Barnstormers sign Adidas deal
A few years ago as the Iowa Barnstormers were knocking off some of the top shoe company AAU programs around the country, their players were having some fun on social media with the hashtag #NoShoeContract.
It was a statement basically saying, we don’t have the lucrative shoe deal, but our guys are beating you on the court.
The Barnstormers will no longer need to use that hashtag on social media as they have signed a long term deal with Adidas to play in their Gold Division.
“This is what we wanted. We had talked to the other companies and had those conversations. At the end of the day, Adidas had the best operation and was the best fit for our kids and our program,” said Barnstormers program Co-Director Greg Stephen. “This will really give our program and the kids in our program at all levels much more exposure. We wanted to do right by all of our kids, not just the kids at the older levels of our program. “
Last year the Barnstormers were approached by the Adidas Grassroots folks to play in their Silver Division. It was the first step to earning the first full shoe contract from an Iowa based AAU program since 2012.
The silver division was a step below the gold and included about 30 teams from across the country. The 2018 and 2019 Barnstormers showed they belong right away during the April evaluation period and continued their winning ways all the way to the end of July.
“Our 2018 group, which includes Joe Wieskamp (Iowa commit), Joey Hauser (Iowa target), and A.J. Green, won their second event in the Silver in Atlanta and qualified for the championship in South Carolina in July and took fourth there and then lost in the championship game of the Adidas Summer Classic in Las Vegas,” Stephen said. “Our 2019 group, which is led by Patrick McCaffery, won their first event in the silver division in Dallas in April and finished 2nd in their event in Atlanta. They made it to the final four in the July event in South Carolina and in Vegas.”
That’s quite a resume to present to Adidas and every other shoe company that has come calling since the end of July.
The journey for the Barnstormers hasn’t been an easy one. The upstart program from Iowa has truly arrived on the big stage of AAU basketball. The multi-year contract they have signed with Adidas will provide their program with gear for their players, funds for travel to events around the country, and other benefits.
“Adidas came forward with a really good offer that would make us long term members of their circuit. They offered us the opportunity to be a part of their Gold Division, which is their highest division and they hook us up with some gear, help us with travel, and other things. It’s something we have been working towards for a long time, so it’s pretty cool,” Stephen said.
The journey to get to where they are today started back in 2005 with Stephen and Co-Director Jamie Johnson. It was a labor of love of basketball for them from the very beginning. Not looking for personal financial gain, but to provide high school basketball players in the state of Iowa an opportunity. Through the years that has included outstanding players like Jarrod Uthoff, Josh Oglesby, Seth Tuttle, Connor McCaffery, Devonte Lane, Brennan Cougill, and Kaylon Williams.
The present day players are now going to reap the rewards of their own hard work and the long van rides around the Midwest taken by the players, coaches, and parents before them.
“We go from a bunch of tournaments around the Midwest and in the state of Iowa, traveling around in mini vans and stuff like that with the help of our parents to flying to bigger events around the country. This is a really big opportunity for our kids to play against some of the best AAU teams in the country and also to be seen by a lot of coaches around the country. It has been a journey for us for sure, but it’s been a great journey,” Stephen said.
Starting this spring the Barnstormers will be competing at the highest level of the Adidas Grassroots circuit against teams from California to New York and everywhere in-between. They will likely start this journey in either Dallas or Los Angeles in April, followed by a trip to Atlanta and then hopefully another trip to South Carolina in July. Then they will wrap up the month of July with their annual trip to Las Vegas to play in the Adidas Summer Championship.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Barnstormers Co-Director Jamie Johnson. “It shows that we have one of the top programs in the country and it’s nice to be recognized by a major company like Adidas. I think I speak for all of us in our program when I saw we are excited to hit the circuit this spring and see how far we can take it and represent the state of Iowa on the national scene.”
For more information on the Iowa Barnstormers, you can visit their website at www.barnstormersbasketball.com.