SHANGHAI – NBA China and Dongfeng Nissan announced today a new multiyear marketing partnership that will make Dongfeng Nissan the official automotive partner of NBA China.

The announcement was made during a press conference in Shanghai by Dongfeng Nissan Deputy Managing Director Zhou Xianpeng, Dongfeng Nissan General Manager of Marketing Department Yan Hongbin, NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum and NBA China CEO David Shoemaker, who were joined by J.J. Redick of the L.A. Clippers.

Through this multiplatform partnership, Dongfeng Nissan will showcase its line of automobiles to the NBA’s broad and passionate fanbase during NBA China’s marquee events, including NBA Global Games China presented by Master Kong, NBA Fan Appreciation Day presented by Dongfeng Nissan and the NBA Chinese New Year Celebration.  In addition, Dongfeng Nissan will bring NBA players to China to inspire play and grow the game.

“The NBA thrives on the passion of its teams, players and fans and at Dongfeng Nissan we understand how important passion is to building a brand,” said Zhou.  “Serving as the official automotive partner of NBA China will allow us to tap into the energy and excitement of the game and help drive the fans’ passion for the Dongfeng Nissan brand.”

“Dongfeng Nissan understands and shares our commitment to delivering the best experience to our fans during our biggest events in China,” said Shoemaker.  “As our marquee event, NBA Global Games is the ideal platform to tip off our partnership to further grow the game of basketball across the country.”

As an official partner of NBA Global Games China 2015 presented by Master Kong, Dongfeng Nissan will have a strong presence at the games featuring the Charlotte Hornets and L.A. Clippers in Shenzhen on Oct. 11 and Shanghai on Oct. 14, with oncourt activations and its cars displayed in the arena.

Dongfeng Nissan will also serve as the presenting partner of NBA Fan Appreciation Day on Oct. 13 at the Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai to provide thousands of fans with the opportunity to watch the Hornets and Clippers conduct practice and participate in oncourt games.

As part of its shared commitment to the community, Dongfeng Nissan also supported NBA Cares community projects around the games as an associate partner of the NBA Cares Learn and Play Center in Shenzhen and the NBA Cares Basketball Clinic in Shanghai.

In addition, Dongfeng Nissan will be the presenting partner of the NBA Chinese New Year Celebration, which pays tribute to the league’s largest international fanbase with unprecedented NBA programming and a variety of Chinese New Year-themed fan activities.

About NBA China
The NBA’s entity that conducts all of the league’s businesses in greater China was formed in January 2008 after its first office opened in Hong Kong in 1992.  The NBA has interacted with Chinese basketball for decades, including first hosting the Chinese National team in 1985.  The NBA currently has relationships with a strong network of television and digital media outlets in China, including a partnership of more than 25 years with national broadcaster CCTV.  The league hosts hundreds of touring basketball events for fans, conducts community enrichment programs, and maintains marketing partnerships with a combination of world-class China-based corporations and U.S.-based multinationals.  In October 2014, the NBA and China’s Ministry of Education established a groundbreaking partnership that aims to provide enhanced basketball training to at least three million students by 2017.

NBA China is headquartered in Beijing and also has offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Taipei.  NBA licensed products such as apparel and footwear are available through various retail networks and authorized online stores on e-commerce and social media platforms, including Tmall.com, JD.com and WeChat.  In 2004, the NBA became the first American professional sports league to play games in China, with two games between the Houston Rockets and the Sacramento Kings in Shanghai and Beijing.  The league has played a total of 19 games in China.

About Dongfeng Nissan
Founded on June 16, 2003, Dongfeng Nissan Passenger Vehicle is a joint venture between Dongfeng Motor and Nissan Motor.  With headquarters in Wuhan, Hubei, the company has four major production bases, located in Guangzhou, Xiangyang, Zhengzhou, and Dalian.  Besides a complete line of Nissan-brand passenger cars, it also produces models carrying the Venucia and Infiniti badges, since March 2012 and November 2014 respectively.  The world-class manufacturing facilities of Dongfeng Nissan are matched with advanced R&D capacity, as the company is committed to bringing the best products and technologies to local consumers.

Guided by the vision of Enriching People’s Life, the joint venture has built an extensive sales and service network that includes 1,582 outlets as of July 2015.  Cumulative sales of whole vehicles have surpassed 5.5 million units.  In 2014, the company accounted for 29.4% of the total passenger car deliveries of Dongfeng Motor and about a quarter of Nissan’s global sales.

Dongfeng Nissan seeks to actively contribute to the sustainable development of society.  Through working with all of its stakeholders-including customers, shareholders, employees and local communities, it participates and supports a variety of activities that meet the society’s needs, especially in areas of environmental protection, philanthropy, and road safety.  In fulfilling its CSR, Dongfeng Nissan has won multiple awards in China in 2015, including “Outstanding Contribution to Sustainable Development” and “Best EV of the Year.”