The Oklahoma City Thunder’s star Canadian guard on Tuesday posted an Instagram story on which his personal insignia morphed into Nike’s logo. The athletic firm later confirmed it had recruited Gilgeous-Alexander to its endorser portfolio. (Bloomberg)

Talking point: Two-time reigning National Basketball Association (NBA) most valuable player (MVP) Gilgeous-Alexander (SGA) is switching shoemakers at a critical time for both brands. Converse sales are falling, and parent company Nike’s stock price has dropped by more than a quarter this year. As my colleague Catherine has chronicled, Canadian scientists and designers are core to the product development that’s meant to turn the firm around. Now, its critical basketball business will have a new Canadian face, joining the likes of Lebron James, Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Still, it’s a blow to Converse, which Nike usurped as top shoedog with the help of a certain Michael Jordan. SGA is swapping the All Star for the Swoosh just a year after launching his first signature sneaker, the Shai 001.