Goodyear is officially All In with the Cavs as the team looks to Defend the Land.
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and the Cleveland Cavaliers have inked a deal to add the Akron company’s iconic Wingfoot logo to the NBA team’s uniforms starting in the 2017-2018 season.
The team and tire maker also announced at a Monday afternoon news conference on the Cavs’ practice court inside of Quicken Loans Arena that they are donating $1 million — $500,000 to each district — for science, technology, engineering and math programs in the Akron and Cleveland public schools.
The announcement was made as the Goodyear blimp hovered over the Cleveland skyline with a Cavs logo on its side.
Goodyear Chairman, CEO and President Richard Kramer said the team logo on the blimp will be reserved for special occasions but the company’s commitment on the court will be a permanent part of the team’s jerseys starting next season.
Getting into the game is not a stretch for the company as it sponsored a team about 80 years ago and encouraged the development of professional basketball. The iconic Wingfoot logo was on the company-sponsored uniforms of the first champions in the old National Basketball League.
Goodyear’s partnership with the modern NBA and the Cavs continues with the company’s blimps providing aerial coverage to major games.
Kramer pointed out that since 2000 the blimp has flown over some 55 Cavs games.
“And one really, really big party,” Kramer said of the NBA championship game a year ago that attracted tens of thousands to downtown Cleveland.
Cavs CEO Len Komoroski said the team had a lot of suitors after the NBA announced last year that corporate sponsorship logos could be added to jerseys that will be designed by Nike next season.
But from the start, he said, Goodyear was the most attractive to the team and the players. The exact terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Goodyear has been supportive of Akronite LeBron James’ charitable efforts to keep Akron kids in the classroom by providing things like transportation for thousands of kids and their families to a fun day at Cedar Point to helping Santa and the NBA star’s foundation deliver toys.
Komoroski said it should be noted that when the NBA floated the idea of corporate logos on a game jersey it used the Wingfoot design as an example of what might work and make sense.
“The treads and threads of this partnership are real,” Komoroski said.
Team General Manager David Griffin said the announcement had special meaning for him. He has family ties to Akron and Goodyear: his grandfather who worked for the company.
He said growing up he remembers the iconic Wingfoot tire ashtray being on the table.
“In my family if you were trying to be successful, you had to be blimp-worthy,” he said.
Griffin added he had the thrill of his life last year when he got to take the Larry O’Brien championship trophy on a victory lap in the blimp over the Akron skyline.
He said it was important to find a partner that the players could buy into, too.
“We have players who are deeply involved with their communities,” Griffin said.
And that’s what makes the educational commitment special.
“This funding will help us expand our STEM curriculum and reach even more students,” Akron Superintendent David W. James said. “We are immensely grateful to the Cavaliers and Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.”
News of the partnership and samples of the logo were shared with the team at its practice facility Monday morning.
“Every Akron kid grew up seeing the Wingfoot in the sky on the blimp and feeling pride in our community,” said Akron native and Cavs All-Star LeBron James in a statement. “There is something special for me personally about having that logo on the Cavs uniform. Goodyear is also very supportive of the LeBron James Family Foundation. I can’t imagine a better situation with our new Cavs jersey than bringing together Nike and Goodyear, two companies that mean a lot to me and my family.”
At the Cavs’ practice Monday, Iman Shumpert admitted that it was initially difficult to accept the idea of adding a corporate partner’s logo “just because growing up you’re so used to seeing just the classic jersey.”
“But seeing how they’re doing it, understanding why they’re doing it and me, I kind of got the best of both worlds — I got to play in a jersey without it and I guess I’ll be one of the first ones to play with it. So, it’s part of it now and we’ll move from there,” he said.
Coach Tyronn Lue said the deal is good for the organization because the Goodyear brand has long been associated with pro sports.
As for the potential to ride in one of Goodyear’s blimps, Lue wasn’t quite as quick to get in line.
“No sir,” he said. “I’m too scared of that.”
Beacon Journal sports writer Marla Ridenour contributed to this report. Craig Webb can be reached at cwebb@thebeaconjournal.com or 330-996-3547.