New Balance strikes gold with No. 1 NBA draft pick Cooper Flagg

New Balance (NB), long associated with the “dad shoe,”  is trying to make a name for itself in sports. It landed a slam dunk partnering with Cooper Flagg, who became the No. 1 NBA Draft pick on Wednesday.
The 18-year-old Duke standout signed with NB before his college debut and will reportedly lead its basketball relaunch this year. The brand has already gone all in, dropping “Flagg Day” merchandise for sale.

Challenging the giants
Flagg gives Boston-based NB a rare chance to break Nike’s and Adidas’s stranglehold on top NBA talent. Its revenue has significantly climbed since 2010, when it posted $1.8 billion, compared to $7.8 billion in 2024.

It is way less than Nike ($51 billion), Adidas ($26 billion), and Puma ($9.5 billion). It limits the resources NB can throw around to lure top sports talents.

However, the shoemaker has successfully personalized products and ad campaigns with athletes like tennis topper Coco Gauff and MLB sensation Shohei Ohtani.

NB hopes its basketball push will help it crack the global top-three athletic wear brands.

Meanwhile, Nike is doubling down after a tough quarter, with global sales dropping 9%, including a 17% decline in China. 

It’s backing Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon, who will attempt today in Paris to become the first woman to run a sub-4-minute mile. To do that, the Kenyan must beat her own world record by 7.65 seconds.