My Hero Academia Expands Its NBA Apparel Collaboration

My Hero Academia is teaming up with basketball once again. The franchise announced this week that it is expanding its partnership with the National Basketball Association, pairing fan favorite characters with iconic NBA teams.

The lineup matches heroes with franchises in fun ways: Deku with the Boston Celtics, Bakugo with the New York Knicks, Ochaco Uraraka with the Miami Heat, Shoto Todoroki with the Philadelphia 76ers, Kirishima with the Chicago Bulls, Endeavor with the Golden State Warriors, and Mirko with the Los Angeles Lakers.

The apparel line, created with NBALAB and Hyperfly, includes t shirts and hoodies. Representatives from both Crunchyroll and NBALAB spoke about blending the heroic spirit of the anime with the energy of basketball to make gear that feels as dynamic as the fans who wear it.

The collection will be available at BoxLunch, select NBA stores, and online, with a special presence at the NBA flagship store in New York City during New York Comic Con.

This builds on an earlier collaboration that began in 2023, which put All Might on shirts for a handful of teams.

My take: Anime and sports crossovers are always a fun bit of fan service, and pairing each hero with a team is a clever touch. I can see plenty of fans happily repping Deku in Celtics colors.