Jay-Z joins Puma as creative director of newly created basketball division

Puma continues to make a big splash in basketball, as the German sportswear company has added Jay-Z as creative director of the newly constructed division in the sport.

While it was initially believed that the rapper, business mogul, and founder of Roc Nation Sports was named president of Puma Basketball, a Puma spokesperson told ESPN that Jay-Z's title was in fact that of creative director.

The move comes shortly after Puma announced the signings of three of the top prospects in Thursday's NBA draft - DeAndre Ayton, Marvin Bagley, and Zhaire Smith. Ayton is projected to go first overall to the Phoenix Suns, while Bagley is expected to land within the top five.

"We've been working with Roc Nation for quite some time," Puma's global director of brand and marketing Adam Petrick told Complex. "They've been great partners to us for several years. We've done many different deals with many different ambassadors.

"What's important to him on a day like today is that it's clear we're making a serious push with players like Bagley and Ayton and Smith," Petrick added. "We're making a serious statement about the entry of the category, that we want to be a performance brand, but then also very culturally focused. It's clear that we're looking at basketball through the lens of culture, and thinking about the fashion of basketball, the music of basketball, all the aspects of culture around basketball as much as the on-court presence that we will have."