FirstCuts: Get Your NBA All-Star Game Kicks

By Chris Littmann
Sports don’t start and end with a referee’s whistle. FirstCuts, a blog dedicated to sports culture, will cover everything outside the lines, from games to gear.
Sneaker companies, never known for missing the opportunity to make a buck, are out in full force this weekend. With the NBA All-Star Game festivities starting tonight (yes, the Rookie-Sophomore game is this evening), here’s your rundown of what you’ll see on the All-Stars’ feet this weekend along with where you can pick up the shoes.
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Nike has the most diverse offering, creating 12 shoes for its signature athletes. This doesn’t even take into account whatever surprises Jordan Brand holds in store for the weekend (Jordan XV SE, Jordan XX3). Here’s the tough part: Unless you’re in New Orleans or Harlem, it’s looking more and more like the only way to get these will be eBay. House of Hoops is carrying many of the All-Star releases. You can also hit the Nike pop-up stores at the All-Star Game. The Trash Talk Zoom BB II designed for Steve Nash is my favorite. Least impressive: the color blocking on the Zoom Kobe III. Gag.
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Nike/Jordan Brand Update:
Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton and other Jordan Brand athletes have been spotted with the XX3 made for the All-Star game. Expect the same for Carmelo Anthony. Jordan Brand’s Chris Paul will be wearing his own signature shoe. (Ray Allen’s Air Jordan XX3 pictured below.)
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adidas is going hard as the official NBA apparel provider. This would’ve been more fun with Gilbert Arenas in attendance. As it stands, we’ll settle for the Pro Model High (pictured) and the Team Signature Pro Model. The TS Pro Model looks like a solid performance shoe. As for that Pro Model High, well ... it seems like the perfect accessory for those all-over print jackets that feature the logo of every NBA team that inevitably reappear during All-Star games. Bonus points to the first person to wear East on one foot and West on the other. They’ve also done an “interesting” collaboration with sneaker jeweler Gabe Urist. Adidas will make its offerings available at select retailers in New Orleans, including the NBA Store.
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Reebok has two offerings at this year’s game. The Answer XI is available on Eastbay. The same can be said for Yao Ming’s signature shoe, the Reebok Men’s ATR Elite II, which completely ignores this year’s color scheme (that might not be a bad thing).
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Converse is going with quality over quantity when it comes to signature athletes. Dwyane Wade will wear the All-Star edition of the Wade 3. Kudos to both Converse and Reebok for at least making their kicks a little more accessible to the fans.↵