Ja Morant is Nike's next signature athlete

The imaginable breakup between Kyrie Irving and Nike officially happened, and now the athletic shoe brand is preparing to roll out its next star player, Ja Morant.

The Memphis Grizzlies’ young point guard signed a deal with Nike before getting drafted, and after living up to every expectation in the NBA, Nike is finally ready to give him his signature shoe.

On Monday (Dec. 5), NBA insider reporting for The Athletic, Shams Charania, tweeted that Morant and Nike have been in the works of releasing a sneaker for “several months now.”

The two parties had been getting ready for this moment since last summer since the point guard has been constantly visiting the Nike headquarters. Experts believe that the process of marketing and designing a new signature shoe takes close to, and sometimes more than, a year.

Well, according to a September report from Sole Retriever, Morant’s first shoe, The Nike Ja 1, is set to debut in the spring of 2023. The shoe will come in men’s and grade school sizing; the retail prices are set at $110 and $90, respectively.

For the launch of the Ja 1’s, Nike expects to release three colorways, coming in Phantom/Action Green, Cobalt Bliss/Citron Tint, and Game Royal/Black. Nike will release more information on the star’s signature sneaker as we get closer to 2023. That’s when fans should expect to see early looks at this upcoming Nike silhouette from Morant.

The young star will join Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Paul George as active players with signature Nike sneakers. Morant often wears Durant and Irving’s shoes, but since injuring his left ankle two weeks ago, he’s been sporting more high-top Kobe Bryant kicks.

Since entering the NBA, Morant has already won the Rookie of the Year and Most Improved Player of the year awards. He also made an All-Star Game appearance and an All-NBA Team selection last season.