ANTA x Klay Thompson: Lifetime Partnership Officially Announced
Los Angeles—the City of Stars—welcomes a landmark moment as the 2026 NBA All-Star Weekend officially tips off. At the same time, ANTA opens its first-ever North American flagship store in Beverly Hills.
During the event, ANTA officially announced a lifetime partnership with ANTA Basketball athlete Klay Thompson—marking the first lifetime endorsement agreement in ANTA Basketball history as announced by ANTA Brand CEO Samuel Xu.
To honor Thompson’s outstanding contribution to ANTA Basketball, ANTA unveiled a special KT11 Player Edition—“Make it Forever”—on the day of signing. Inlaid with diamonds, the design symbolizes an enduring partnership and celebrates a journey of mutual growth and achievement.
To date, the ANTA KT signature line has evolved to its 11th generation, producing multiple fan-favorite classics. The line’s growth parallels the golden era of rapid advancement in China’s performance basketball footwear and has become a landmark IP representing the maturation of domestic professional basketball shoes.
Looking ahead, Thompson will be among the first to wear new footwear featuring ANTA’s most advanced technologies. His exclusive apparel line will also undergo a bold, transformative style shift.
From 2015 to 2026, ANTA and Klay Thompson have walked together for 12 years—creating memorable moments and setting the benchmark for partnerships between Chinese brands and international stars.
Soon after signing with Anta, Thompson captured the first of four NBA championships of his career with the Warriors, helping propel his rise to NBA Superstardom.
Over the past 12 years, while wearing Anta, Thompson has delivered some of the most iconic performances in NBA history including 37-points in a single quarter, 60 points in 29 minutes (while taking only 11 dribbles), and setting the NBA record for three pointers in a game with 14. His clutch performances in the playoffs, which helped lead the Warriors to six straight Finals appearances, earned him the nickname “Game 6 Klay”. Considered one of the best shooters in the history of the game, Thompson recently moved into fourth place in all-time three-point field goals made and will likely pass Ray Allen for third sometime next season.
ANTA has been by Thompson’s side throughout—witnessing five All-Star selections and four NBA championships and capturing the full arc of his career from age 24 to 36. Over the same period, ANTA sustained strong growth—cementing its position as a leading sportswear brand in China and emerging as a major player on the global stage.
Thompson has visited China multiple times and is affectionately known among fans as “China Klay.” He has created many memorable moments and used his influence to encourage broader participation in streetball, helping fuel the growth of grassroots basketball culture in China.
Going forward, he will continue working with ANTA to support youth basketball development and inspire more young people to reach higher stages and pursue their dreams.
The lifetime partnership marks a new stage of collaboration. On the signing day, ANTA’s first North American flagship store officially opened in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles.
The store serves as a core window for ANTA’s deepening presence in North America and a bridge to consumers worldwide. It also signals a new phase of systematic execution for ANTA’s globalization strategy—strengthening international influence and global awareness.
The ANTA–Thompson partnership carries long-term significance. For years, ANTA has focused on enabling mass participation through professional technology—delivering high-quality, high-performance basketball gear for enthusiasts.
Thompson holds strong influence in grassroots basketball culture in China and worldwide. His approachable and pragmatic persona aligns closely with ANTA’s brand philosophy of serving the mass sports market and consumers.
In the future, the two parties will continue to promote basketball globally through new products and IP, helping advance the reach and development of basketball culture on a broader world stage.
