NBA star Gilbert Arenas was never one to play by the book — and that includes how he negotiated his sneaker deals. In 2007, the NBA star pulled off an extravagant business power move: He threw a “$2 million” birthday party for 7,500 people to boost his popularity and leverage a massive shoe contract with Adidas.
The Party, The Plan
Arenas appeared on an April 9 episode of “The Underground Lounge,” a sports and entertainment podcast by former NBA guard Lou Williams and comedian Spank Horton. When asked about the party, he said, “Adidas said I wasn’t popular enough, so I said to myself, ‘Damn, how do I became famous.’” He said he went to a marketing group to brainstorm. Among the various ideas — which included showing off more of his physique — was the party idea.
At the time, Arenas was already a two-time All-Star, but Adidas only had him on a modest $100,000 deal and offered to raise it to $500,000. Arenas believed he was worth a lot more. The solution? Make himself so famous that Adidas couldn’t ignore him.
Arenas has recounted the story before. On his “No Chill” podcast in 2022, he went into more detail. Though at the time, he said the party cost $1 million.
“I’m like, ‘I’m worth $2 million,’” Arenas recalled on No Chill. “So I’m gonna throw a birthday bash.” Inspired by stories of Vince Carter’s mother throwing ballot-stuffing parties, Arenas decided to throw a party big enough to sway fan All-Star votes — and the perception of his star power.
Talking about his negotiations with Adidas, he said on No Chill “At this point, I’m asking for $2 million so they’re like, ‘Yeah, we’re gonna give you an eight-year, $2 million a year contract.’ I’m like, ‘I knew they was gonna do this,’ and got up and walked out. This is how everyone gets messed up because you turn down guaranteed money.”
“They want to know what do you think you’re worth,” said Arenas recalling on No Chill a conversation with his agent. “So I’m confused; I get to make up my own number? He said, ‘Yeah, what do you think you’re worth?’ Man, tell them like 40.”
Arenas went all out for the party, which was held on Jan. 5 — the day before his birthday — at a Washington nightclub. He secured performances from heavy hitters including Diddy, Lil Wayne, T.I., The Game, Busta Rhymes, and Doug E. Fresh. Once he locked in Diddy, the rest fell into place. To make the event even more exclusive, he partnered with American Express to create custom black card invitations.
The result? A legendary party that Arenas barely got to enjoy because he was too busy managing it all. But it worked, especially in the NBA All-Star Game voting that season.
The publicity boost helped lift him past Vince Carter in All-Star voting, beating him by just fan 3,010 votes and securing a starting spot alongside Dwyane Wade on the Eastern Conference team. That spike in popularity gave him the upper hand in negotiations with the sneaker giant.
Adidas eventually gave in, offering Arenas the $2 million per year he asked for. But Arenas didn’t stop there, he negotiated it up to $5 million per year over eight years, locking in a $40 million deal the month after the party.
“Basically I threw a $2 million party to get $40 million,” he told his “Underground Lounge” hosts.
Despite this marketing plan and securing the deal, by 2010 it was gone. That year, Arenas pleaded guilty to felony gun charges and in the process had to forfeit his coveted Adidas contract. Found with an unloaded firearm in the Washington Wizards locker room, Arenas believed that pleading guilty would help him avoid jail and court proceedings. Arenas accepted a sentence of probation, time in a halfway house, community service, and an NBA suspension.
He did later reunited with Adidas. Aidas recently revived the Gil Zero shoe in 2022, under the name Adidas Agent Gil Restomod.
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