FirstCuts: Chris Paul’s Signature Shoe Debuts

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.
Your usual shoe guide, Rich “MaZe” Lopez, is busy this week getting another episode of The Stockroom ready to preview all the hot footwear for the month of March, so I’ll be filling in for this weekend. And it’s not a bad weekend at all.
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Chris Paul is coming off an All-Star appearance and has the Hornets nipping at the Spurs in the Southwest Division. Now he’s got another thing going for him: his first signature shoe with Jordan Brand.
The beauty of this shoe is in the details:
[quote="KixAndTheCity.com"]* “61†Heel graphic to honor the memory of his grandfather, Nathaniel Jones
* New Orleans Hornets stinger heel pull tab
* Bowling pin configuration perf detail on the ankle for CP’s love of bowling
* Triangle represents the Trinity
* “SP†detail on the backside of tongue in memory of CP’s Wake Forest Coach Skip Prosser
* Hexagon perfs and stitching referencing a Hornets nest
* “Chris Paul†signature stitch
* “Papa Chilly†hidden shank detail[/quote]
The Jordan CP will be available at all major retailers this weekend in the colorway pictured above. You can also order a Hornets-based version as well as one other at PickYourShoes.com right now. The Jordan CP retails for $115.
If you’re into more limited -- and in my opinion, ugly -- kicks, check out the 23 501 Levis X Air Jordan pack, which comes with a pair of shoes, jeans and a shirt for the not-so-reasonable price tag of $395. These are limited to select Jordan Brand retailers, and, well, that’s probably a good thing.
And one last note, if none of this fits your style, head over to the RBK Custom site, where the Answer III is available. The customizability so far surpasses the new-to-NikeID Zoom BB II that Nike ought to be ashamed -- probably force themselves to rethink how they do NikeID.
Bonus picture: Chris Paul in the Hornets version of the Jordan CP.
[img=http://i.tsn.com/i/photos/20080229/87198.jpg]
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