Cleveland Cavaliers fans are already stoked that the team has made it through the first two rounds of the postseason completely unscathed, waiting to find out who they will play in the Eastern Conference Finals this week. News about the team's future has drawn some attention on Monday, however. As the NBA moves to allow sponsorship deals on jerseys beginning next season, Goodyear - the tire company - will be placing their logo on the Cavs' jerseys during the 2017-18 season.
Goodyear sponsorship
The Cavaliers announced their partnership with Goodyear on Monday afternoon.
The iconic Wingfoot logo of the tire company will be featured in a corner of the jersey beginning next season. It will be seen in navy on the wine-and-gold uniforms the Cavs wear on the road, and in a wine color on the team's white home jerseys. The deal will be for three years, with a projection of being worth anywhere between $5 million and $10 million annually.
FIRST LOOK: Goodyear logo on Cavaliers game jersey starting next season pic.twitter.com/JlsJzj1ME3
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) May 15, 2017
Goodyear's headquarters are not far down the road, in Akron, Ohio. Of course, that city holds special meaning for Cavaliers fans, as that's where superstar LeBron James was born and raised. He made a statement following the announcement, discussing the pride one feels when seeing the Goodyear blimp in the sky and the iconic Wingfoot logo.
Now, he and his fans will get to see that logo on his jersey for every game in the next three years.
NBA sponsorship logos
Last April, the NBA became the first of the big four professional sporting leagues in the United States to try putting advertisements on their jerseys, which is commonplace abroad. The change is taking place at the same time Nike is coming on board as the new apparel provider of the league.
The logo implementation is meant to only be for a trial basis, hence why Goodyear's deal with the Cavaliers is relatively short by most standards.
At least five other teams have come to terms on jersey sponsorship deals for next season: the Philadelphia 76ers (sponsored by StubHub), the Sacramento Kings (Blue Diamond Almonds), the Boston Celtics (General Electric), the Utah Jazz (Qualtrics), and the Brooklyn Nets (Infor).
Other teams will likely soon follow suit after seeing the market for these kinds of logo deals set. No team is likely going to be able to charge more than the Cavaliers, however, considering that they are the reigning champions, and could be the two-time champions by the start of next season.
