China’s Nike, Li-Ning, signs Dwyane Wade

Sole Collector has an exclusive interview up about NBA superstar Dwyane Wade starting his own line of basketball sneakers with Li-Ning.

Aside from discussing Wade’s plans with his own brand, harkening back to almost two years ago when he commissioned a designer to create a logo for his name, it also talks a little bit about his views on being on a Chinese brand:

Obviously, I’m very comfortable and confident in the product that I put on my feet. Unfortunately, the consistent sense is that Chinese shoes are cheap. Well, every shoe is made at the same manufacturers in China. Every shoe comes from the same place and from similar materials. Hopefully that perception will make its way out the door and we can put out good product and fashionable product that people will want to represent.

Read the full interview here.

The site also notes, in their profile of Li-Ning, that it came onto the US basketball scene in 2005-2006 when it signed the little known Baron Davis and the better known Shaquille O’Neil.

Photo credit: Sole Collector.