Jared Ebanks Nearly a year after the ratification of Name, Image and Likeness within college athletics, adidas began building out its burgeoning cohort of student-athlete endorsees. With the high school basketball season beginning across the country, adidas has officially announced the brand’s first high school NIL partnership with the No. 3 ranked guard in the Class of 2025, Darryn Peterson.
As a junior at adidas-sponsored Huntington Prep, the Canton, Ohio native most recently secured a gold medal with the U16 USA National Team after a break-out offseason on the adidas 3SSB Circuit. Much like the brand’s past signings, Peterson will have the full gamut of adidas basketball silhouettes while partaking in off-court campaigns for adidas’ recent revitalization of its lifestyle apparel and footwear.
The brand’s first foray into the Name Image and Likeness era of college sports came in March 2022 by way of a wide-ranging program that allows athletes from all 109 Division One programs to be paid for social media and affiliate marketing campaigns. Through its nationwide program, adidas has become one of the most active sportswear brands within the NIL space.
A historic initiative then took place in the summer of 2022 where the German sportswear behemoth signed 15 female student-athletes in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Title IX. A few months later in December, the 3-Stripes basketball banner made its debut by signing four collegiate stars at adidas-sponsored schools – Hansel Emmanuel, Gradey Dick, Jalen Hood-Schifino and Trayce Jackson-Davis – joining former Louisville star and current LSU point guard Hailey Van Lith.
NIL deals serve as a semi-introduction to the vast amount of partnerships and potential earnings available as a professional athlete. For those select student-athletes eyeing a professional career, these early relationships with adidas have already proven fruitful. After being drafted in the 2023 NBA Draft, both Dick and Hood-Schifino extended their deals with the brand through official endorsement contracts. The two draftees simultaneously headlined the third chapter in the brand’s 2023 basketball collection.
While Peterson narrows down is final 16 schools, stay tuned for future initiatives featuring the brand’s latest NIL signee alongside their portfolio of student-athletes.
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