Goooood morning, family. Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear. Thanks so much for rocking with me. I appreciate you.
THE MARCH MAILBOX IS HERE: Drop your questions in for the KYW mailbox! I’ll be bumping the date up to the 24th because I’ll be speaking at a symposium in Indy during the week of March 27.
Let’s jump in.
Ja dropped the ball
Ja Morant just continues to come dangerously close to completely fumbling the bag.
What’s happening: The Grizzlies point guard has been in the headlines over the last week for all of the wrong reasons.
First, there was a Washington Post article about two separate occasions where Morant had acts of aggression that led to police investigations, including one with a 17-year-old where Morant allegedly pulled a gun.
He followed up that drama by also posting a video of himself on Instagram live with a gun in a nightclub.
The aftermath: The Grizzlies have sent Morant away from the team for at least two games and it could potentially be more. Not a catastrophic result considering everything that’s happened, but definitely not anything anyone wants to see.
Along with Morant taking what seems like a forced leave of absence, he also issued an apology for his recent behavior and pledged to be better moving forward.
Let’s be reasonable here. It’s not uncommon for 23-year-olds to do stupid 23-year-old things. That’s what this is. We’ve all been there before.
On the other hand: Morant isn’t just a regular 23-year-old. He’s an NBA superstar with a $200 million contract and a signature shoe deal. There are lots of eyes on him and he’s got a lot to lose here.
My thoughts immediately went to Nike with this one, for obvious reasons.
The company just launched the Ja 1 with an April drop. This news is not a good look for one of the brand’s most electrifying athletes who is trying to sell a shoe.
On top of that, Nike also just dropped Kyrie Irving. Morant is stepping into that space.
Obviously, Morant’s rise with Nike has been in the works for a while. The brand didn’t drop Irving for him. But still, that’s how this will be perceived. The optics don’t look good and that matters.
Nike released a statement on Morant that signaled the brand is sticking by him, as it should.
“We appreciate Ja’s accountability and that he is taking the time to get the help he needs. We support his proirtization of his well-being.”
Let’s be real: This was never something Morant was going to get dropped for. He hasn’t been charged with any crimes here. There’s no long-term risk attached to Morant from these incidents at this point, so it’s safe to let it ride. Nike has also stood by other athletes who have done much, much more.
This is what we call strike one. If it keeps going? There’s no telling where things could go. No one wants to see things get that far.
I just hope the kid doesn’t keep tempting fate. Not only for the success that he’s having, but really, for his own safety.
I’ll leave y’all with these words from Jalen Rose on this.
New Balance has big plans, but how far can they go?
New Balance doesn’t plan on being one of the “others” for long, CEO Joe Preston indicated in an interview with Fortune.
What’s the news: In a series of interviews, Preston maintained confidence that New Balance could into the $10 billion sales threshold over the next five years. In an interview with Fortune, the CEO detailed all the reasons why New Balance will get there.
The numbers back his confidence up.
The brand hit the $5.3 billion revenue mark for 2022, which is reportedly a 21% year-over-year jump.
What it would mean: A $10 billion revenue mark wouldn’t put it on the same scale as the footwear world’s elite in Nike and Adidas — annual revenue for both brands regularly crosses that $20 billion mark. However, it would skyrocket NB beyond competitors like Under Armour ($5.8 billion) and the rapidly rising Puma ($8.5 billion).
On the other hand: You do have to wonder how far the company can expand by maintaining its status as a private organization.
In a separate interview with Yahoo! Finance, Preston made clear the company isn’t changing that status anytime soon.
“New Balance is a private organization. It's a family company. And there's no way that it will be going public in the near future…And today we have some of the same family values that we've had throughout the years, that are really strong, as we enter into 2023.”
Companies typically go public to allow themselves to pull more money from outside investors and speed up the scale. New Balance is intentionally cutting itself off from that option, which is peculiar in this sneaker space.
The biggest companies in the industry like Nike, Adidas and others are all publicly traded.
We’ve even seen companies like StockX pushing hard for IPOs for the same reasons detailed above.
Between the lines: For New Balance to continue to resist that temptation is peculiar, but it’s honestly fine. Being a private company creates less pressure for a brand to just constantly pump out product that doesn’t make a ton of sense like we see other brands doing.
This has worked to New Balance’s benefit and it will continue to. Maybe to a point. We’ll see what happens when the brand hits a wall, though.
A new addition to the Air Max family for Air Max Day
I, for one, am grateful for what looks like a quiet Air Max Month so far. No Concepts collabs, no Patta joints. Just a new, cool model to appreciate.
What’s happening: The newest thing is the Air Max Pulse, which seems to be the successor to the Air Max 270.
My thoughts: These joints are refreshing to me.
At a time when retro has dominated and so many companies don’t seem to have my fresh ideas, this definitely feels like one.
It’s got that same heel Air unit the 270, but the upper is different. It’s got a mid-2000s vibe coming from that leather mudguard that allows it to be familiar while also feeling a bit futuristic.
Retro is nice. And collaborations can be nice, too. But the regular, GR sneakers are the backbone for all of this. It felt like a while since we got one of those that felt unique. This carries that vibe to me. Hopefully, it sticks.
It’s Cement 3 week
Here’s a quick reminder of what we’re after.
Y’all. This might be the greatest Jordan sneaker ever, with all due respect to the AJ1, AJ4 and AJ11.
This is the joint that kept Mike at Nike. He was ready to dip after Peter Moore and Bruce Kilgore’s Air Jordan 2.
The Jordan 1 is important, but this is the Jordan sneaker. When Mike won the 1988 Dunk contest in these it took his brand to another level. The Jordan 1 put him on the radar but this made him an absolute star like no other.
This is also Tinker Hatfield’s first Air Jordan sneaker. It started a legendary run from the Jordan 3 to the Jordan 15.
I can’t wait to get my pair.
Required reading: A history of the Air Jordan 3.
What’s droppin, bruh?
Air Max 97 “Gold Bullet” — Tuesday, March 7
Tiffany & Co. x Nike Air Force 1 — Tuesday, March 7
Nike Dunk Low “Sashiko Demin” — Wednesday, March 8
Nike Air Max 1 “Shima Shima” — Friday, March 10
Air Jordan 3 Reimagined” — Saturday, March 11
Thanks so much for rocking with me, fam. Appreciate y’all. Don’t forget to get those questions in.
Let’s chat again on Friday. Until next time, peace and love. Be easy, be safe and be kind. And we out.
-Sykes 💯