Fans of Long Beach Poly basketball didn’t need another reason to be excited about the upcoming high school hoops season, but they got one anyway. Last week, the program announced an endorsement deal with Jordan Brand, which will give the Jackrabbits a new look the next time they take the court.
Poly is set to roll out one of the most talented rosters in the state, led by consensus five-star recruit and UCLA signee Peyton Watson. Add in his younger brother Christian, key backcourt mate Anthony Robinson, and Pepperdine signee Jalen Pitre, and the Jackrabbits will be a must-see every night.
“The opportunity to wear that brand means a lot, and to represent the Jordan brand, it’s iconic,” said Poly Athletic Director Rob Shock. “Just seeing that Jumpman, they know what that means. It’s the same as seeing Poly and what that means. There’s a lot of tradition and legacy there. I would say it’s a great marriage and a great partnership.”
The partnership with Jordan Brand replaces the deal that Poly boys’ hoops had with adidas, which dates back to 2015. The move comes just one year after the Poly football program partnered with Nike, unveiling their gray Jordan Brand jerseys for their game at Wilson.
“For the past couple years (Jordan Brand) has been reaching out trying to get in with us,” said Poly boys’ basketball coach Shelton Diggs. “We had a really good adidas deal through Snoop and JuJu, and when that ended it just seemed like a good time to go over to Jordan. With Willie McGinest being involved with that and football being Jordan already, it just seemed to fall in line.”
Diggs said the team will have new gear to show off whenever the high school hoops season takes place, so any type of jersey reveal will be put on hold until then.
“We’ll have new uniforms and all that stuff,” Diggs stated. “It’s just good to be part of that Nike family. They’re the best of the best, so we’re just glad to be a part of that.”
The announcement was also conveniently timed, occurring the same day that UCLA announced its new Jordan Brand partnership, which will outfit its football and basketball programs. It doesn’t require much of an imagination to connect the dots between Poly, Peyton Watson, and UCLA. Listed as a Top 20 player in his class across all major recruiting sites, Watson is UCLA’s highest-rated recruit since Lonzo Ball in 2016. Watson expressed his excitement about the announcement on Twitter, retweeting and responding to multiple posts about the new Jordan sponsorships at both his current and future school.
“It adds a buzz and people are excited to see what comes out of it,” Shock said. “What are the uniforms going to look like, what are the shoes going to look like, it’s exciting news. We just hope we have an opportunity to suit up and play this year and represent that brand.”
