LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers are taking sports sponsorships to a new level, introducing a unique advertising opportunity that puts a corporate partner front and center whenever their head coach and players address the media.
The Lakers announced Tuesday that Just Ingredients, a health and wellness company, has become the team's official electrolyte partner. But perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the partnership isn't what players will be drinking on the sidelines. It's what will be displayed on the microphones they speak into during press conferences.
The Just Ingredients logo will appear on the microphone flags in the Lakers' press conference room, where head coach JJ Redick speaks before and after games and players such as Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler address reporters following games.
While corporate sponsorships have long been a fixture of professional sports, with company logos appearing on everything from jerseys and courts to interview backdrops, the Lakers are introducing a different way to generate exposure for their partners.
Microphone flags, the small boxes surrounding microphones that typically display television network or media outlet logos, are familiar sights at press conferences. Using them to promote a team sponsor rather than a broadcaster represents an unusual approach to sports marketing.
The placement ensures that the Just Ingredients logo will be prominently displayed in photos, television broadcasts, social media clips and other video content whenever Lakers players and the head coach speak at the podium.
Unlike traditional advertising that relies on fans noticing a logo in the background, the microphone flag places the sponsor directly beneath the face of the person speaking, making it difficult to miss in close-up shots that often circulate widely following games.
The approach could provide a new sponsorship opportunity for professional sports franchises looking to maximize the commercial value of their media operations, particularly as press conference clips featuring star athletes generate millions of views across digital platforms.
The Lakers, one of the NBA's most recognizable franchises, offer an especially valuable platform with Doncic, Reaves and Redick regularly generating national headlines and significant social media engagement.
“We’re excited to welcome Just Ingredients to the Lakers organization and look forward to bringing the brand’s electrolyte products to players and fans throughout the season,” said Yao Williams, the Lakers' vice president of global partnerships.
Beyond the microphone placement, the agreement will make Just Ingredients electrolyte products available to Lakers players at the team's UCLA Health Training Center and in their game-day environment.
The company also plans to introduce a co-branded canned electrolyte beverage later this season featuring the Lakers' signature purple and gold colors.
Karalynne Call, founder and CEO of Just Ingredients, said the partnership provides an opportunity to reach a new generation of consumers through one of the world's most recognizable basketball teams.
"I've always believed that if we want to change the next generation, we have to show them what's possible," Call said. "Athletes do that better than anyone, and the Lakers inspire millions of young fans every season. Having our electrolytes on their sideline for local games is a meaningful step toward making real ingredients the standard for every athlete, every family, and every body."
Just Ingredients markets itself as a wellness and lifestyle company focused on ingredient transparency and products formulated without unnecessary additives.
For the Lakers, the agreement reflects the growing creativity of professional sports sponsorships, where teams are increasingly looking beyond traditional advertising inventory to create new opportunities for corporate partners.
And while the electrolyte products will be available to players behind the scenes, the company's most visible presence could come when Redick steps to the podium after a game or Doncic sits down to discuss another memorable performance.
For a franchise whose press conferences regularly become national news, even the microphone has become valuable advertising space.