The athletic footwear and apparel company is hoping to get back into pro basketball in a big way with the signing of Jay-Z as a creative consultant for its brand, reports Complex. In addition to Jay-Z, Puma has also signed top draft prospects DeAndre Ayton from Arizona University, Marvin Bagley III from Duke University, and Zhaire Smith from Texas Tech as brand ambassadors. The signing of Jay-Z and the three draft pics signals the first time Puma has been into pro basketball since the 1990s. As Adam Petrick, Puma’s global director of brand and marketing, told Complex:
“We’re making a serious statement about the entry of the category, that we want to be a performance brand, but then also very culturally focused. It’s clear that we’re looking at basketball through the lens of culture, and thinking about the fashion of basketball, the music of basketball, all the aspects of culture around basketball as much as the on-court presence that we will have.”
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