High-school hoops prodigy Mikey Williams is cashing in. Williams, a junior at Charlotte’s Vertical Academy, has signed a multi-year pact with Puma, according to ESPN’s Nick DePaula. The 6’2” guard is believed to be the first American high-school player to score an endorsement deal with a global athletic and apparel company.
Rated as the No. 11 player in the Class of 2023, Williams has garnered scholarship offers from at least 10 Division 1 programs including blue-bloods Kansas, USC, Memphis and Arizona State. Of course, Williams could pursue other opportunities, bypassing college in favor of the G League or playing overseas. In addition to being one of the most talented prep players in America, Williams also commands over five million combined social media followers on Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.
Williams said he chose Puma over other brands because they share his passion for mixing basketball and culture. Few have benefited more from the NIL revolution (the result of a groundbreaking Supreme Court ruling handed down this summer) than Williams, who recently joined Excel Sport Management—the same agency that reps NBA All-Stars Nikola Jokic, Kevin Love and Blake Griffin—becoming the first high-school player to hire representation.
Though sneaker giants Nike (and the Jordan brand in particular), Adidas, UnderArmour and Reebok have traditionally dominated the hoops landscape, Puma has gained traction in that realm, landing Deandre Ayton, LeMelo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, DeMarcus Cousins and Michael Porter Jr., among other high-profile clients. Through his entrepreneurial endeavors, Williams has emerged as a pioneer of sorts, becoming the face of the new NIL Era in sports, allowing amateur athletes to profit off their name, image and likeness without forfeiting their high-school or college eligibility. A native of San Diego, the earliest Williams could enter the NBA Draft is 2024.
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