Making History With Michael Jordan’s $3.01 Billion Brand, Kiki Rice Ecstatically Shouts Out Hometown

UCLA Bruins guard Kiki Rice is having a Cloud-9 moment. Impressing this season with an average game performance of 13.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.4 assists, Rice has set new career benchmarks. But her feats aren’t restricted to court alone. She has now made history with her recent collaboration with Air Jordan.

Embarking on a new journey, Jordan Brand’s collaboration with Kiki is a significnat milestone for both as she is the first in this. Also, it shows the brand’s committing support for young talents who are trailblazing in both sports and fashion.

Kiki Rice made a colorful mark

The UCLA Bruins guard is pumping up in colorful kicks, now that her name has become a part of sneaker history. Notably, Rice has become the first-ever NIL athlete for Jordan Brand to have a PE (Player Exclusive). Jordan Brand designed the Air Jordan’s ‘Cherry Blossom’ colorway for Kiki Rice.

In her recent Instagram post, Kiki shared a video in which she is unboxing her new and very own Air Jordan 38 Low ‘Cherry Blossom’ colorway saying, “These are Sick!!”. The post is captioned – “I’m so excited to share my first player edition shoe with Jordan Brand – the Air Jordan 38 Low “Cherry Blossom.” It’s an absolute honor to be the first Jordan Brand NIL athlete to receive a PE, and I can’t wait for my teammates and coaches to rock it with me in the future!….Shout out to The District, my hometown!!”

In the video, Kiki talks about the origins of the PE’s design and how it depicts the spring in D.C. saying, “Growing up in D.C., everyone always would look up to the springtime and cherry blossoms would bloom and just be able to see all the incredible colors and the flowers and everything. So, I thought that’ll be kinda huge, kinda big testament to D.C. cause its something so unique to that area. I love the colorway throughout the shoe. The pink and blue and how it’s gradient, and I think it just looks super pretty. It means so much to me to be the first Jordan Brand and an NIL athlete with a PE. I mean, growing up I look forward to wearing the shoes that my favorite players design and I think, for me, it is a really really big moment and I am excited to tour up in these shoes.”

As Kiki elaborated, the Air Jordan 38’s ‘Cherry Blossom’ colorway has been inspired by the cherry blossoms that annually bloom in Washington D.C. The sneaker features a cherry blossom graphic on the tongue top and a floral pattern that embodies the sock liner.

Moreover, the blended gradients of pink and blue colors featured on the underfoot sole give a mesmerizing idea of blooming cherry blossoms with the backdrop of magnificent blue skies. Moreover, the embroidered Jumpman logo features on the back right heel, whereas, ‘KIKI’ appears on the left heel.

However, these shoes will not be hitting retail at any capacity, as reported by SneakerNews. The shoes have been made especially for Kiki, but each UCLA women’s basketball player and members of the staff will be recieving the pairs eventually.

Read More: Outperforming with UCLA, All You Need to Know About Kiki Rice’s Athletic Background

But, where did she wear those?

Rice showing off her unique Jordan Brand

Honoring her hometown of Washington D.C., on Sunday morning, Kiki Rice took over the reigns with a personal endorsement. Notably, she debuted her new shoes Air Jordan 38 Low ‘Cherry Blossom’ colorway during a matchup aganst the Stanford Cardinals.

Benefitting from her NIL, Kiki has already made history by becoming the first-ever NIL athlete for Jordan Brand, marking the brand’s first step into the NIL territory. And it all started in October 2022, when Rice was gifted a pair of Jordan shoes to every student-athlete on the Bruins’ roster.

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Fortunately, as a part of the deal, Rice has been able to represent the brand both on and off the court, as UCLA is one of the 6 college programs to have a partnership with Air Jordan. Majorly, this partnership between Rice and Jordan Brand focusses mainly upon gender equity.