What They’re Wearing – That New New
credit: Sixers.com
Newness is something that we relish this time of year. We get new things for Christmas (or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa or whatever you celebrate). We ring in the New Year. And for some of us, we add a few new inches to our waistline.
The Sixers are giving us some newness as well. The new Nike Earned jerseys have been released. They are a white version of the gray City uniform that was released last month. They’ll be worn for the first time against the Celtics on Christmas Day.
Christmas Day snow in Boston?
2018/19 @nike Earned Edition pic.twitter.com/cTNmeswE28
— Chris Heck (@chrisheck76) December 12, 2018
In regards to the sneakers, I’ll break down the new (and some old) on feet offerings from the last four games.
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Jimmy Butler
Let’s start with the player we’ve started the past few weeks with. He wore a new Jordan model against the Raptors last week. Though he debuted them back in November when he was still a member of the Timberwolves, this is the first time we’ve seen the new Jordan Supreme Elevation since Jimmy has been in town. These feature a forefoot and ankle strap and a flyknit design similar to the Air Jordan 32.
Jimmy Butler debuted the Jordan Supreme Elevation last night in LA: https://t.co/BL8fPJvOQ7 pic.twitter.com/7tkveTnvas
— SLAM (@SLAMonline) November 8, 2018
He didn’t wear anything new versus the Pistons on the 7th, but he definitely turned some heads. Butler wore the Air Jordan XX8 “Red Elephant” in the first half. This model features an extended zippered shroud that covers the whole upper. This model (though not in this colorway) are a favorite of De’Aaron Fox in Sacramento.
He changed into the Air Jordan XX9 “Team Orange” in the second half. The XX9 has been a favorite of Jimmy since joining the Sixers. This is one of the more underrated signature models that Jordan has released since Michael himself retired. He wore a low version of the Air Jordan XX9 in a white, red, and black Bulls colorway in his short stint in Detroit a few nights later.
Ben Simmons
Ben has primarily worn the Nike Hyperdunk 2017 for essentially his whole career thus far. He changed it up in the terrible loss to the Nets on Wednesday night. He moved on to the Nike Hyperdunk X in a clean white colorway with hits of red and blue. We’ll see if he sticks with the new model in upcoming games.
It looks like the Nike Hyperdunk X is here to stay for Ben. He wore a black version with red to blue gradient on the mid-sole. These are nice and understated, but solid per usual.
Joel Embiid
Under Armour provided Joel with what looks like a Christmas version of the HOVR Havoc. These are nice, albeit understated.
Joel stepped out in what may end up being dubbed the “Process 1s” in his monster game against Indiana. The sneaker was the Under Armour HOVR Havoc that he’s been wearing since signing with the brand with a red upper with “The Process” written on a white background around the heel. Let’s hope there are more colors coming of these.
#TheProcess with a new pair. 👀#NBAKicks x #HereTheyCome pic.twitter.com/NojKTzAZVt
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) December 15, 2018
TJ McConnell
Speaking of Under Armour, it seems that our favorite underdog has signed a new contract with the brand. Based on my research, it looks like be began wearing an all-blue version of the UA HOVR Havoc Low on November 28 vs. the Knicks. I personally apologize to TJ for not reporting on this sooner. Get your paper, bro.
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Toronto Raptors
There is a lot to discuss with the Raptors. Let’s start with Danny Green. He broke out a new version of the Puma Clyde Court Disrupt. Aptly referred to as “Ocean Drive” by the brand, these are beautiful.
The other news that broke recently regarding the Raptors is that Kawhi Leonard has signed an endorsement deal with New Balance. He’s still wearing the Air Jordan 32 Low on court, and he probably will be for the foreseeable future considering there has been no buzz regarding an upcoming NB basketball model. I think this is a great move for New Balance. Yeah, Kawhi is an odd guy who doesn’t seem to have a personality, but he’s also one of the five best players in the league. And for Leonard, he turned down Jordan’s $20 million dollar offer because he (or his people) felt like he wasn’t being valued. He is the new face of basketball for a major player in the sneaker market.
New Balance does have a history in basketball. James Worthy wore the NB 790 on his way to the 1988 NBA Finals MVP. As for recent on court action, Matt Bonner is usually where people’s minds go. He (im)famously wore the New Balance BB 8026 Zip (a sneaker released in 2008) until he literally ran out of them in 2014. New Balance also created a basketball model for tennis player Milos Raonic when he played in the 2016 Celebrity Game All Star Weekend in Toronto. They honestly looked pretty good. I’m excited to see what New Balance cooks up for Kawhi. Who knows, maybe we’ll see something at this year’s All Star Game.
Credit: NewBalance.com
Detroit Pistons
We’ve seen enough from the Pistons this season – nothing new.
Brooklyn Nets
The only thing of note from the Nets is What They’re Wearing favorite, Spence Dinwiddie. As noted previously, he wears a custom model of his KAIROS 8.1 for every game. On Wednesday in the Well Fargo, he wore sneakers featuring Dr. J playing for the Nets on one side and Sixers on the other. Also, he scored 39 points and signed a $34 million contract extension. Good for him.
Indiana Pacers
Myles Turner showed up to the game in some custom Nike PG 2.5 by world-renowned sneaker customizer Mache celebrating the release of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Check out Mache’s stuff. He’s a great Instagram follow.
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With all of the news circulating the past week or so, we may see some new players in a Sixers soon. That just means more sneaker news to digest and discuss.
Stay tuned.
