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words // Nick DePaula:
The actual 66th NBA All-Star Game was fairly underwhelming to most, as the endless open paint dunks and general lack of intensity throughout made for a pretty lackluster showcase of the league’s top talents. The game fell flat for most of the night, with defense beyond an afterthought.
With the host city changing locations from Charlotte to New Orleans this past summer, and brands scrambling to either shift their themed footwear stories or ditch them altogether, the All-Star sneakers worn on Sunday night also took on a different tone than in year’s past.
Twenty-one of the twenty-five players named to the game are under the Nike Inc. umbrella, allowing for the brand to showcase its Black History Month collection, rather than models featuring a theme tying back to host city, as has been the case for the last decade. The non-Nike players, like James Harden and Kyle with adidas, Klay Thompson in Anta, and Stephen Curry in Under Armour, each utilized more splashes of color and graphics atop their sneakers, sticking out from the black and white motif of most of Nike Basketball’s roster.
Check out all of the best Kicks On Court from Sunday night’s All-Star Game, and let us know your favorites in the comments section below. With next year’s All-Star Weekend shifting to Los Angeles, what are you hoping to see from the sneakers and uniforms?
