Most Popular Basketball Shoe Brands Worn By NBA Players in 2023

Using data from Kix Stats, the data analysts at Basketball Insiders have crunched the numbers to determine the most popular shoe brands in the NBA. Nike is still far and beyond the top choice among NBA players, followed by Adidas, and Jordan. The top three brands make up 86 percent of the shoes worn in the league this season.

Since signing Michael Jordan in 1984, Nike has been on top of the sneaker industry.

Nike has continued its dominance in the basketball world by inking the biggest NBA players to shoe deals to maintain leadership. Next to Jordan, Nike’s deal with LeBron James has become one of the most iconic deals in basketball history.

During the 2023 season, Nike was far and beyond the most popular brand worn by NBA players. In fact, Nike accounted for 67.2 percent of the shoes worn by NBA players this year. When combined with its Jordan line, Nike and Air Jordan covered nearly 75 percent of the NBA market.

Check out the highlights from the data below.

Nike Is The No.1 Brand Worn By NBA Players

Nike finished the regular season as the No.1 brand worn by NBA players but its stranglehold on the market has started to loosen ever so slightly.

Ever since the NBA removed its “shoe rules” in 2018, players have had the ability to wear any brand, color, and type of shoes on the court.

Yet, though players are signing with other companies like Adidas, Puma, and Under Armour, the Swoosh logo holds a special place in the NBA.

Nearly every player in the NBA has signed a deal with Nike or was an ambassador at some point during their basketball career and that seems to have played a role in its popularity throughout the league.

As a result, it comes as no surprise that Nike is the No.1 brand worn by NBA players. In total, 67.2 percent of the shoe choices made by NBA players incorporated the Swoosh logo.

There are three main ways of inking a deal with Nike. NBA players can sign a signature shoe deal, a cash deal, or a merchandise deal. Depending on the deal, Nike will incentivize players with extra perks and royalties based on certain incentives, like becoming an All-Star, reaching the playoffs, and more.

Aside from Nike, other brands like Adidas, Puma, Under Armour, and New Balance have also earned a share of the market. While it isn’t as popular on the court, Adidas is the second biggest brand in the NBA with 11.1 percent of players wearing the three stripes.

Check out the list below for the most popular shoes brands in the NBA.

1. Nike — 17,398 Players (67.2%)
2. Adidas — 2,873 Players (11.1%)
3. Jordan — 1,936 Players (7.5%)
4. Puma — 762 Players (2.94%)
5. Under Armour — 565 Players (2.18%)
6. New Balance — 517 Players (1.99%)
7. Anta — 512 Players (1.97%)
8. Li-Ning — 433 Players (1.67%)
9. Converse — 407 Players (1.57%)
10. 361° — 147 Players (0.56%)

Nike, Adidas, and Air Jordan Make Up 86% of the NBA Shoe Market

The three biggest shoe brands in the NBA are Nike, Adidas, and Jordan. For the 2022-2023 NBA season, the three brands combined to make up 85.8 percent of the shoe market.

In total, players wore one of these three brands for a combined 484,165 minutes or 83.1 percent of the total minutes played in the NBA this year.

All other shoe brands combined make up about 15 percent of the market or 16.9 percent of the minutes played. Those brands include names like New Balance, Puma, Under Armour, Anta, Li-Ning, Converse, and more.

Due to the high royalties in some China-backed companies, some players have elected to sign shoe deals for larger amounts of money with brands that aren’t as well-known in the US.

Chinese brands like Li-Ning, make up only a small percentage of the basketball shoe market but have signed players like Dwayne Wade, Jimmy Butler, and more to boost brand awareness. San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson has also signed his shoe deal with Qiaodan Sports, another Chinese apparel company.

Check out the top basketball shoes worn in the NBA, sorted total by minutes played.

1. Nike — 370,212 Minutes Played
2. Adidas — 69,909 Minutes Played
3. Jordan — 44,044 Minutes Played
4. Puma — 22,027 Minutes Played
5. New Balance — 15,072 Minutes Played
6. Under Armour — 13,093 Minutes Played
7. Anta — 12,191 Minutes Played
8. Converse — 11,685 Minutes Played
9. Li-Ning — 11,673 Minutes Played
10. 361° — 4,707 Minutes Played

Top NBA Shoes by Position

Perhaps one of the most interesting trends that emerged in the study was the position-by-position breakdown.

Fewer NBA guards (6.8 percent) wore Jordan than any other position. Meanwhile, Anta, the world’s third-largest shoe manufacturer behind Nike and Adidas, was more popular among forwards than more well-known brands like Puma, Under Armor, and New Balance.

Among the three NBA positions, guards, forwards, and centers, Nike was still the No.1 brand worn by players. In fact, 61.4 percent of NBA guards, 70.5 percent of forwards, and 73.3 percent of centers still chose to wear Nike-branded shoes.

The second-most popular shoe brand among all three positions was Adidas. For NBA guards, Adidas is worn 12 percent of the time. Meanwhile, forwards and centers chose to wear the shoes 9.5 percent and 10.2 percent, respectively.

Check out the shoe breakdown by position below.

Nike No.1 Brand Among Guards

1. Nike — 8155 Players (61.4%)
2. Adidas — 1599 Players (12%)
3. Jordan — 898 Players (6.8%)
4. Puma —514 Players (3.9%)
5. Under Armour — 479 Players (3.6%)
6. New Balance — 396 Players (2.97%)

Nike No.1 Brand Among Forwards

1. Nike — 10,052 Players (70.5%)
2. Adidas — 1356 Players (9.5%)
3. Jordan — 1203 Players (8.4%)
4. Anta —349 Players (3.9%)
5. Puma— 316 Players (2.2%)
6. New Balance — 247 Players (1.73%)

Nike No.1 Brand Among Centers

1. Nike — 3967 Players (73.3%)
2. Adidas — 550 Players (10.2%)
3. Jordan — 488 Players (9%)
4. Puma —161 Players (3%)
5. Under Armour — 84 Players (1.55%)
6. Anta — 78 Players (1.44%)