John Wall is headed back to adidas after being a sneaker free agent the past two seasons. Wall has agreed to a five-year deal with the brand, according to Shams Charania of the Vertical.
Sources: Washington Wizards All-Star John Wall has agreed to a five-year endorsement deal with Adidas. Wall returns to the brand after testing shoe free agency over the past couple years.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 7, 2018
Wall’s decision to return to adidas was first reported by Hoop District just before Wall played in his first signature shoes with the brand back on Dec. 29.
https://twitter.com/HoopDistrictDC/status/946891664769077248
Wall signed a five-year deal with Reebok when he entered the NBA back in 2010. He was later transferred to its parent company, adidas, to boost its basketball presence while refocusing Reebok away from basketball. Two signature shoes, J Wall 1 and J Wall 2, were created after the transfer.
However, Wall left the brand just before the 2015-16 season after rescinding a $7.5 million per year deal from adidas after reportedly learning of the 13-year mega deal they signed with James Harden earlier that off-season.
Shortly after the decision to leave, Wall fired his agent Dan Fegan and hired the longtime friend and agent of LeBron James, Rich Paul. Wall then spent the past two seasons fielding offers from other brands. In the end, he and Paul opted to return to adidas.
The return is most likely to garner a signature deal and it will be interesting to find out the monetary details given the negotiation history between Wall and adidas. Anything north of the initial $7.5 million per year offer back in 2015 will be a huge win for Wall given the unique strategy he implied.
