NBA stars coming to town?

Newly-contracted Converse endorsers Wally Szczerbiak and Andre Miller, mainstays of the X-Generation in the National Basketball Association (NBA), may invade Manila this summer to spread the gospel of their latest discovery.

That’s the buzz from Rellie de Leon of Filcon Manufacturing Corp., Converse’s exclusive distributor in the Philippines. Rellie says Filcon is taking the initiative to invite the NBA hotshots here, hoping to duplicate the success of the Kevin Johnson tour in 1995.

K.J., who pitched for Converse until his retirement from the majors two years ago, blazed the Philippine trail for other NBA stars to follow. After Johnson’s trip here, several NBA luminaries flew in on promotional tours. Reebok brought in Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson. Adidas sent Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady, and Tim Thomas. Fila rolled out the red carpet for Grant Hill twice–first, by himself, and second, with his singer-wife Tamia Washington. Nike raised the roof with Boston Celtics superstar Paul Pierce.

Rellie says Converse underwent an ownership reconstruction last year and is now ready to take on the so-called giants of the global multi-billion dollar sports apparel and footwear industry.

On the local front, Rellie says Converse is set to reemerge as a major player after laying low the last two years. Converse is scouting for five to 10 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) stars to sign up as endorsers–up-and-coming X-Generation prospects in the mold of Szczerbiak and Miller.

Of all the shoe brands, Rellie says Converse is still the sentimental favorite of hoop junkies. He remembers a former Philippine national coach used to bring in pairs Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars for his players whenever he came from the US. Those players swear by Converse to this day, notes Rellie, even as they’re now retired and some have gone on to coaching.

Converse started as a small New England maker of rubber footwear in 1908. The founding fathers were hard-working entrepreneurs who closely linked company and community. The Converse Rubber Shoe Company set up its factory in the Edgeworth section of Malden, Massachusetts.

Charles (Chuck) Taylor, barely out of his teens, joined the Converse staff in 1921 and revolutionized the method of marketing sports shoes. Taylor, a 1918 graduate of Columbus, Indiana, high school, and an All-State prep star, had long suffered from poorly designed shoes that left his feet sore and blackened his toenails. He convinced Converse executives to develop a line of footwear especially designed for basketball. Taylor conducted the first basketball clinic of record in 1922 at North Carolina State and in 1931, designed the Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars– in black or white, low or high tops.

Taylor became known as basketball’s No. 1 goodwill ambassador. He used to travel over 60,000 miles a year and introduced Converse to markets in Europe and the Americas. During World War II, he served as a US Air Force captain and coached service teams. After the war, Converse canvas basketball shoes sold like hotcakes. Leather shoes later became the staple. Up to 1968, Converse was the official shoe of the Olympic basketball tournament. And Julius Erving took the leather high-tops flying above the rim. By 1994, over a half billion Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars had been sold in the world. Millions were bought by youngsters who just wanted to look cool as the shoes had become available in bright colors, too.

Taylor was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1969–the year he passed away at the age of 67.

In 1999, Converse tried to infuse new blood in its endorsers corps by inking NBA veterans Karl Malone and John Starks. It had previously signed up Dennis Rodman. But contracts were put on hold last year as Converse was sold to a new group of financial titans.

Rellie says the signing of Szczerbiak and Miller is the start of a fresh campaign to bring Converse back to the top of the sports shoe ladder.

Szczerbiak and Miller are both 25. They’re young, athletic, and bursting with talent.

Szczerbiak was one of six West All-Stars to score in double figures at the All-Star Game last month and is averaging 19.1 points (shooting 50.8 percent from the field, 47.7 percent from three-point range, and 82.2 percent from the line) in 59 games so far for Minnesota this season. The Timberwolves are 40-19 and a cinch to make it to the playoffs. The 6-7, 245-pound forward was born in Madrid to a former Spanish league import, Walt, and a Spanish mother. He speaks Spanish fluently and joined Miller on the US hoop squad that captured the gold medal at the 1998 Goodwill Games.

Miller, a high school football quarterback and a sociology degree holder from the University of Utah, is averaging 16.8 points in 58 games so far for Cleveland this campaign. The 6-2, 200-pound guard is a blur on the floor, a deadshot from outside, a slippery penetrator, and a flashy passer. Last Feb. 28, Miller hit a last-second trey to force overtime then shot eight of his career-high 37 points in the extra period to power the Cavs to a come-from-behind 114-107 win over San Antonio in an NBA game. Curiously, Szczerbiak’s career high is also 37 points.

Szczerbiak and Miller are out to show that their latest discovery, Converse, is the key to the surge in their NBA careers. Rellie insists he’s convinced it’s so.