GAME 7 – Respect Is Earned

GAME 7 is an apparel brand for those who take great pride in performing under the most pressure-packed situations: when courage is paramount, true toughness is required, and RESPECT IS EARNED.

LOS ANGELES, June 18, 2010 Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant (R) drives to the basket during Game 7 of the 2010 NBA finals against Boston Celtics in Los Angeles, the United States, June 17, 2010. Los Angeles Lakers defeated Boston Celtics 83-79 and won NBA's Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy for the 16th time.


The inspiration behind the creation of GAME 7 occurred while walking into a shopping mall in the late-90s and seeing some product from a new basketball brand. Well, it was new to me anyway. I had been in Europe for three years playing ball, and during that time AND 1 had made its arrival.

I looked at some of their shirts and immediately knew I would never wear one. Not what I wanted to stand for. Where were the shirts for people that liked the pressure of true competition at the highest level? I searched the whole mall and couldn’t find any. Right then and there, I knew something had to be done. Shortly thereafter, GAME 7 was born.

Consider GAME 7 the opposite of AND 1. Instead of a brand built around disrespecting people during something that is not even a true athletic competition, a brand was built around the idea of stepping up when people are counting on you the most, when the stakes are the highest.

For comparison, you have bouncing the ball off of someone’s head in a playground vs. hitting a jump shot in the cauldron of GAME 7 in front of the whole world, with a whole city depending on you. That’s where you earn your respect.

It’s Sasha Vujacic hitting two free-throws with 11.7 seconds left in GAME 7, with the Lakers clinging to a two-point lead, to win an NBA championship. It’s James Worthy posting his only triple-double (36 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists) as a professional in GAME 7 of the 1988 NBA Finals to lead the Lakers over Detroit.

GAME 7 is where legends are born and the unworthy fade away. It’s the game that will be remembered for generations. When hundreds of games and thousands of minutes on the practice court come down to a span of just a few hours. GAME 7 represents the lack of tomorrow while forgetting about the past.

GAME 7 is about being someone that can be depended on, especially in the most adverse situations, in the ultimate arena for competition.

GAME 7 is as big as it gets.

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