FUTURE OF D ROSE’S SIGNATURE SHOES

In 2012, Adidas signed Derrick Rose to a 13-year $185 million deal after he was crowned the MVP after a historic season. The contract, which would last till 2025, made sense to Adidas at the time as a young 22-year old Derrick Rose who came off a MVP season was full of potential and looked to continue to grow as a player. However, the 2010-2011 season would be the peak of his career as the ACL injury during the 2011-2012 season caused his career to go downhill. Further forward into 2020, Derrick Rose is still with Adidas with some people claiming it to be the worst existing signature shoe contract signed by a major shoe company. While, Derrick Rose’s contract still has 5 years remaining before it expires, what can we expect from Derrick Rose and Adidas for the remainder of the 5 years and beyond?

For now it is speculated that Adidas is obligated to continue producing signatures shoes for Derrick Rose till the year 2025. It is worth speculating how Adidas manages the “D Rose” brand till the contract ends. For all the brands that have multiple signature lines, some signature lines are prioritised by the brand more than others. For Adidas Harden is the face of Adidas so his shoes are given highest priority. That is one of the reasons behind the shoes getting the latest technology and higher quality materials. While the “Dame” line is also a popular model, Damian Lillard isn’t as big of a player as James Harden so his signature line is placed second after Harden. Lastly Donovan Mitchel is placed last in the list of signature lines at Adidas. Donovan Mitchell is still a young player and his signature line is fairly new. So the “D.O.N” line is currently sold as a budget signature line.

For the “D Rose” line, it has been confusing lately. D Rose 9, came with full-length Bounce cushioning instead of the full length “Boost” foam that was present in the previous model. Up to the D Rose 10, which also implemented “Bounce” it looked like Adidas was guiding the “D Rose” line to become a budget signature line like the “D.O.N” line. Then recent leaks of the D Rose 11 showed that “Lightstrike” foam which is used in the “Dame 6” and the “Harden Vol.4” will be introduced to the “D Rose” line countering the thought that “D Rose” line will be a budget line. However, over the coming years there is a possibility of D Rose and Donovan Mitchell switching places in terms of their signature shoe status at the brand. Donovan Mitchell has had a solid season this year as he made the All-Star team and placed himself as a leader of the Utah Jazz. Since he is performing better and is expected to perform better than Derrick Rose, Adidas may give his future signature shoes an upgrade in terms of the technology by giving him “Boost” or “Lightstrike”. While D Rose may go back to having “Bounce” in his signature shoes.

After his contract expires, there no doubt that Adidas will be interested in giving him a contract extension. He will still be a fan favourite and his legacy will hold as the youngest MVP in NBA history. This means Derrick Rose as a player will still be marketable and although Adidas may not offer him anymore signature shoes in extension, Derrick Rose may continue to have his previous shoes retroed like they are being done right now.

However, a player of Derrick Rose’s calibre is bout to attract interest of smaller brands such as Peak and Anta after his contract with Adidas ends. These companies are known to offer more competitive offers in terms of money and signature shoes. If players like Tony Parker and George Hill can receive signature shoes at those companies, there is no doubt that Derrick Rose will be approached by those companies when his contract with Adidas expires. If he decides to sign with a different brand he is most likely to continue releasing signature shoes.

Another possibility is Derrick Rose retiring before the year 2025. Then Adidas won’t have to pay the remaining money they promised and they aren’t obligated to continue his signature line. Retirement of Derrick Rose can happen if he just decides he’s done with basketball or no teams want him to be a part of a roster. Depending on the contract, Adidas may have to right to use continue use the brand “D Rose” like the “T-Mac” brand and they may look into retroing his previous sneakers or improving the shoes by adding better technology like they did with the “T-Mac Millennium”.

Whatever the case maybe, the D Rose 11 is set to drop late this year and we can expect a 12th signature shoe next year as well. Till 2025, unless Derrick Rose retires, we can expect Adidas to release his signature shoes every year alongside his retro releases.

Source: Feature image via MADDIE MEYER/GETTY IMAGES