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Why Candace Parker has stuck with Adidas her whole athletic life

The L.A. Sparks star can go from Pro Models to Pusha Ts

At Adidas’ 747 Warehouse St. event during 2018 NBA All-Star Weekend, The Undefeated’s Aaron Dodson caught up with Los Angeles Sparks two-time MVP Candace Parker and six-time All-Star James Harden of the Houston Rockets. This two-part series will highlight the connection both players have to Adidas.


Candace Parker has worn one brand of basketball sneakers for essentially her entire life: during her AAU and high school days in her home state of Illinois, on the court at the University of Tennessee for three seasons, and for the past 10 years as the leader of the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks. All Adidas, all the time for the four-time WNBA All-Star, two-time league MVP and two-time Olympic gold medalist. In 2008, when she became the second player in WNBA history (after Lisa Leslie in 2002) to dunk the ball during a game, she rose from the hardwood in a pair of the Adidas Piranha 3.0.

In 2016, some folks in the sneaker world speculated that part of the reason Parker was left off the roster of the Nike-sponsored Team USA Olympic women’s basketball team involved her loyalty to Adidas — which isn’t stopping anytime soon. On the court, she rocks Adidas Crazy Lights, and off of it you can catch her in her favorite gray and orange Yeezys, throwing it back to one of the colors she wore at Tennessee. Here she talks about the first pair of Adidas she bought, her experience working on the “Calling All Creators” ad campaign and why she believes the brand keeps on winning.


What made you sign with Adidas when you entered the WNBA in 2008?

I’ve been actually unofficially with Adidas since 2003, which is when my high school team got sponsored by Adidas. I don’t know whether it was fate, but I went to an Adidas college at Tennessee, and then when I came out of college it was just natural to sign with Adidas just because I’d been with them. It had become more like a family. I knew everybody within the company. They wanted to grow with me and have that type of partnership.

How have you seen the brand grow in the past 15 years?

It’s been tremendous. Even going back farther than 2003, I remember getting the moon boot Kobes. Just me falling in love with the design. Obviously, it’s great to see the product go into a more functional direction. Kobes were a little clunky playing in them. They look fly now wearing them, but on the court they were a little heavy. So now, to see the Crazy Light shoes, they blew my mind. For somebody that’s kinda versatile like myself, who plays all positions, I couldn’t just wear a big man’s shoe. I needed a shoe that served all purposes.

What’s your favorite shoe ever?

I’d definitely have to go with the Pro Models from back in the day. The reason is, this was in 2002. I think I was a sophomore in high school, and I saved up my whole summer allowance to buy the Pro Models. That was kind of like the first time I worked and saved up, so they hold a special meaning to me. For a Christmas tournament, I had to buy two pair, so I had a red pair and a green pair. … The T-Macs were kinda fly too.

What’s your favorite off-the-court Adidas shoe?

I would say the Pusha Ts or the Yeezys are my go-to off the court because you can wear them with whatever. You can dress them up, you can dress them down.

How fun was it to work on the ‘Calling All Creators’ campaign?

It was really neat. … They had empty chairs, and it was surreal for me when you look across and see David Beckham, and you see Alexander Wang and all the nameplates, and you’re like, ‘Man, I’m really sitting at this table.’ For me, I think it was just the coming together of the commercial and then seeing it play on television. It was a really good concept. It’s what Adidas is about.

Who did you film with?

I filmed with Chiney Ogwumike, who I know very well. She’s like a sister to me. And then Dame Lillard — we’re real cool. It was good just catching up with them and talking. Obviously, I’ve known Dame since he came into the league, and just seeing his growth and how dominant he can be, I really respect him and his game.

What does Adidas mean to the culture?

Adidas is creativity. It fits for me, because in order to be great at something, you have to be creative.

What do you think is so attractive about Adidas to tastemakers outside of sports: musicians, actors, designers and more?

It’s just the variety. … For me now, it’s about the everyday wear. You have sweaters. They have shoes you can dress up. I live in L.A., so it’s kind of surreal, but you can wear a lot of Adidas’ stuff to business meetings now. The brand is going that way. It’s fun for me. It’s creative, and it’s different.

Aaron Dodson is a sports and culture writer at Andscape. He primarily writes on sneakers/apparel and hosts the platform’s Sneaker Box video series. During Michael Jordan’s two seasons playing for the Washington Wizards in the early 2000s, the “Flint” Air Jordan 9s sparked his passion for kicks.