It's gotta be the shoes

My previous post about Fairfax High School’s sweet exclusive Nike basketball shoes got me thinking about my favourite kicks of all time. Without further ado, here’s how I see the top five when it comes to all-time basketball sneakers.


1. Air Jordan XI
I’ll be honest – I’m not an unequivocal fan of Jordan’s signature shoes. Too often, Nike has tried to be overly creative/crazy with the design. Case in point would be XV, which was modeled after an X-15 aircraft and was simply a disaster.
The XI, though, is a marvel. It’s the most beautiful basketball shoe ever built. It’s sleek and functional, and its patent leather is so classy-looking that it can easily be worn with dress pants. I had a friend who rocked the classic black-and-white XIs at his wedding, with a tuxedo.
Personal experience: I wore an all-white pair of XIs during my second year of college basketball. Best shoes I ever wore, in terms of form and function.


2. Adidas Superstar
An oldie, but a goodie. The iconic Adidas shoe has been around since 1969, and its classic design is somehow still relevant. The most striking feature is the rubberized shell toe, which looks soooo slick peeking out from under a pair of jeans.
More than four decades after its debut, the Superstar has transitioned to be more of a casual shoe than a performace shoe. You can find it in a mind-boggling number of colour combinations, and if you don’t have a pair in your closet, you pretty much don’t like shoes.
Personal experience: Currently, I have two pairs of Superstars – white-and-red, and a black-and-gold. And yet, I want more. Honestly, if I had the money, I’d probably have a dozen pairs. These shoes have their own Run DMC song – how cool is that?


3. Reebok Question
The Question was the first signature shoe Reebok made for Allen Iverson when he came out of Georgetown in 1996. Iverson’s nickname was “The Answer”; hence, when his inaugural shoe was released, it was “The Question.” Mildly clever.
In my humble opinion, The Question was the only decent shoe Reebok made for Iverson. But they did completely knock this one out of the park. With clean lines and the exposed Hexalite cells on the sides, the shoe had a very cool, distinctive look. The Question’s status as a classic is confirmed by frequent re-releases.
Personal experience: Two years ago, I bought a white-with-grey-toes version of The Question for use in my Monday church basketball league. The shoes far outclass the level of play, I’ll say that much. They’re as functional as they are beautiful.


4. Nike Air Force 1
The first Air Force shoe, to folks in my generation, is perhaps best known as the shoe that former Detroit Pistons star Rasheed Wallace insisted on wearing long after it was out of regular production.
Design-wise, the AF1 epitomizes the look and feel of all of Nike's best kicks. Doing a bit of background research, I discovered it was the first shoe that used Nike Air technology. Cool.
These shoes have a lot in common with the Adidas Superstar, in that they're available in a ridiculous number of colourways, they're more of a casual shoe than a performance shoe at this point, and they have their own song . . . by Nelly. Advantage, Adidas Superstar.
Personal experience: The fact I’ve never owned a pair of Air Force 1’s is a glaring hole in my sneaker resume. I feel shame.


5. Nike Zoom Kobe IV
Lest you come to believe I’m strictly into old-school shoes, I give you Kobe Bryant’s fourth signature shoe with Nike. Kobe was an Adidas guy when he originally arrived in the NBA, but those early shoes were a bit out there in terms of design.
The reason I love the latest Kobes is, they hearken back to the days of classic Nikes like the aforementioned AF1, in terms of clean design. They’re also ridiculously well-built. I’ve used the adjective “sleek” several times already in this post, but the Kobe IVs practically redefine the term as far as basketball kicks are concerned.
Personal experience: I’ve never owned a pair of these shoes, and I suspect I never will. Reason being, I’m one of the planet’s foremost Kobe-haters, and the notion of buying (and wearing!) a product with his name on it bothers me. Kobe’s an amazing player, don’t get me wrong – one of the 10 best of all time, quite possibly. I respect his skill and competitiveness a great deal, but his ego-centric personality and style of play rubs me the wrong way. He doesn’t seem like he’d be fun to play with whatsoever. And that runs counter to everything I aspire to.
But dang, does he ever have some sweet shoes!