Speaker Profile

VP Global Basketball, Adidas Lawrence Norman holds the position of Vice President, Global Basketball for adidas. A 16 year veteran of the company, he has held positions in Global Communications, Sports Marketing, Country Marketing Management, Product Range Management and Licensing /New Business Development. His current responsibility overseeing adidas' global basketball business also includes management of the 11 year partnership between adidas and the National Basketball Association (NBA). Based in Portland, Oregon, Lawrence has also worked for adidas in Israel, Spain, Germany and The Netherlands. He is fluent in English, Spanish and Hebrew. A basketball fanatic and former professional basketball player in Israel, there is rarely a day in which he is not on a basketball court, either working on his left-to-right crossover, speaking with athletes or testing the newest innovations of adidas basketball products. Norman was recently ranked #10 in Hoopsworld. com 's "Top 55 Most Influential in Basketball. " http://www. hoopsworld. com/the- 2010-most-influential-in- basketball/ Lawrence holds both BA and MBA degrees in Marketing from Clark University in Worcester, MA where he also serves as a Board Member of the Graduate School of Management. He is also a Board Member of Maccabi USA and is on the Board of Directors for PeacePlayers International (PPI), a global organization that uses sport to unite and educate young people in divided communities.