And 1

From Solepedia.com - Online Sneaker Encyclopedia

Shoes

General Information

And 1 is an athletic shoe manufacturer specializing in basketball shoes and apparel. Founded in 1993, its US headquarters are located in Paoli, Pennsylvania.

The company derives its name from a phrase popular with basketball broadcasters. When a player is fouled while shooting, makes the shot, and is awarded a free throw to add another point, a broadcaster might say "And 1!".

The company maintains its cheeky image with its trash talk t-shirts, labelled with such slogans as "I'm going to the rack now, tell your mom I'll be over later", "shut your mouth unless you want a taste" and "get up so I can bust you again".

And 1 maintains a team of the best streetballers in the world, such as Helicopter, Main Event, Half-Man Half-Amazing, The Professor and AO. Every year, all the best players of the And 1 team tour America trying to recruit the next streetball legend. While doing so, they compile a video "mix tape" of the most skilled performances they encounter at the games they hold. This is released on DVD and VHS each year, which has spun off onto a series called "Street Ball" that airs on ESPN and ESPN 2.

The video game AND 1 Streetball will feature all the And 1 players and be out for Playstation 2 and Xbox in March of 2006.

And 1 sponsors athletes including Jason Williams and streetball legend Rafer 'Skip To My Lou' Alston, who now plays for the Houston Rockets.