Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
Earlier this week, Adidas announced the men’s and women’s basketball teams at the University of Indiana would be taking to the court in the latest batch of jerseys stemming from a collaboration with the fashion label Fear of God. However, the Hoosiers have announced that will not be the case—and Kanye West is seemingly to blame.
Adidas has a tendency to whip up limited-edition uniforms for some of the college basketball teams that wear its apparel, which are usually donned for a few games in the second half of the season. This year, Kansas, Miami, and Indiana were tapped to rock the ones that were created in conjunction with Fear of God, the streetwear brand Jerry Lorenzo created in 2011.
Both of those companies have worked together for a while, but there’s also another thread that unites them: Kanye West.
I feel like most people know Adidas threw its support behind the rapper’s Yeezy brand, which turned out to be a very lucrative venture for the company. However, it severed the relationship in 2022 (and lost a ton of money in the process) after West started making the anti-Semitic statements that have essentially become his standard operating procedure.
The multihyphenate who’s gone Full Nazi in recent months was also a key figure in the rise of Fear of God, and he frequently worked with Lorenzo before they drifted apart in 2016. In 2023, the label’s founder caught some heat for saying Adidas “ain’t the same without” Kanye, but his former collaborator called him “corny and disloyal” while accusing him of ripping off his designs during a rant last month.
It would subsequently be a stretch to say either Adidas or Lorenzo has a positive relationship with West as things currently stand, but according to University of Indiana sports media student Ian Plaskoff, the school has announced its basketball teams will not be wearing the aforementioned jerseys while implying the decision stems from issues with Fear of God.
The direct statement from the athletic department on the Fear of God uniform debut being shut down:
“Indiana’s men’s and women’s basketball programs will not be wearing the Fear of God uniform design in any upcoming games. IU will continue to proudly wear Adidas apparel,…
— Ian Plaskoff (@ian_plaskoff) February 21, 2025
Plaskoff initially asserted the decision stemmed from “the brand’s association with Kanye West amid his recent antisemitic actions” in a now-deleted tweet, and the school has declined to offer any additional insight into the decision as of this writing.
The jerseys in question were roundly dragged by fans who were not exactly enamored with the design, so while some conspiracy theorists have framed this as an excuse to get out of wearing them, that seems like a bit of a stretch.
With that said, there’s no evidence that suggests Adidas and Fear of God are currently on good terms with West, so it’s hard not to be a bit puzzled by this move.