NBA All-Star Weekend lands in Cleveland this weekend, and fashion, art and commerce are descending on the city for basketball’s big event.
Last year, the NBA condensed the weekend into a single evening comprised of the star-studded exhibition game, with the fan-favorite Slam Dunk contest as its half-time event, as well as the Skills and 3-Point Contests. This year the event is back to its original weekend schedule and heads to the next city on its annual tour (the 2021 NBA All-Star Weekend was meant to be held in Indianapolis but was moved to Atlanta due to COVID-19).
In 2021, Foot Locker and Bleacher Report activated over the weekend both virtually and IRL, and Canada Goose launched collaboration outerwear with Rhude as part of their multiyear partnership with the NBA.
Related Articles
All-Star Weekend touched down in Chicago in 2020, which attracted sportswear brands that typically activate during the weekend, as well as luxury labels. Nike, adidas, Under Armour and more sneaker brands launched new footwear for their star players, while Gucci opened a pop-up in the West Loop; Rimowa and StockX teamed with Chicago nonprofit Common Ground Foundation on a raffle, and Goat’s Flight Club opened an exhibit at the Ace Hotel.
You May Also Like
Brands supported Chicago in a big way, possibly because of its popular luxury retail row called Magnificent Mile and its solid sneaker community born from Michael Jordan’s reign in the city as a Chicago Bull, now carried on by designer Joe Freshgoods’ coveted New Balance sneakers.
But Cleveland is different — a less populous city not nearly known for its fashion scene, community or consumers. And yet, brands, artists and commerce are heading to the city for All-Star Weekend, speaking to the weekend’s influence.
This year has its expected launches: Nike, Jordan, adidas, Puma, Reebok and more are launching the latest sneakers from their popular series like the Nike Dunk, LeBron, Yeezy and Reebok Question series, among others.
Canada Goose has followed its coat with Rhude with a four-piece capsule collection with designer Salehe Bembury that is supported by an activation at the Cleveland Public Auditorium where fans can explore the collection and experience a re-creation of the fishing shack from the campaign short. Vintage store Round Two and brand C’est Bon are teaming up on a capsule launching on Feb. 19 on their respective websites, at the Cavaliers’ in-stadium team shop, and at Round Two founder Sean Wotherspoon’s in-stadium pop-up.
Some new happenings include Klarna’s first immersive activation during All-Star Weekend; artist Hank Willis Thomas presenting handmade quilts featuring NBA legends; StockX hosting the StockX Factory with a drop-off location; a Tiffany & Co. x Arsham Studio half court in Tiffany Blue; the Cavs Stockroom curated by artist Daniel Arsham that features Arsham, Tiffany’s and Sean Wotherspoon’s collaborations, among others, and designer Darryl Brown partnering with adidas on a campaign starring employees at the Cavs home arena, Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
“I felt it was my duty to deliver something to the Midwest,” Brown said. The designer activated at NBA All-Star for the first time in Chicago and wanted to follow up in a way similar to his first launch with adidas that he rolled out in his home city, Toledo, Ohio. He said it’s not his way to tie with an athlete or celebrity or launches or campaigns and decided to highlight arena workers that “won’t experience anything like this beyond their phone for a calendar year,” Brown said.
“The Cavs organization was skeptical at first,” he added. “This is something that hasn’t been done.” They picked around 20 volunteers from guest services, security, the office and other roles at the stadium to model his namesake brand. He mentioned an older gentleman named George that reminded him of his grandfather who was very confident and excited about the opportunity, which gave Brown more confidence in the idea as well.
“During All-Star Weekend, big corporate companies are going to show up and take over and throw their weight around, but the things I’m doing with adidas is a different approach.”
Tiffany’s and Arsham made a splash this week unveiling their collaboration ball — one of a few to touch down this weekend. Wilson collaborated with athlete empowerment platform Uninterrupted on a basketball and is offering this year’s 3-Point Contest Money Ball. The Uninterrupted ball will be at Wilson’s NBA Crossover booth and the Tiffany’s x Arsham ball will be at the StockX Factory in Downtown Cleveland and Tiffany’s in Woodmere, Ohio.
StockX chief marketing officer Deena Bahri sees All-Star Weekend as the “perfect opportunity” to highlight brands, athletes and creators, and Klarna CMO David Sandström shared a similar sentiment: “This convergence of sports, fashion and culture is most evident during All-Star Weekend so there was no better place to engage basketball’s biggest fans, on one of its biggest weekends, in the home state of Klarna’s U.S. headquarters,” he said.
Klarna, who is the official shopping partner for the Chicago Bulls, is hosting an interactive pop-up celebrating basketball’s fashion history at Cleveland Public Square. Visitors can vote on Chicago Bull Zach LaVine pre-game tunnel outfit; view game-worn Air Jordan IV sneakers from Jordan’s game-winning shot versus the Cavs in 1989; receive limited-edition merchandise designed by Sophia Chang, and participate in a giveaway for exclusive sneakers.
“Basketball is a natural fit for Klarna, as we sit at the intersection of culture and commerce and aspire to bring fans closer to the game they love,” Sandström added.