One look at the Houston Rockets’ young and talented roster, and you will see a lot of young men who are having fun playing the game they love. Their personalities shine on and off the court.
This past summer, second-year player Jalen Green worked to expand his brand by doing major photography shoots and global marketing opportunities for different designers.
His escapades must have sparked up an interest that had been in the back of the mind of his teammate Josh Christopher. On Saturday, he dropped his exclusive, debut design of Houston-themed merchandise, and to the surprise of no one, it did exceptionally well.
“Today’s a big day,” said Christopher. “I don’t think we could have asked for anything more. For myself, me being able to drop clothes for the city, I guess I got what I asked for. I wanted it to be for the people and about the people. Everything just meshed.”
Fans lined up early in front of the Rockets’ team shop for the opportunity to grab the exclusive t-shirts, sweatshirts, and hoodies before they attended an open practice for the fans at Toyota Center.
Christopher, 21, took the same confidence he exuded on the court and applied it to the five designs he dropped on Saturday. He said the thought of the clothing line not doing well never crossed his mind.
“I know it looked good,” Christopher said when asked if he was nervous before the drop. “Showing people, the concepts and ideas, everybody was super excited for it. Even when I asked people for comments, they said they really liked it. I was more excited than nervous. Clothes are my passion, and I have fun with it.”
“When it comes to me, I am super outgoing, super electric,”said Rockets guard Josh Christopher who dropped his exclusive Rockets clothing line on Saturday at the Rockets team store. #LightTheFuse #Sarge @Jaygup23 @TheRocketsWire pic.twitter.com/NAUaSAuX1Q
— #SARGE (@BigSargeSportz) October 9, 2022
Passion has always been a word to describe Christopher since he was young. His mother, Halona Christopher, who was in attendance for his clothing line debut, was very proud to see the hard work and dedication that her son had put into his off-court project.
“To see this manifest into what it is today is truly a blessing,” Mrs. Christopher said from the team store. “Josh has a strong work ethic, but he also has a strong belief in himself. Watching this all come together is the product of what he has prayed for, but also the prayers that his father (Laron) and I have done for him, as well.”
Christopher’s family ties and outgoing personality inspired the concepts behind all the designs.
“When it comes to me, I am super outgoing, super electric,” Christopher told reporters after practice. “But at the same time, I am super close to home. I got inspiration from my brothers. Inspiration by my journey to Houston and inspiration from the artist (Mike Jones Art) I have worked with in high school who would do projects for me. It was super close to home, but it took its own type of path and went bigger. So, I made it super loud but close to home.”
