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category 1: history
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the converse
the converse were the first shoes to be made for basketball although not very comfortable they have always been a popular shoe outside of basketball -
nike bruin
the bruins were the first basketball shoe made by Nike. its main claim to fame is that it was worn by Marty Mcfly in the movie back to the future -
the jordan line
the Jordan line is one of the most iconic because of its simple recognizable design and also being a Nike collab with the "greatest athlete of all time" -
category 2 fashion/street wear
- the Nike dunks
- converse all star
- Jordan 1
- Yeezy qntm
- the Nike blazers
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category 3 technology
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carbon fiber
carbon fiber is a technology that originated from a Jordan. carbon fiber can be used on both the midsole and upper for support and it makes the shoe lighter -
category 4: modern shoes
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nike air unit
the Nike air unit was one of the first technologies used for basketball shoes. the air inside the shoe was meant to compress and then rebound when you left the ground. -
reebok pump
the reebok pumps also used air but instead of using it for jump power, it was used for ankle support. the tongue of the shoe has an air pump with an airbag on the inside of the tongue so when it's worn the airbag would rap around the wearer's ankle -
jordan 36
jordan 36 is one of Nike's best modern basketball shoes. it has great grip and responsive cushioning. the Nike zoom air units also provide great bounce power. -
category 5: athlete colabs
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jordan and nike
the most notable of all is of course Michael Jordan. when Jordan got asked by Nike to sign with him he was hesitant because he wanted to sign with Adidas. but he ended up signing with Nike because his mother made him visit the Nike campus and nike offered him 250,000 dollars and a signature shoe. Jordan is now making 150 million dollars a year from nike. -
shaq and reebok
in 1992 at the start of his career Shaq O'neal signed a 40 million dollar 5-year contract with reebok. one time a woman yelled at him over how expensive his shoes were so he offered her $2000 dollars and she slapped it out of his hand just to make the point. that event caused Shaq to leave reebok and create his own shoe with Walmart. the point of shaqs was to make poorer families able to afford nicer-looking shoes. shaq has sold over 400 million pairs of his shoes at Walmart -
lebron and nike
Lebron James also signed with Nike in 2003 for a seven-year contract. before Lebron got the offer from Nike he got asked by reebok for a 115 million dollar contract before nikes 90 million dollar offer. but Lebron chose Nike because he wanted to be like Jordan. LeBron now makes 30 million dollars a year from Nike -
lebron 20
the lebron 20 is also one of the best out right now. it has zoom air units in both the heel and forefoot. Lebron himself said these were made for the next generation and made to look low profile. -
kyrie 8/infinity
the kyrie 8 has been voted the best basketball shoe of 2022 so far. although the midsole is made of EVA foam it contains (like the other ones) a zoom air unit in the heel. also the kyrie infinite is made with an XDR outsole so it's more wear-resistant on outdoor courts