Here's another one of my late night rambles..... this time I figured I'd touch on the whole Adidas deal and the MooU basketball program. Now keep in mind I don't know 100% of it. Just my general assumptions. Would love for some other people to chime in if they feel compelled to do so. I mainly post this so everyone understands how basketball recruiting works, and how it makes it so much harder for schools like us to do the same exact thing.
But here we go.....
MooU is 100% an Adidas school. They have bought in and gone long term with them, regardless of how their fans feel about Nike/UnderArmour/etc. vs. Adidas. They have given free reign and some creative control over their uniforms, in football and baseball especially. They have become one of Adidas's biggest supporters. In the apparel world that's big.
Now here's how it applies to MooU basketball..... they have a good gym at the Hump, and when it gets full, that place can rock with the best of them. There is no way around it. The Mize Pavilion, their basketball practice facility that is connected to the Hump, is impressive. They have a good history of basketball support, and at the very least, several guys that have played in the NBA. That's a decent enough recruiting pitch as it is.
When Rick Ray tanked the program.... they decided that it was time to get back into the game in basketball. They were with Stansbury and then dropped off with Ray in an attempt to clean up the program. When they decided to show a full commitment to basketball, Adidas stepped in. Ben Howland(basically an employee of Adidas) came calling and they matched the 2 together. Adidas school looking to commit to basketball, and an Adidas coach looking to get back into the game. That's how they got such a good coach after being one of the worst programs in the country.
Where Adidas helps them in recruiting is this..... AAU teams are sponsored. Normally by apparel companies. They provide shoes and gear and jerseys and the whole 9 yards for some. Well the best AAU teams get the best deals. They also get the best players... because those players are now in with whatever shoe company their AAU team rolls with. And if that player ever makes it to the NBA, it's an unspoken agreement that they'll get first dibs at a shoe deal with said player. To make sure nothing stands in the way of said agreement, they help steer kids in the direction of schools that also use their gear.
Here's an example.... Huge AAU tournament in Atlanta. Sponsored by Adidas. Adidas AAU team finishes playing for the day, and guess who's on the sidelines. Ben Howland. Rocking nothing but Adidas MSU gear. The coach, who is basically an adidas employee with all the gear they get for their teams, then points out to his star player, "hey you see that coach over there? He's the coach at Miss. State. He's great. Coached Russell Westbrook and Kevin Love and is looking to bring the same kind of talent to MSU, and wants you to be a part of it. Want me to set up a time to talk to him?" Easy as that.
That's a very, very simple breakdown of it from my perspective.. Again, just a late night ramble on my part. Gotten to where I like digging into things late and night and sharing my thoughts. Lol.
Feel free to jump in with your thoughts. Anything I may have gotten wrong, anything you'd like to add, or any questions, whatever. Go ahead and discuss.
Hotty Toddy
But here we go.....
MooU is 100% an Adidas school. They have bought in and gone long term with them, regardless of how their fans feel about Nike/UnderArmour/etc. vs. Adidas. They have given free reign and some creative control over their uniforms, in football and baseball especially. They have become one of Adidas's biggest supporters. In the apparel world that's big.
Now here's how it applies to MooU basketball..... they have a good gym at the Hump, and when it gets full, that place can rock with the best of them. There is no way around it. The Mize Pavilion, their basketball practice facility that is connected to the Hump, is impressive. They have a good history of basketball support, and at the very least, several guys that have played in the NBA. That's a decent enough recruiting pitch as it is.
When Rick Ray tanked the program.... they decided that it was time to get back into the game in basketball. They were with Stansbury and then dropped off with Ray in an attempt to clean up the program. When they decided to show a full commitment to basketball, Adidas stepped in. Ben Howland(basically an employee of Adidas) came calling and they matched the 2 together. Adidas school looking to commit to basketball, and an Adidas coach looking to get back into the game. That's how they got such a good coach after being one of the worst programs in the country.
Where Adidas helps them in recruiting is this..... AAU teams are sponsored. Normally by apparel companies. They provide shoes and gear and jerseys and the whole 9 yards for some. Well the best AAU teams get the best deals. They also get the best players... because those players are now in with whatever shoe company their AAU team rolls with. And if that player ever makes it to the NBA, it's an unspoken agreement that they'll get first dibs at a shoe deal with said player. To make sure nothing stands in the way of said agreement, they help steer kids in the direction of schools that also use their gear.
Here's an example.... Huge AAU tournament in Atlanta. Sponsored by Adidas. Adidas AAU team finishes playing for the day, and guess who's on the sidelines. Ben Howland. Rocking nothing but Adidas MSU gear. The coach, who is basically an adidas employee with all the gear they get for their teams, then points out to his star player, "hey you see that coach over there? He's the coach at Miss. State. He's great. Coached Russell Westbrook and Kevin Love and is looking to bring the same kind of talent to MSU, and wants you to be a part of it. Want me to set up a time to talk to him?" Easy as that.
That's a very, very simple breakdown of it from my perspective.. Again, just a late night ramble on my part. Gotten to where I like digging into things late and night and sharing my thoughts. Lol.
Feel free to jump in with your thoughts. Anything I may have gotten wrong, anything you'd like to add, or any questions, whatever. Go ahead and discuss.
Hotty Toddy
