KYW Mailbox — 📥 NIL thoughts, the most important sneakers ever and more
I finally answer y'alls podcast question, too.
Goooood morning, family. Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear. Thank you so much for rocking with me today. I appreciate you!
HOUSEKEEPING: KYW will be out next Friday and the following Monday. I’ll be on the road again heading to NYC this time. Should be a blast. Hopefully, I’ll have some cool sneaker stories when I get back. Hit me up if you’re out there.
Alright, people. It’s mailbag day.
What impact do you think NIL (college and high school level) will have on the sneaker game?
Name, image and likeness deals have already had a profound impact on the sneaker industry.
What’s happening: Brands are tossing these deals around the same way that Oprah used to toss out free cars.
Nike just signed 5 basketball players to NIL deals this fall. Only two of them (Haley Jones, Caitlin Clark) were actually in college already. Bronny James, DJ Wagner and Judea Watkins are all still in high school.
Jordan Brand signed Kiyomi McMiller to a deal, too. She hasn’t picked where she’s going to school yet but she joins UCLA’s Kiki Rice as Jordan’s NIL athletes.
Adidas signed a number of college hoopers to deals as well as 15 female student-athletes, including LSU’s Hailey Van-Lith, to deals, too.
Do you see what I’m saying here? It’s a lot. We’re only just scratching the surface.
The why: It’s the discovery of it all.
Nike wants to sign Caitlin Clark, for example, so that when she gets to the WNBA and it’s time for her to get a signature sneaker, the brand already has an inroad.
The more athletes these brands scoop up the better. It doesn’t matter what sport it is — if there’s long-term potential then the spend is worth it.
And let’s keep this all in perspective — we’re not talking about mega deals here. Bronny James is the highest-paid NIL athlete with $7.4 million in cash coming to him. Nike’s bag only has to be a chunk of that. That’s barely a drop in the bucket for Nike and that’s for LeBron’s son. Now think about what everyone else might get.
I’m sure there’s a set budget for it all but it certainly doesn’t feel like it. These companies are the new bag man — just with unlimited amounts to spend over the table.
That’s why these deals will keep coming and student-athlete value will keep climbing. It’s not even just the sneaker brands that are invested in this. As the industry continues to grow we’ll even see secondary and tertiary companies throwing their hats into the NIL ring.
Paige Bueckers signed a deal back in 2021 with StockX, for example.
The other side: While brands have been tripping over themselves to spend all of this money on student-athletes, the space has largely gone unregulated. That’s probably going to change soon.
During the men’s college basketball tournament this year, newly minted NCAA president Charlie Baker talked about needing to bring some regulation to the table for the NIL space.
I am absolutely not on the side of the NCAA here, but student-athletes definitely need a little more security here.
These deals aren’t guaranteed. For example, QB Jaden Rashada signed a $13 million deal with the University of Florida fan club “The Gator Collective” that completely fell through. He lost out on all that money.
On top of that, there are still gender pay gaps and racial disparities that need to be fixed too.
So, while there are already commitments being made by sneaker companies, the landscape is still largely unsettled. We don’t truly know what the future of the space looks like.
Regardless, that won’t stop your favorite sneaker companies from investing. The sneaker world has embraced the NIL world and it’s not letting go anytime soon. I just can’t wait until we see our first college signature athlete.
What are the top 5 most important sneakers…
The reader continues…but you can only choose one from each brand.
Yo…really? Seriously? Naaaah. This is a setup. Wow. What a fantastic question. I just know y’all finna roast me for this one. That’s OK, though. I’m here for it.
Feel free to debate this — my word is not gospel. But these are the 5 most important shoes in sneakers by my estimation. Here we go.
In no particular order:
The Air Jordan 1: This one is kind of self-explanatory. Without this shoe, the biggest sneaker company in the world simply does not exist in the way it does. The way we think about collaborations and signature athletes all started right here with this sneaker. It paved the way.
The Converse All-Star: I mean this in the most endearing way possible, but this shoe is the cockroach of the sneaker game. It just…survives No matter what. No matter when. This shoe has been around since 1917. It’s developed color and personality. It’s been worn across different time periods by different people with different beliefs. It’s been dressed up. It’s been dressed down. Yet, it’s always remained the same. It’s just so solid.
The Air Force 1: If there was ever a shoe that represented the backbone of sneaker culture, it’s this one. This sneaker — originally built for basketball in 1982 — gradually evolved into a cult classic that bled into the lifestyle sector as generations passed by. Outside of the Jordan 1, I think this is simply the most culturally relevant sneaker we have. And I look so stupid in them.
The Ultra Boost 1.0: This will probably take so many of you for a loop. But this is the shoe that made Kanye West’s Adidas run what it was. This sneaker served as, both, the foundation for Yeezy and the staple for everything Adidas has done over the last decade and change. That Yeezy deal was extremely impactful for Adidas and, obviously, it crashed and burned but there’s no debating how fruitful it was.
The Onitsuka Corsair: I mean, this is kind of cheating. Because while this isn’t a Nike shoe, without this sneaker there is no Nike. So maybe it does fall into that Nike category? I don’t know. But this is the sneaker that Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman
stolemorphed into the Cortez. And that changed running shoes forever.
ALRIGHT. NOW COME AT ME.
I’m just curious what your take on the recent ASICS collabs
The reader continues…and just the movement of ASICS as a brand in the sneaker space is. Do you think they’ll reach the heights that other former-cult brands like New Balance have?
I think Asics is in a pretty great spot right now. The brand has had a pretty amazing run since around late 2020. It’s niche fanbase has only grown in recent years.
The most impressive part: The brand has kept this momentum growing while also slowing things down with its best model in the Gel-Lyte III following Shigeyuki Mitsui’s retirement.
Asics’ collaborations have been at the center of that. They’ve been phenomenal. The brand has used them to not only energize already existing silhouettes but also launch new ones.
The Gel-NYC looks like it’ll be an absolute hit and the Awake NYC collab really set it off.
Hal Studios’ Gel-1130 collab is putting some eyes on an extremely underrated silhouette.
The EX-89 brings a vintage style to a contemporary model and that KITH collab was also awesome.
Zoom out: This has helped translate to wider success across the brand and particularly steady growth in North America — arguably the most important market in sneakers. Asics’ sales jumped by 22% in the region for 2022, per SGB Media.
We’ll see if this results in a New Balance like explosion in the next few years. But I don’t think there’s any debating that the brand is on the right track if that’s the direction it wants to go in.
I’m selfish, though. I hope it stays niche. More for me.
When are you going to do a pod?
The reader continues…the sneaker space needs more prominent voices from BIPOCs.
I 1000% hear you on this. It’s totally true. We need more voices in this sneaker media space that aren’t just white men. I would love to do a podcast.
But, y’all. I am tired.
I’ve got my work at For The Win full-time where I cover sports on the editorial side — specifically with the NBA.
I’ve also got the Kicks You Wear, obviously, in newsletter format that takes a bit of time
I’ve also got Special Delivery that I work with USA TODAY’s video team and For The Win on.
There are some days when I just don’t have it and I somehow find a way to push through. And, sometimes, that requires me to sacrifice a little bit more family time. I’m thankful to have been blessed enough to build this platform to share with you all. I hope you all still enjoy it. I’ve given it my everything for these last few years and it’s truly fulfilling.
If there’s ever room for a pod, I’ll do it. In the meantime, though, invite me on your podcast. I’ll definitely talk to you.
If I just decided to start getting into sneakers, how do I catch up to speed?
By reading the Kicks You Wear, of course! I’m kidding, I’m kidding. Kind of.
No, but seriously. I think the thing that most people run into when diving into sneakers for the first time is the feeling that they need to catch up. You don’t! Just do your thing, homie!
That’s what sneaker culture is all about. It’s feeling things out and catching your own vibe. Finding the sneakers that represent you. That journey can start anywhere.
For one person, that journey can start with a sweet pair of Jordan 1s that someone gifted them.
For someone else, it might start with a nice pair of Hokas they picked up off of their local clearance rack at Ross.
If you’re more interested in history then I think reading everything you can is essential. That doesn’t just stop at this newsletter. I’d also recommend:
I think, between all of that, you’ll find your passions.
If you were building your own sneaker brand from the ground up…
The reader continues…who are the celebrity/athlete endorsers you would most want on board?
I’ll keep it simple. The answer is Wale. Y’all knew the answer was Wale. If you didn’t, you know now. That’s my guy.
My dream collab: He’s my favorite rapper and has influenced me in so many different ways — especially in my sneakers. It also helps that he’s a super duper sneakerhead.
I’m going to date myself a bit here, but this song from Wale’s Hate is the New Love mixtape from 2008 had me chasing after so many Dunks back in the day.
No idea what our first sneaker collab would look like but I guarantee you it’d be DMV-centric.
#TheKicksWeWear
YAKWTFGO. LET’S GET IT.
First, the homie Juli came through with these FIRE Air Forces in pink. Lovely.
Then the homie J Block came through with the Salehe Crocs. My man said he don’t even wear sneaks no more. That’s how good these are.
My guy Warren popped out in the Ambush Air Adjust Force and, yeah, he really got these joints on. SHEESH.
The homie Rube came through in the Nike SB x Air Jordan 4 joints and they are SO GOOOOOD YALL.
Then my boy E Thorpe closed us out with the ALD x New Balance 860v2 in that Eagles green and YESSIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRRR.
Y’ALL SMOKED IT. SHEESH.
Thank you so much for rocking with me, fam! Appreciate y’all. Amazing questions. You’re the absolute best.
Let’s chat again on Monday. Until then, peace and love. Be easy, be safe, be kind. And we out. Ima go play Star Wars now.
-Sykes💯
Want to jump on my podcast and talk about sneaker packaging and the importance of the box design for the collector and resellers alike?
DMV guy not putting NB 990 in the top five?!? smh smh haha