He’s not wrong. Back then high tech basketball shoes were a novelty, Jordans were still pretty recent and not yet retros in the way we look at them now, and sneaker culture was less about reselling and more about actually trying to show them off and wear them

Nikes gatekeeping of cool colorways/always having limited supply and letting scalpers own the market has made absolutely no sense. 

Running shoes are the new basketball shoes

Aren’t the prices also expensive as hell

Tbf, when a player’s pair of shoes is \(150-\)200, it’s not a surprise people aren’t buying the shoes.

I know people made fun of Kawhi for signing with New Balance, but I work 7 twelve hour overnight shifts in a row every other week at my job in an ER and I almost exclusively wear Kawhi IVs because they’re nigh indestructible yet super comfortable while still providing enough support that my feet aren’t rapidly deteriorating like Yao Ming. Also, I like the colorway (bright pink released in 2024 I think) and I think the OnClouds and the old lady clogs that most of the nurses wear, that are insanely expensive, are hideous. And I like Kawhi.

TL;DR: New Balance is legit still and I understand now why dads have been wearing them to mow lawns for decades and Kawhi IVs are definitely wearable for non-basketball reasons.

basketball shoes look like clown shoes built for oofy doofys

Yeah I mean it makes sense when you consider they’re expensive, ugly, typically uncomfortable and can’t be styled with fits most people wear outside of working out

Even borderline stars are getting signature shoe deals the past few years. Would love to get back to the era where only the top-tier superstars are getting these deals. Makes the shoe even more valuable

Outside of Jordans it’s never been fashionable to wear high end basketball shoes as fashion. People might wear them to workout but I’ve never seen anyone put on Kobe, LeBron, KD to a dinner or the bar/club.

I wore a pair of KDs to Friday Night Magic, I was asked if I just came from shooting around

Aging white guy take: I only wear basketball shoes for hooping because if I wear them on the street they become no good for hooping (on hardwood).

The Book 1s were the first pair of basketball shoes I have bought in many years and it’s only because they look like casual everyday shoes. I hate the busy ass look of most hooper shoes.

I mean he’s not wrong. Nikes/Jordans are pretty much unc shoes now in terms of lifestyle footwear. Adidas, NB, asics, Salomons have gained a ton of market share over the past 5-7 years. To the point where Nikes feel dusty to ppl under 30

I wear them even though no one else does anymore because of nostalgia and I could actually afford them. I owe it to my kid self.

Paying $250+ for Made in China shoes isn’t appealing anymore.

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Everything after Covid is expensive Af now. People can barely afford essentials now

People embraced that they weren’t cool and now everyone wears Crocs, Hoka, Brooks, or OnCloud.

Nike’s bread and butter was that they were cool, and now being cool is corny

How about Kalshi partnerships?

Oh man I think i’ve reached unc status then if basketball sneakers arent fashion anymore. What are people wearing then for fashion??? Help.

Thank god lol

Always thought sneakers at work or functions was extremely tacky. The kids are right with this one

Yeah LeBron’s rookie deal in 2003 is bigger without accounting for inflation than zions (and like triple cooper’s). 

The idea that Nike is gonna throw in an addition like 15mil per year to get their guy to LA is pretty ridiculous. Now other endorsements? Of course they could aspire for 15mil or more. The NBA says it’s ok to circumvent the cap 

Thank God. So tired of grown ass men making how much they drop on shoe brands a huge chunk of their personality. Sorry sneakerheads. More importantly it’s better for the game when companies have less influence on players’ decisions and what happens on the court all to drive up their sales. Pro ball is a hyper consumerist experience with the shoe brands shoved in your face, gambling ads, and pop music blasted at you the entire time. I wish it was more about the game and players themselves rather than corporate jerkoffs trying to squeeze every penny from the sport and from the fans.

Dont tell this to curry fans

There’s just too many. Should be a max of like 3 NBA players at any given time with a personal shoe deal

A lot of fear mongering going on with the no draft debates

I went to a high school and college basketball game last weekend and over 75% of the players were just wearing old Kobe’s

The sneaker game went to shit once the suburbs started getting into them

Jordan’s still on everyone’s feet now though.

im old, i want comfortable walking shoes, not basketball shoes

i mean that too but they need to stop promoting random big men shoes no1s gonna be flexing giannis shoes tbh. they need to just focus on the flashy guards and smaller players, ppl are gonna buy their shoes especially if they have a catchy sounding name

High end hoop-specific shoes have never really been fashionable outside of Converse, AF1, J’s, and a few other random models.

I wore Shaq’s when I was a kid because they were like $20 at Payless lol. No one was wearing Krazy 8s, Pro Models, Lebrons, Hirachis, etc

A lot of the comments here are about adult shoe habits, but don’t discount kids. 20 years ago, the kids in my suburban town would all be wearing basketball shoes. Some still do, but it’s crazy to see the number of high schoolers wearing crocs or fuzzy clogs. I feel like an old man yelling at clouds when I see these kids look like they just rolled out of bed.

Everyone is wearing running shoes now. Hokas, Vomeros, ASICS, etc., everywhere. Can’t remember the last time I saw someone wear some Lebrons or KDs

There’s a couple of guys at my work who wear basketball shoes with their suits. It’s definitely an outlier though haha

I used to have a collection of basketball shoes when I was a kid but I honestly haven’t bought anything but running shoes in almost two decades.

just here to mention that the original 1985 Air Jordans were terrible to actually play basketball in and tore up my feet, compared to modern bball shoes

What the fuck are people wearing then?