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Tomorrow, the 2018-19 NBA Season effectively begins motion with the 2018 NBA Draft. While rookies will look to put their footprint on the game and the culture, they’ll have to put in major work to outshine our 2017-18 Kicks on Court First Team.
Led by our KOC champ and the NBPA’s Sneaker Champ, PJ Tucker, we see stars from all over the league fill in the spots of our footwear five.
From guard to center, see our picks for the best in kicks from the NBA season that just was.
Nick Young
Best Wears: adidas BYW PEs, adidas Yeezy 500, adidas Crazy 8, adidas Gil II Zero, adidas T-MAC 3 PEs, adidas T-MAC 5 PEs, adidas Crazy 97, adidas Pro Model PEs (see them all here)
Swaggy P made the most of his move to the title-winning Warriors by breaking out everything the adidas archive had to offer. From Benihana x adidas Gil II Zeros to Pro Model PEs, Young kept it retro while still juicing new models like the BYW and Crazy Explosive. A team player yet still swaggy.
Jimmy Butler
Best Wears: Eminem x Carhartt x Air Jordan 4, Air Jordan XXX2 PEs, Air Jordan 12 “Wool,” Air Jordan 5 “Quai 54,” Air Jordan 3 “BHM,” Air Jordan 18 “Veteran’s Day” PE, Air Jordan 10 PE
It was in the stars — or at least in his initials — for Jimmy Butler to be on JB. Since joining Jordan Brand, he’s juiced Super.Fly and signature models in team tones proving a good company man. Since moving to Minnesota, the Jumpman has made good on his humble ways in Chicago by lacing the All-Star wing in PE pairs both retro and new. Even better? He snuck into the brand vault this year on multiple occasions by shocking fans with Eminem collabs and BHM favorites.
LeBron James
Best Wears: Nike LeBron 15 #LeBronWatch PEs, Nike Zoom Soldier III, Kith x Nike LeBron 15s (see them all here)
The best player in the world should have the best kicks, too, right? For a minute, King James could claim the former but not the latter. Over the course of the 2017-18 season, LeBron and Jason Petrie quieted any critics by shaking up the LeBron 15 rollout with the #LeBronWatch PE program. Paying tribute to Deion Sanders, Vince Carter and even a younger Bron, fans drooled as they watched the best in the game add to his decorated KOC catalog.
PJ Tucker
Best Wears: Where do we start? See ALL of them here
Simply put, PJ Tucker may be the greatest KOC star we’ve ever seen. Yes, Gilbert started it all and yes, Swaggy P continued it, but PJ has truly taken the trend to new heights. Years in the making, the man who does the dirty work on the court proved to have the cleanest kicks in the league by a longshot.
Montrezl Harrell
Best Wears: Air Jordan 5 “Raging Bull,” Nike Air More Uptempo “Doernbecher,” Air Jordan XX9 Custom, Air Jordan 1 “Gatorade” Orange, Kith x Nike LeBron 15, Nike Kobe 11 “Sunset,” Jordan Melo 1.5 PE, Nike LeBron 9 “Cannon,” Nike Kobe 8 “Extraterrestrial,” PSNY x Air Jordan XV, Nike LeBron Soldier III, Off-White x Air Jordan 1, Air Jordan 11 “Cool Grey,” Air Jordan 12 “Doernbecher,” Nike LeBron X “Cork,” Nike KD IV “Gold Medal,” Air Jordan 8 “Doernbecher,” Nike LeBron III Low
The lone big on our list, Montrezl Harrell has the hurdle of finding heat in a huge size. Well, Trez has more than made the leap since landing in LA with a rotation that includes everything from comic customs to runway wears from Kith and PSNY. Throw in a solid dose of vault LeBrons, Kobes and KDs and you have a perennial KOC standout in the making.
