We all knew that Dwyane Wade was leaving Jordan for Chinese sportswear entity Li-Ning…and now it’s more official then ever. Hit the jump to read the whole story and see pics. Tell us what you think. Cop or Not?
Thanks to the covert updates that Sneaker News has kept you up on, you already know that Dwyane Wade has made a huge change in his sneaker career, allowing his Jordan Brand contract to expire and linking up with Chinese sportswear entity Li-Ning. Tomorrow marks the 10/10 date hinted at by Wade on which the partnership is expected to officially be announced, but we’ve got some more photos and info ahead of that to shed light on the situation. First of all, Wade will have his sub-brand known simply as ‘Wade’, with an apparel line that he will have executive control over thrown in the mix. Secondly, reports have the line launching in China “soon” with an expected US arrival in Spring 2013.
During this big-time change for one of the league’s biggest athletes (#MakeTheChange being the apparent name of the campaign), some more insight has been given on the Wade/Jordan Brand split, with Wade speaking on the subject with “In the end, the pros outweighed the cons, Jordan might have that cool factor, but I’m at a different point in my career. I want to be involved in building something.” There’s no doubt that this new endorsement has given him that building opportunity, letting him carve out his own path and create a footwear legacy independent influence from any other Chicago heroes. You can expect to see Wade rocking his new Li-Ning’s on the regular at a couple upcoming exhibition matches out in China, with the in-game pairs to be auctioned off afterwards, thus becoming the first ever Wade x Li-Ning sneakers up for grabs. Click through with us to get the latest look at Dwyane Wade’s Li-Ning prototypes and check back tomorrow for more on the official dawn of the Wade/Li-Ning era.
