As the NBA is set to tip off its latest season, it boasts some of its highest levels of popularity since its inception. From the incredible sustained greatness of LeBron James and the three-point shooting skill of Steph Curry to the statistical marvel of Nikola Jokić, the NBA has maintained a level of relevance both in America and overseas. However, one legendary player who retired 20 years ago still stands tall as one of the biggest figures in the sport. Saying his name draws massive praise as well as debate over whether he is the greatest of all time. Enter Michael Jordan.

A large part of the NBA's popularity is because of the ascension of Michael Jordan. His competitive nature, immense skill, and aerial abilities captivated the sports world. However, a large part of the legend of Michael Jordan is his partnership with Nike to establish the Jordan brand. It started in 1985 with the Air Jordan 1 and the shoes an apparel are still relevant fixtures of fashion culture to this day.

However, many don't know that HBCUs, specifically North Carolina A&T, are a huge part of the story of the Jordan brand. Let's talk about the Jordan Brand's brief partnership with North Carolina A&T and how it set the path for the brand to secure apparel deals with college teams.

Michael Jordan

The Jordan-North Carolina A&T Link Up

As Michael Jordan was in the midst of his “last dance” with the Chicago Bulls, North Carolina A&T became one of three schools to have a collegiate athletic team outfitted with Jordan brand apparel. Per a September 1997 report by Greensboro News & Record, North Carolina A&T basketball joined the University of Cincinnati and St. John's University as the first three collegiate programs to ink a partnership with Jordan Brand. The teams were allocated with new uniforms, warm-up gear, and travel equipment.

The deal itself brought a lot of attention towards the three schools but the association with Michael Jordan's brand and the apparel and equipment were done in lieu of payment. Dr. Willie Burden, North Carolina A&T's then-athletic director, saw the deal as a win-win for both parties.

“We were hoping we would be part of this program, so we're delighted, We're confident that when everything is finalized, it will be a win-win situation with North Carolina A&T, Nike, and Mr. Jordan.”

A&T gave Jordan Brand an assist

Surely North Carolina A&T benefitted from the Jordan partnership. Their tie to Jordan Brand provided them a level of prestige and free media attention in association with Jordan's adept move to build upon his post-NBA career options. But, the Jordan Brand might've benefitted even more. Although Jordan was immensely successful on the court and his shoes were best-sellers, the NBA legend was spinning off the Jordan Brand (then called “Brand Jordan”) into its own independent business in partnership with Nike.

This was a new beginning for the brand. Now, they were no longer just selling consumer goods; they looked to create lucrative partnerships that would further elevate the company to new heights. Along with the partnership with North Carolina A&T, the University of Cincinnati, and St. John's University, he signed five fellow NBA players as his first class of “Brand Jordan” athletes: Vin Baker, Eddie Jones, Derek Anderson, Michael Finley, and Ray Allen.

Despite the popularity of Jordan and his shoes, Nike was losing market share in the shoe industry. Per a September 1997 report by the Washington Post, Nike looked to utilize their partnership with the now independent “Brand Jordan” to boost their bottom line. The Washington Post also reported that the Air Jordan product line was the fourth-highest-grossing athletic line trailing Reebok, Fila, and the entire line of Nike products in 1997. Jordan wasn't leading the pack in his latest venture. he was fighting for the top spot against what was then the big dogs of the industry, as he did early in his career versus the likes of Larry Bird's Celtics and Isaiah Thomas's Bad Boy Pistons.

The Jordan Brand benefited from its collaboration with North Carolina A&T, St. Johns, and Cincinnati by expanding its target market beyond professional athletes to include college teams and fans. The partnership allowed them to showcase their brand on a larger scale and reach a wider audience, further spreading awareness for the new brand and occupying a significant market share in college athletics. The plan surely helped as now Jordan Brand has several schools that are signed to apparel deals with them, such as Howard University.

The Aggies Created The Blueprint

North Carolina A&T was so satisfied with the partnership and its impacts that they signed an extension with Jordan Brand while also renaming the institution “Jordan University” for a day, per a September 2001 feature article from the Triad Business Journal. The institution expanded upon tier partnership with the Jordan Brand, getting an undisclosed financial and “in-kind” contribution and establishing four programs to enhance student life and benefit from the partnership even more.

“With our initial agreement, Jordan Brand sponsored our men's basketball team,” North Carolina A&T Chancellor James C. Renick said in September 2001 to the Chicago Tribune. “Now we have introduced four new initiatives and treated students to a day of fun and excitement.”

The four initiatives started after the extension of the partnership are:

  • The establishment of “The Jordan Lecture Series” which would feature a member of the Jordan brands serving as a guest lecturer addressing members of the North Carolina A&T community
  • A $1,200 grant that was used to start The Jordan Book Fund was begun through a $1,200 grant. No more details on the fund were available.?
  • North Carolina A&T would act as a hub for the Jordan Fundamentals grant program, offering grants to schools as a valuable resource center.
  • A student from N.C. A&T would be chosen to be a part of Nike's internship program in Portland, Oregon

The Aggies laid the foundation for how to approach partnerships of this magnitude, leveraging the relationship with the Jordan Brand to enhance student life and provide opportunities for the students as well as the community. It's certainly a model that should still be followed, as in recent years we've seen Steve Harvey's partnership with Alabama State and LeBron James do a similar deal for his brand with Florida A&M.

HBCU leaders should never be afraid to try new things. Identify possible opportunities for growth and sustainability within the respective mission and strategies of eh institutions and it could be fruitful. We must learn to embrace what is unconventional because that, in fact, is what often makes the experience we offer special. It's uniquely ours and we create our own rules and use the resources available to us to continue to maintain our relevance.