As the opening night in the NBA quickly approaches, there is no shortage of heat coming from its athletes. Back in July Nike drop the first signature shoe of League MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo dubbed the “Zoom Freak 1” as an homage to his nickname the Greek Freak. To celebrate the NBA return Nike Basketball is launching an upcoming “Opening Night” collection, which will include a “Noble Red” colorway of the Zoom Freak 1.
photo credit: atmos Tokyo
The logo highlighted with a gradient midsole and speckled reverse Swoosh and dressed in a Noble Red, Blackened Blue, and Bright Crimson color scheme. This colorway was originally spotted on the feet of Giannis’ brother during Nike’s launch event for the Zoom Freak 1 in Greece.
Photo credit: atmos Tokyo
We can expect Giannis to be sporting this shoe opening week as the Bucks take on the Rockets in Huston on Oct. 24, at 8 pm. It is set to release in Japan on October 17th and globally on October 27th at select retailers and Nike.com price tag is set at $110 USD.
Matthew 14:25 – “Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.”
We already know the Air Max bubble on Nike’s historic sneakers is second-to-none. How about one-upping that and filling it with actual holy water? Well that’s exactly what Brooklyn-based creative label MSCHF did. They took an all white pair of Air Max 97’s and basically customized them to fit the bill as if they were doing a collaboration with Jesus Christ himself.
The self-proclaimed ‘Jesus Shoes’ by MSCHF were made to kind of poke fun at collaboration culture. “We wanted to make a statement about how absurd collab culture has gotten. We were wondering, what would a collab with Jesus Christ look like?” The shoes have been filled with 60cc of holy water and then dyed a more blue-ish tint so it can be further visible. The pair also features the bible verse Matthew 14:25 on the lateral side as well as a steel crucifix acting as a lace lock ornament. The water injected into the shoes is directly from the River Jordan and actually blessed by a priest. The heel of the right shoe says “INRI” which stems from the Latin phrase ‘Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum’ which means ‘Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.’
The ‘Jesus Shoes’ come equipped with red insoles as paying homage to the Vatican in addition to also being scented with Frankincense. Let it be known that this release is in no way affiliated with Nike and is a pure custom done by the Brooklyn company. This release sold out within a minute on October 8th, with seemingly everyone wanting to be able to ‘walk on water.’ The original retail price was $1,425 (again a nod to the Matthew 14:25 Bible verse), but now fetch a price of around $3,000 on StockX. Are you feeling holy enough to wear shoes that are this blessed?
The first biography on Nipsey Hussle detailing the artist’s life in-depth will be published by Atria Books. It’s set to hit bookstores on March 24, 2020.
“The Marathon Don’t Stop: The Life and Times of Nipsey Hussle,” was written by music journalist Rob Kenner, and edited by Michelle Herrera Mulligan, a senior editor at Atria. According to Complex, the unauthorized biography will feature on-the-ground reporting and interviews with Nipsey’s friends and family.
“The last time I spoke with Nipsey Hussle, he told me, ‘I ain’t outside giving out jewelry or dropping off bags of money on people, but I’m giving out game,’” says Kenner. “This book is my attempt to help fulfill that intention. The Marathon Don’t Stop will also place his accomplishments in proper historical context, giving Nipsey Hussle his rightful place in the history of hip-hop, Los Angeles, and America. It will include interviews with people who haven’t spoken before, as well as insights into the forces that shaped Hussle into the man he became.”
“Nipsey has inspired an entire generation of people who have felt invisible in their communities,” says Michelle Herrera Mulligan, “This book will share the blueprint of Nipsey’s success, drawn on the streets where he was raised.”
Kenner, a founding editor of VIBE, whose work has also appeared in The New York Times, Complex, Billboard, Mass Appeal, Ego Trip, Pigeons & Planes, and more, says he wanted to write a book about Nipsey because he was inspired by both his words and his actions.
“He was one of the most fascinating artists of our time, as well as an important activist and thought leader, but he received relatively little acclaim during his lifetime,”said Kenner “My purpose is to lift the best parts of Nipsey Hussle’s legacy so that they will live on and inspire others.”
Kenner has decided to donate a portion of the proceeds from the book to Nipsey’s estate out of respect. In the wake of Nipsey’s death, his family has launched the Neighborhood Nip Foundation, which will continue Nipsey’s efforts in his community. PUMA also released a collaborative collection with his Marathon Clothing brand, with all net proceeds going to the Neighborhood Nip Foundation.
We’re down to 14 days until the NBA Season officially commences, and we’ve gotten a taste of what some of the NBA teams are capable of during the preseason. Next up, however, at number 14, we’ve gotten the Indiana Pacers.
14. Indiana Pacers: Will Indiana stay on pace for the NBA Playoffs?
The Pacers last season was a force to be reckoned with. They finished 5th in the Eastern Conference with a record of 48-34, making an early first-round exit to the Boston Celtics in the NBA Playoffs. Over the course of the off-season, the Pacers made a decent amount of roster changes, having players with sign with other teams as well as the announcement of point guard Darren Collison’s retirement.
In regards to the acquisitions the Pacers made over the off-season, they’ve brought on notable players around the league in hopes of filling the voids that were made with those who decide to leave. Bucks guard Malcolm Brogdon found himself in Indiana off a sign-and-trade, which really is an upgrade for the Pacers roster. Despite losing Bojan Bogdanovic to the Jazz, they’ve managed to pick up TJ Warren, TJ McConnell, and Jeremy Lamb as well, bolstering the roster with solid guards.
Despite the additions the Pacers have made, the most important part when talking about this team is the core that they have created in Myles Turner, Domantas Sabonis, and of course, Victor Oladipo. The Pacers and Pacers fans unfortunately saw Oladipo go down fairly early in the season, to which he would sit-out the year. Despite his absence on the court, the team managed to make the Playoffs, and although they did in fact not get passed the first round, with a healthy Oladipo, the Pacers are set on coming back stronger than years prior. With the core of the team that they have, and the additions of players that can play a good supporting role for the team, the organization is perhaps even scarier than last season.
Having said that however, it’s only right for some sort of skepticism to be had. It is without question that the Pacers have some very good players on their team, but they may be lacking in experience. The Pacers roster is filled with notable names as we’ve previously stated, but these names are also very young, with the oldest player on their team is 30-year old Justin Holiday. We as NBA fans can only speculate at this time, but soon enough we will see how the team stacks up against the rest on October 22nd.
With the preseason just getting underway for Pistons fans in Detroit, some fans still seem hung up on the looming press over Andre Drummond’s Free Agency next summer. Drummond, 26, has a player option of $28.8 million for the final year of his contract, but if he opts out he will become a free agent summer 2020.
Early this summer Drummond hinted at his excitement for his upcoming free agency, and how excited he is for the whole process. The All-Star center has never been a free agent, and is looking forward to the experience. This started rumors of a possible departure from the 7-year Pistons center.
He is coming off the best season of his career averaging 17.3 PPG on a league leading 15.6 RPG. Drummond recently addressed these issues on Tuesday after the Pistons’ preseason opener. Drummond made it clear that he’d very much like to stay in the Motor City, but on a Max Contract.
“(Max salary) is the way (Gores) sees me and that’s obviously the way anyone will see himself as a basketball player. With the hard work and dedication that you put in each day, no player should feel like he’s not a max player,” Drummond said. “Every player should feel like they’re worth that sum of money because of the hard work and blood, sweat and tears you put in every day.
“The work you put in, you should be rewarded for it; it doesn’t matter whether it’s me or a rookie. Everybody feels they should make the maximum amount of dollars to play the sport they’re playing.”
Seems like both parties have reached an understanding and hopefully we’ll be seeing number 0 suited up in that Pistons jersey for next season. For now, hopefully fans can focus on this season, and making that playoff push.
We’re officially less than two weeks, 13 days, out from the NBA Season and we’ve been getting our fair share of pre-season basketball so far. 10 teams went into battle today in some very exciting games. However, we’re moving onto our 13th spot on the Sneaker Reporter NBA Top 30, the Toronto Raptors.
13. Toronto Raptors: Can the 6ix reassert themselves as reigning NBA Champions?
The Toronto Raptors came off a historic season last year, earning their first NBA Championship in league history. The off-season for the Raptors was not as great, however, losing Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green to the Clippers and Lakers, respectively.
Despite having slight roster changes this off-season, it heavily impacts how the roster operates, especially due to the fact the Leonard held the biggest effect on the organization. This does not, however, mean that the Raptors are not in a position to succeed this upcoming season. With a very successful breakout season for Raptors forward Pascal Siakam, there seems to be a lot of potential upside for the organization. Also with the addition of newly acquired players such as Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Stanley Johnson, the Raptors hope to fill the scoring void with a multitude of different options. Although there seems to be some overhang on the organization of Leonard and Green leaving, most seem to forget that the roster is still very solid without them. Marc Gasol, Serge Ibaka, Fred VanVleet, and Kyle Lowry are all very good players in their respective roles, and without Leonard in the line-up are given more opportunities to lead their team to victory.
Realistically, it’s hard to replace a franchise player, especially if that player is Kawhi Leonard. His abilities on both ends of the floor is what really separates him from a lot of other players in the league. So although the organization has made many additions in hopes of carrying that load, it’s hard to expect immediate success for this team. Losing Danny Green is a bit of a harsh blow as well, losing efficient scoring off the bench as well as an overall vocal leader for the team. It will be interesting to see, nonetheless, to see who on the Raptors roster steps up to try and fill the shoes of two players anyone would love to have on their respective team.
Looking at the big picture of this entire organization, the Raptors are still a very good team. It goes without saying, however, that their odds in repeating themselves as NBA Champions has decreased a fair amount. It should also be said that this doesn’t necessarily mean that there’s no chance we’ll see the Raptors contending for the title, for it seems almost certain that they can at least make the Playoffs again this year. Whatever the case may be, the Raptors have many young players that they can and should focus on developing if they won’t to put themselves in a similar position as they did in the 2018-2019 season.
