Dwyane Wade entered the National Basketball Association (NBA) draft in 2003, and was selected fifth in the first round draft by the Miami Heat. He emerged as one of the best young players in the NBA within his first three seasons of the league. Wade plays guard for the Miami Heat and with his team won the 2006 NBA Championship (Newsmakers Cumulation, 2011). As Wade’s career began to take off in basketball, so did his endorsement deals. Wade appeared in his first commercial for Converse sneakers in early 2005. Later that fall, he signed a deal to become Converse’s primary endorser and face of the brand. As a result, Wade was soon able to create his own signature shoe for Converse. Some of Wade’s other significant endorsement deals were with Warren Henry Motors, Gatorade, and McDavid Hex Pad. By 2007, Wade’s endorsement income was estimated around $12 million with deals specifically with Converse, Gatorade, Topps, and Lincoln Cars (Arango, 2008). The most popular endorsement that many affiliated him with was T-Mobile. T-Mobile signed Wade as an endorser to help the wireless carrier design a limited-edition Sidekick, the texting device/cell phone (Sports Biz, 2007).
Recently, Freedman (2011) noted that Wade’s salary/winnings for the 2011 calendar year is about $14.2 million. On the other hand, his endorsements are estimated at $14 million, which puts Dwyane Wade’s total revenue income at $28.2 million (Freedman, 2011). One of Wade’s current endorsement deals is with McDavid’s Hex Pad performance apparel and sports medicine products. Wade has worn company’s products since 2005 and has decided to re-up his endorsement deal with the company (Associated Press, 2011). Another recent endorsement deal was when Wade signed a 3 year contract with Nike’s Jordan Brand, which is estimated at $36 million (Fraser, 2009). Wade is also known as the most recent endorser for Hublot Watches, the Swiss watch company (Yuscavage, 2011). 
Pedersen, Miloch, and Laucella (2007) stated that athletes endorse products that maintain their current brand image and enhance it. In relation to Wade, his endorsement deals match the character that he is trying to portray. He is one of the leading faces in the NBA and reaches out to all types of people from all around the world. Wade is one of the most marketable players in the NBA that is trying to establish a global brand that not only matches his skills on the court, but outside as well. Wade chooses to endorse products that advance him to the next level, which is why he is now an endorser for Nike’s Jordan Brand. Wade has a very clean image that makes him a role model for young children and even peers his age. As a result of his clean image and good character, Wade is able to raise any amount of money for organizations that he partners with. For example, Wade has co-headlined Zo’s Summer Groove, a huge charity weekend event in Miami, which has made an enormous amount of money due to Wade’s appearance and involvement with the event (Moore, 2011). Moore (2011) stated that “it was a smart move by Mourning and the event’s promoters to put Wade as the headliner to cash in on his status as a current All-Star” (p. 1).References
Arango, T. (2008). Top 10 endorsement superstars. Estimated endorsement income for 2007 among American pro athletes. Retrieved from http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/fortune/0711/gallery.endorsements.fortune/10.html
Associated Press. (2011). Dwyane Wade re-ups deal with McDavid. Retrieved from http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/truehoop/miamiheat/news/story?id=6043409
Fraser, A. (2009). Miami Heat star Wade lands new Nike contract. Retrieved from http://www.sportspromedia.com/news/miami_heat_star_wade_lands_new_nike_deal/
Freedman, J. (2011). The 50 highest-earning American athletes. Retrieved from http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/specials/fortunate50-2011/index.html
Moore. M. (2011). Lockout impacts Wade’s involvement in huge charity event, Zo’s Summer Groove. Retrieved from http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/06/25/lockout-takes-wade-out-of-huge-charity-event-zos-summer-groove/
Newsmakers Cumulation. (2011). Dwyane Wade. Retrieved from http://www.notablebiographies.com/newsmakers2/2007-Pu-Z/Wade-Dwyane.html
Photograph of Michael Jordan and Dwyane Wade. Retrieved from http://coralannedesigns.blogspot.com/2010/08/eoc-week-5-ad-categories.html
Pedersen, P. M., Miloch, K. S., & Laucella, P. C. (2007). Strategic sport communication. Champaign, Illinois: Human Kinetics.
Sports Biz. (2007). Building a megabrand named Dwyane. How Dwyane Wade of the Head is rewriting the rules of sports marketing. Retrieved from http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_07/b4021082.htm
Video of Dwyane Wade MyTouch Commercial. Retrieved from http://youtu.be/UFodZ1wzl4A
Yuscavage, C. (2011). Dwyane Wade endorses Hublot watches. Retrieved from http://www.complex.com/sports/2011/02/dwyane-wade-endorses-hublot-watches
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