KYW Monthly Mailbag — 📥 RIP Chris Printup, the Jordan 1 cooldown and more
It's mail time, folks!
Gooooood morning, family. Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear. Thank you so much for rocking with me today. Appreciate you. Hope you have a fantastic week coming to you.
HOUSEKEEPING: After Monday’s send the newsletter will be out until July 17. Me and the wife are traveling a bit to celebrate our 1st anniversary. Should be a blast.
Let’s jump in.
The Born x Raised problem feels familiar
To be fully transparent with you all, this isn’t actually a question anyone sent in. But I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about the death of Chris “Spanto” Printup, the founder of Born x Raised.
First things first: Rest in peace to Printup who tragically died in a car accident earlier this week. He was very obviously a man who meant so much to so many people.
Surely, you all have seen the outpouring of love and kind things people have had to say about him online. Everyone from Jerry Lorenzo to the LA Rams took to social media to show love.
It’s also very clear Printup meant a lot to his community. What kind of person gifts and entire graduating class pairs of sneakers? That’s awesome, man.
Lots of people are going to miss this man. That’s what matters, first and foremost, before we talk about anything else.
The timing: Printup’s brand, Born x Raised, was set to release a Nike SB collaboration in about a month on July 21.
Once again, now, we have to watch as these brands navigate an impossible situation that, honestly, I’m just not sure there’s truly a good way to handle. That situation is the release of this sneaker.
So far, Nike has indefinitely delayed the release of these sneakers. The shoe was removed from the SNKRS app on Wednesday and, by Thursday, the company released a statement confirming the postponement, per Complex’s Brendan Dunne.
“Nike, Inc. mourns the loss of Born x Raised founder Chris ‘Spanto’ Printup. … Out of respect for his family, friends, and the Venice community, we are postponing the launch of our collection.”
That certainly didn’t stop the leeches from leeching. Prices of the upcoming Dunk collaboration jumped up overnight after news of Printup’s death got out.
Credit to StockX and eBay on this one. I couldn’t find any listings of the Dunks on eBay. StockX eventually paused the sale of the shoes.
GOAT seemingly still has things going, unfortunately.
It’s so familiar: We’ve seen this before. This is Kobe and Virgil all over again. Eventually, Nike will sell those shoes. That StockX freeze will stop. The money will flow because that’s just how it works in our world where capital is king and souls don’t matter.
This is the fate of those who move culture. In a way, it’s nice that the work that they did was — and continues to be — so long lasting. But, on the other hand, it’s kind of sad. Because do they ever get to truly rest in peace?
These legends are literally being sold to us. They’re the ones keeping the lights on — even in death. Something about that doesn’t feel quite right. And, sure, the perfunctory charity donations feel great for a bit. But none of that matters again when you see yet another pair of Kobes that were once on clearance racks being sold online for $800. Or the fact that Nike is launching a Kobe Brand this summer without Kobe Bryant being here.
That’s the fate that awaits the Born x Raised SBs. Printup’s literal heritage is going to keep the cash flowing and it’ll do so in perpetuity — or, at least, until people move on and become fixated on the next thing. Then that’s the new cash cow until it isn’t. That’s exhausting to think about.
So what do we do? To be honest, I don’t have a good answer. Nike isn’t just going to not sell these shoes. The brand went through the trouble of creating them, marketing them and pushing them out. Simply put, the company has invested in them. It is going to want its money back.
With that being said, there are some things that I think would love to see.
It’d be amazing if there were a large allotment of pairs that were donated to folks in Venice — the community Printup loved so much.
It won’t happen, but it’d also be very cool to every penny from the sales go to a charity or organization that Printup, himself, created or supported.
Let’s be real: That’s not going to completely make up for everything, but that’s a start. I just hope that, whatever happens from here, Printup’s loved ones will be considered.
That’s what matters most now.
Is Air Jordan 1 Hype Really Over?
I’ve been wrestling with this question all day long, man. Everyone wants to know what’s up with the Jordan 1 hype — same for some pairs of Dunks, too.
Where we are: For the last 3 years, pairs of Jordan 1s have been flying off shelves like nobody’s business. No matter what pair or what colorway, everyone wanted a pair of Jordan 1s.
The landscape is totally different now.
Not only are Jordan 1s not selling out immediately, but they’re also actually just…sitting there.
Pairs like the Elephant Print 1s, for example, dropped back in early May. You can buy that right now. In 2021? You’d have no shot.
So, to get back to the question, is the AJ1 hype dead? It’s kind of a cop-out, but I believe the answer is actually both yes and no.
OK, let me explain: I know that’s the easy way out, y’all. But it’s true.
Why it’s yes: People aren’t as excited as they once were about the Jordan 1, to be blunt. The fatigue factor here is real. It’s understandable after 3 years of being inundated with pair after pair and colorway after colorway.
If people wanted these shoes, they’d buy them. It’s why Nike executives are reportedly concerned about finding the next big innovation — they know people have moved on.
Secondary market prices have also dropped, indicating that there is less interest in
Why it’s also no: Because, well, y’all remember the Lost & Found Air Jordan 1 restock. YOU try to buy a pair of Chicago 1s for retail. You can’t.
Even the Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse pair went crazy fast. That’s a shoe that people were excited about.
So, no, Jordan 1s aren’t in the same spot they were in a year or two ago. Some people are tired of them, for sure.
But those same people will line up for the right pair of Js right after they complain about how the market is oversaturated.
Would you call that dead? I’m not sure if I would.
Who are some former athletes that you wish had a signature shoe?
The reader continues: Additionally which brand would you have liked to see them collab with?
Maya freakin’ Moore, man. I am going to forever be upset that we never got a Maya Moore signature shoe. It was RIGHT THERE. She was a layup.
For the non-WNBA heads: Maya Moore was arguably the greatest player that we’d ever seen come into the WNBA. Her resume is insane.
In eight years, she was an All-Star six times. She was a four-time WNBA Champion and an MVP once in 2014.
She was so clutch. She hit timely shots, got every bucket and played elite defense. There was just nobody better, man. She’s the best player I’ve ever seen.
And the thing was she was signed to JORDAN BRAND. Maybe the GOAT WNBA player could’ve collaborated on a signature sneaker with maybe the GOAT NBA player and it would’ve been awesome.
Instead, all we got was…some pairs of Jordan 10s. They weren’t bad. But they certainly weren’t enough.
That dream of a Maya Moore signature sneaker officially retired when she did. But, man. I just feel like that would’ve been such an awesome thing for basketball as a sport.
I’m just glad we’re seeing more WNBA signature athletes now.
What are your favorite pickups so far this year?
You’re kind of putting me on the spot here with this one. I’ve purchased 11 pairs of sneakers so far this year, which feels like a good number to be at in June. It’s a lot, yeah. But considering where I was last year? I’m good with this.
My favorite? That’s tough. But I think I’m going to go with the Joe FreshGoods 610? I just cannot stop wearing them.
First of all, the 610 is comfortable as hell. I don’t know what it is about these joints but they just fit me perfectly.
Secondly, it’s not just the JFG joints. I think I’m in love with the 610 period — I’m eying a few more colorways. And these Bodega joints that just came in are AMAZING.
Honorable mention: The Hal Studios Gel-1130 is probably my second favorite shoe this year so far. Shoutout to my homie, B Mart, who peer-pressured me into copping them. I’m forever indebted and cannot wait for the Glacier pair to come out.
#TheKicksWeWear
First, the homie Yosh popped out in the Pride Chucks. These are SICK. Happy Pride, family!
My guy Warren came through with the lemon Vomeros and, YOOOOOOOOO. I need my pair ASAP.
The homie Max brought out a classic with the Sacai Waffles and I don’t see these getting enough love these days. These are sick and always will be sick.
The homie Saoirse popped out in the Air More Uptempos in that classic Bulls colorway. Somewhere, Scottie Pippen is pleased.
My dog Big Crawf popped out in these Big Bubble Maxes and the immaculately sculpted calfs. Gotta love it.
Then the homie Andrew took us home with these Travis joints that he SOMEHOW scooped off of Tradeblock. Never thought I’d see the day, man. WHAT. A. STEAL.
SMOKED THAT. SHEEEEEEESH.
Thank you so much for rocking with me today, family. I appreciate you. Y’all are the best.
Let’s chat again on Monday. Until next time. Peace and love. Be safe. Be easy. Be kind. And we out.
-Sykes💯