The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. has introduced a collectible basketball jersey that honors New York Knicks head coach Larry Brown.
In 1964, Brown was a member of Akron's Goodyear Wingfoots, a basketball team of Goodyear associates that played in the National Amateur Athletic Union Basketball League. The team won the AAU National Championship.
Brown went on to become an Olympic gold medallist, an all-star professional player, a championship coach at both the college and professional levels and a member of basketball's Hall of Fame.
Goodyear's "throwback" Wingfoots game jersey has a white body with Goodyear-blue-and-gold trim and lettering in the style of the 1964 team. It features the number "44" worn by Brown during the championship season.
The shirt also has an approved AAU logo on the left shoulder strap, a wingfoot logo on the back collar, and the name "Brown" over the number on the back. It also comes with a basketball card-style tag, with a photo of Brown from his playing days in Akron and a brief history of the Wingfoots.
Brown's current team, the New York Knicks, is offering the jersey at a special price to those fans purchasing its creative mini-season-ticket plan, called "The Brown Seats."
A portion of the proceeds from sales of the jersey throughout the NBA
season will be donated to The Painted Turtle, a camp and family care
center in southern California for children with life-threatening
illnesses. Brown and his wife, Shelly, are two of the founders of The
Painted Turtle and serve on its board of directors.
The uniform shirt has been offered for sale at the NBA Store in New York City, and will be available during the NBA season at Madison Square Garden, Goodyear's gift shop in Akron, Ohio, and other locations. It is licensed by Academy Uniforms and Promotions of North Canton, Ohio.
