The Steph Curry Effect: Why an NBA icon is closing in on a historic move to China’s Anta

Anta began entering the NBA market in 2007 by signing role players, but soon escalated with marquee names like Kevin Garnett in 2010. Those early deals paved the way for more ambitious partnerships.Curry’s teammate on the Golden State Warriors Klay Thompson joined Anta in 2014 after leaving Nike, later signing a 10-year, US$80 million extension and eventually a lifetime deal. “Anta was taking a chance on me, and I was taking a chance on them. It was a match made in heaven,” he told the media at that time. The partnership has since moved over 10 million signature pairs, and in 2026, signed a lifetime agreement with the brand. In 2023, Anta signed another NBA champion, Kyrie Irving – after his split from Nike – and appointed him chief creative officer of Anta Basketball. “The first step in becoming partners is to share the same dreams, goals, and missions,” Irving noted.

Meanwhile, Li-Ning has taken a parallel path. Its landmark 2012 signing of Dwyane Wade—walking away from Converse and Jordan—has evolved into a lifetime deal and the popular “Way of Wade” sneaker line. “This was something I needed to do… to build a legacy for myself and my family,” Wade explained. Other stars have followed: Jimmy Butler left Adidas and Jordan to sign with Li-Ning, while CJ McCollum also joined the roster. What began as a trickle has become a steady stream, signalling a broader shift in the global basketball sneaker game.

In sheer scale and ambition, Anta has become the standard-bearer of China’s sportswear rise. Often dubbed the “Nike of China”, Anta is indeed a domestic powerhouse – it operates over 12,000 stores (including subsidiaries like Fila) and has dominated China’s sportswear market in recent years. In fact, Anta overtook Nike in total China sales for the first time in 2022 and has held that lead since. The company’s revenues hit ¥70.8 billion in 2024 (roughly US$10.2 billion), a 13.6% jump from the previous year. While that’s still a fraction of Nike’s ~$46 billion global revenue, it signals that Anta’s strategy is paying off at home.

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Now, the brand’s sights are set far beyond home turf. “We don’t want to be the Nike of China, but the Anta of the world,” declared Anta’s chairman Ding Shizhong, outlining his global ambitions. Those ambitions aren’t just talk: Anta has invested heavily abroad, even acquiring a major US$ 1.8 billion stake in Puma in 2026,  and previously buying brands like Wilson and Salomon via its Amer Sports subsidiary. Crucially, Anta and Li-Ning are leveraging NBA stars to boost their international credibility. Irving’s partnership, for example, has seen Anta blend performance with culture – the brand launched a fashion-meets-sportswear collection with Kyrie at New York Fashion Week, showcasing how a Chinese sneaker company can play on a global style stage.

The cultural significance of this shift is not lost on observers. In China, having home-grown brands endorsed by world-class athletes is a point of pride, a sign that Chinese companies can compete head-to-head with Western icons. Globally, we’re witnessing a change in perception: where once a Chinese sneaker might have been dismissed by sneakerheads, today it carries cachet if it’s backed by the likes of Klay Thompson or Kyrie Irving. The influence flows both ways – NBA stars are learning to appreciate the massive Chinese fanbase and aesthetic, while Chinese brands are incorporating global design trends and athlete input to craft products that resonate worldwide. The result is an East-meets-West blend in sneaker culture, where a signature shoe might take inspiration from Beijing street fashion as much as from NBA lore.

What does the future hold for Chinese brands in the NBA? In the next 5-10 years, expect their footprint to continue expanding in both the literal and figurative sense. More big-name players could join the trend if Curry indeed signs with Anta – a move that would have been almost unthinkable a decade ago. Such endorsements go beyond just business. They represent a collision of lifestyle, culture, and commerce: we see athletes not only wearing a shoe but taking on roles like creative designer, camp ambassador, and cultural bridge-builder. Irving’s Anta deal, for instance, includes running youth basketball camps in both China and the U.S. and recruiting collaborators from music, art, and activism, illustrating how sneaker partnerships now span far wider than footwear alone.

Meanwhile, Nike and Adidas—the long-time Goliaths—are unlikely to cede ground without a fight. Nike still outfits a majority of NBA players and maintains an aura of dominance (a reality reinforced by lifetime contracts with icons like LeBron James and Kevin Durant). But the balance of power is slowly shifting. Greater China has been Nike’s weakest region recently, and Chinese brands are seizing the moment to advance on both innovation and storytelling. We may soon see Chinese companies sponsoring NBA events, opening flagship stores in major U.S. cities, or signing collegiate and grassroots deals to nurture the next generation of athletes.

In the lifestyle realm, the cross-pollination continues. Sneaker culture, once driven largely by American brands and retro Michael Jordan lore, is becoming truly global. It’s now just as plausible for a teen in Los Angeles to covet Kyrie’s Anta collaboration or Wade’s Li-Ning “Way of Wade” model as it is to chase the latest Air Jordan. As Anta’s chairman hinted, the goal isn’t to imitate Nike within China, but to create an identity that stands tall worldwide. If current trends hold, by the early 2030s Chinese sneaker makers could be as much a part of NBA lore as the Oregon-based giant that ruled the last few decades.

In the end, this evolution is about more than sneakers—it’s about culture and confidence. A new generation of NBA stars is embracing partnerships that would once have been considered bold detours, and in doing so, they are broadening the definition of what a “global sports brand” can be. The collision of lifestyle, culture and business in the sneaker space is producing some fascinating pairings, and the NBA is the perfect stage. A perfect example of this is Nikola Jokic, (arguably the best player in the basketball world), who has been wearing Chinese company ‘361’ shoes since 2023. Today, it’s speculation around Steph Curry and Anta; tomorrow, it might be another superstar forging an alliance in Beijing or Shanghai. The game—and the game behind the game, the sneaker business—is changing fast, and all stakeholders, from athletes to fans to fashionistas, are along for the ride. Chinese brands have truly arrived in the NBA universe, and their story is only just beginning.

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