How Alexis Morris Became the "First Lady of AND1"

Alexis Morris talks the future of the streetball apparel and footwear brand.

Alexis Morris in a photo shoot. / AND1

AND1 is synonymous with streetball culture. Founded in 1993, AND1 first came to prominence when NBA legend Stephon Marbury became its first brand ambassador.

Also, the classic AND1 Mixtapes series that featured the like, Hot Sauce, The Pharmacist,  Shane “The Dribble Machine” Woney, Aaron “AO” Owens,  Rafer “Skip 2 My Lou” Alston and many more, brought streetball culture into the mainstream.

Fast forward to 2024, the brand is writing a new chapter of its story, and Alexis Morris, the new “First Lady” of AND1 is poised to lead the storied brand into the future.

A standout collegiate player, Morris played at Baylor, Rutgers, Texas A&M, and LSU. During the 2022-23 season, she led LSU in scoring, averaging 15.2 points, along with 2.9 rebounds and 4.0 assists.

She was named to the first-team all-SEC and won the 2023 NCAA Women’s Championship. She was drafted in the second round, 22nd overall, by the Sun in the 2023 WNBA Draft. Eventually, she went on to play overseas in Romania, Turkey, and France, before signing with the Harlem Globetrotters.

Morris spoke with Sports Illustrated about how she fell in love with basketball when she was a child because of her family’s influence.

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“I'm so passionate about basketball because it's been everything for me. Thanks to my father, my uncle, and my sister. Basketball has been my escape. It was my mental arcade growing up in Beaumont, Texas,” Morris explained.

After signing on to play at Baylor under Coach Kim Mulkey, Morris played for several different programs and overcame some personal challenges before finding a home at LSU. She wanted to set the record straight on how she ended up playing for the Lady Tigers.

“I left Texas A&M and put my name in the transfer portal. I wasn't going to play basketball anymore. I was over it and I felt that nothing was working out. My dad called me, saying, “Did you see Coach Mulkey is at LSU.” He said, “You need to go play for your coach and win you a championship. She's over there rebuilding and she's going to need you in their program.” She's known me since I was 12 years old. She recruited me to Baylor. I know Mulkey told the world that I just showed up on campus. But I never just popped up and showed up on campus.”

Following the 2023 Draft, she went on to play overseas and was homesick. When she was contacted by the Harlem Globetrotters, she made the most of the opportunity. Playing for the Harlem Globetrotters would be the golden opportunity and she still considers the players and executives as family. She recalled how excited she was to return to the States and play for the legendary team,

“I was talking to my agent, and he didn't want me to go overseas. He was trying to persuade me to join the Trotters. So I had the deal for almost half a year but I didn't acknowledge it because my ultimate goal was to get to the WNBA. When I got overseas, I played for three months for different countries and I didn't like it. I called him back and asked if that deal was still on the table.

Playing for the Harlem Globetrotters was just the opportunity she needed as she was exposed to a worldwide audience and she still considers the players and executives as family.

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Joining AND1 is a full-circle moment for Morriss who has always been a big fan of the brand and the players who starred on the AND Mixtape Tour.  Getting to the offer to sign with the brand was “amazing” Morris said.

“I got the call from Dexter Gordon and he was like, “Hey Alexis, we got some exciting news for you. We would love for you to be the First Lady of AND1’ and my mouth just dropped,” she recalled. “But let me tell you why it's so special for me. I grew up playing streetball. That’s my roots. A lot of players can't say that. It shaped me into the player and the person that I . today.. Shoutout to the entire AND1 family. I appreciate yall.”

She recalled some of her favorite players and memories of watching the AND1 Mixtape tours.

“Hot Sauce” (Phillip Champion) and  The Professor (Grayson Scott  Boucher) were the first AND1 ballers I was familiar with and I looked them up,” she said. “I got some videos of myself doing the professor challenge where he was like hitting a ball of the spin around. It’s crazy because now I'm signed with the brand.”

Morris has also been at work with the design team for her sneaker apparel line which is currently in the works. “I’ve already been with the design team and we’re working on some things for my collection,” Morris shared.

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In June, Morris was formally introduced as the brand’s ambassador at the annual AND1 Open Run in Coney Island. She talked about how it felt to be embraced by those in attendance.

“The Open Run was incredible. It gave me a totally different outlook on basketball after being there. I’ve been around basketball all my life but this was something else. It was New York, raw, home-cooked basketball. I was exposed to the origin of Black culture and expression at the Open Run,” she recalled.”I just thought the energy was amazing. The atmosphere was lovely and it was really dope to meet Hot Sauce, who is one of my basketball idols.”

“I just wish more women would have come out. To reach out, I’m going to start basketball camps for the kids and high school girls and work on some NIL deals with female players in college,” she continued. “I want to get connected with the players because I have the knowledge, skills, and experience. Now I want to give back and share that because I feel like I'm not doing my part to grow the game but just as if I don’t share what I have.”

Without question, 2024 is the year of Women's basketball. The popularity of the WNBA is at a time high. Morris wants to share talents to foster the sport's expansion and believes that AND1 is set to be a major contributor.

“I am so grateful to be affiliated with AND1. I think the women's basketball community should be grateful for where we are today with basketball because it's only one way for now. It’s only going to get bigger and the movement will keep going. We're going to knock down more doors now. We're going to unify more women and empower more women,” she said.

“We've been fighting for liberation in women's sports for so long and I’m passionate about it. I’m thankful for those who paved the way for me, the Angel Reeses and the Caitlin Clarks of the world. We wouldn't be where we are without embracing the past but we gotta embrace the future.”

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