Former NBA All-Star and champion Dwyane Wade has announced a partnership with California-based Jeeter for a limited cannabis line.
The new drop features three exclusive strains that come in Jeeter’s “Baby Jeeter” pre-roll packs. Fruit Punch is a sativa that features sweet and tropical notes, a Mojilato hybrid strain which is a cross of Sunset Sherbet and Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookies and an indica strain named Game Over.
The cannabis line launched in dispensaries across California on December 16 and includes the three strains packaged in a book format that references Wade’s recently released photo memoir “Dwyane,” which captures the NBA icon’s career through images. Each drop will also contain a copy of the memoir as well. Jeeter is also running a contest where a winner can receive an autographed copy of the cannabis drop.
“If anybody has been following me, you guys have had the opportunity to see this amazing creation from the Jeeter family and myself,” Wade said on Jeeter’s Instagram. “Going back to my book ‘Dwyane’, it’s really bringing it to life with our collaboration that we are doing.”
Wade joins the growing list of current and former NBA players that are entering the cannabis space. Former NBA players Larry Hughes and Shawn Kemp have opened their own dispensaries in Missouri and Seattle, respectively. Paul Pierce, another former NBA player, has launched his own line of cannabis products in partnership with Massachusetts-based cannabis cultivator The Hub Craft. Chris Webber also announced a cannabis facility in Detroit that will feature a cultivation facility, dispensary and private consumption lounge. In early 2021 Webber also launched a private-equity fund aimed at supporting minorities in the cannabis industry.
NBA stars John Wall and Carmelo Anthony became investors in California-based LEUNE and helped the company raise around $5 million in a funding round led by NBA agent Rich Paul, entertainer La La Anthony, music manager Anthony Saleh and venture capital firm Casa Verde Capital. Thirty Five Ventures, an investment fund and media company founded by Kevin Durant, signed a deal with Weedmaps in August 2021. The company has previously invested in other cannabis companies such as Dutchie, an online service that allows for online cannabis purchases and pickup in-store at local dispensaries.
Jeeter has grown to become one of the top selling pre-roll brands since launching in 2018. The brand is the fastest growing in the pre-roll category and currently rank as some of the best pre-rolls in the country. The company celebrated Jeeter Day in November as a way to give back to fans of the brand and the rest of the Jeeter community. Dwyane Wade and his wife, Gabrielle Union attended the event as well as other guests including rapper Ludacris and Demi Lovato.
Dwyane Wade also co-founded a wine business, Wade Cellars, alongside Jayson Pahlmeyer in Napa Valley in 2014 after becoming a fan because of former wine-loving teammates Chris Bosh and Lebron James. Wade recently joined the executive leadership board for the department of viticulture and enology at the University of California, Davis, in an effort to increase the diversity of students pursuing a career in wine.
“When I got into the wine space I didn’t just do it to drink wine and make great wine. I got into it to make sure that wine could be accessible to the community that I come from,” Wade said. “I got into it to be a voice for the black winemakers and vineyard owners; to show how wine can be a gateway to careers that have never been presented as a real option in the community of color.”
