponsorship can be active.
Thus far three NBA teams had agreed to jersey sponsorship deals for the 2017-18 season, The 76ers with StubHub, the Kings with Blue Diamond Almonds and the Celtics with GE.
As of Thursday afternoon, you can reportedly add the Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets to that list.
The Brooklyn Nets will get paid $8 million next year for their players to wear big red boxes on their jerseys: https://t.co/GNillTlLbE pic.twitter.com/AQsjwQwQdw
— Dan Devine (@YourManDevine) February 8, 2017
REPORT: Cleveland Cavaliers to Have Jerseys Sponsored by Goodyear – https://t.co/azOa3GBjdK
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) February 9, 2017
Bloomberg News reported that the Brooklyn Nets have agreed to a jersey sponsorship partnership with technology Infor, in which Infor will pay $8 million annually for the sponsorship.
That may still be low when you consider how off-putting the ugly red block logo will look on the Nets white and black road and home jerseys.
Bloomberg also reported that the Cavaliers and Goodyear have agreed to a jersey sponsorship deal as well, the look of the jerseys with the Goodyear logo has not yet been reveled, nor has the financial terms of the agreement.
It is worth noting that it is most definitely not a coincidence that Goodyear is based out of Akron, the birthplace of LeBron James, the biggest purveyor and cheerleader of the Akron area around.
With these two new agreements, here are the five jersey sponsorship deals in place for the 2017-18 season at this point:
Philadelphia 76ers – $5 million annually (StubHub)
Sacramento Kings – $5 million annually (Blue Diamond)
Boston Celtics – More than $7 million annually (General Electric)
Brooklyn Nets – $8 million annually (Infor)
Cleveland Cavaliers – Value not disclosed (Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co.)
I have got to say it is pretty impressive that the Nets, the least marketable franchise of the bunch with the bleakest current and future outlook at the moment have managed to land the most lucrative deal.
It will be interesting to see how these deals and partnerships develop over the next few months and how they evolve over the three seasons the NBA will initially experiment with this.
These company sponsorship patches will be 2.5 inches by 2.5 inches in size and be featured on the top left shoulder of the jersey.
