Nice topic Isaac,

My fave pair would had to have been my Reebok Pumps. Loved those shoes.

Most expensive would have been a pair of Jordan's paid like $380.

Currently wearing a pair of Jordan 1's.

Would have to be when the Converse AllStar first came in. I think the only place to buy them (in SA) was from Rowe & Jarman when they had a small store in a lane on the other side of Grenfell St. Shit, that's going back too far.

Flight '89s in orange, navy blue and royal blue.

Also loved the Jordan XI Low SE

Favourite pair of basketball shoes would have been my Penny Hardaway version of Nike Air Ups, they were black and blue with no. 1 on the back. Most comfortable pair of BBall shoes I had even worn.

The all time classic Jordan IV Black

I rememeber a guy at school circa 1992 buying some Jordan 1's off of the guy who filled the school's vending machine for like $200....they were thrashed and falling apart.


Also remember the Jordan 5 glowing tongue...did anyone's team photos turn out good that year as all you could see what the flash bouncing off the silver stuff on the tongue.

My favorite pair of shoes were the 03 Nike shox. i currently wear 05 nike shox.

I remember playing footy with a guy that had 4 pairs of the Jordan IV, black, bulls colour(black red and white), grey and I think carolina version-blue and white.

Why would u have 4 versions of the same pair of shoes. I think this person had too much money!

My favourite's were a pair of Nike Flights, can't for the life of me remember their exact name but Jason Kidd wore them, they were grey, white and a little bit of black on them with wave like patterns down the side. I think they were his second shoe after the low cut ones with the weird shiney ball thing on the shoe near the small toe. Went through three pairs of them because the sole kept pealing. Would've kept going with them but they stopped making them.
Isn't it funny though how when you wore the Jordan IV's and the earlier models how you thought at the time "shit these are comfy", then when you buy the re released versions you can't believe how uncomfortable they are!!!

Was thinking the same thing Panther. Could not afford 4's forst time around so got them this time and thought man i have been waiting almost 15 years for this? What was everyone on about back then?

Just rememebered the Nike TW's. The TW was for Tumble Wash so you could just chuck them in the washing machine for a fresh clean pair of kicks.

Dr B, wait for Nino to get onto this thread -- he has more pairs than any woman I know, including sizes that aren't even close to fitting him. Some people just like collecting stuff.

I absolutley loved my Iverson's 'The Answer #1' the shiny blue ones!!! awesome bball shoes!

my faviourite shoes, i never owned. They were the LA Gear lights. Would flash when you step. Saw them as a kid in the States, not sure if they ever made it here. The novelty never really caught on anyway...

Dr Dunk, you weren't missing much. I had a pair in about '93, which I got from overseas.

What about the LA Gear Catapults that got banned in the NBA because they were supposed to give you extra jumping ability.

My son has a pair of Bob the Builder shoes that flash when he walks.

Kent Brockman, I heard that story as well about the LA Gear catapults being banned back in 91 or something.
Funny thing is 2 years ago Luke Walton from Lakers had LA Gear signature shoes which had the catapult system in them.
Did anyone ever have a pair of the first Nike Air Hurrache basketball boot, they had little to no ankle support, but the grip on them was great.

MM, reminds me of this:

Philippe's New Shoes

(Aside for those wondering WTF Philippe is.)

Philippe is a naïve young lactose-intolerant otter. He is separated from his mother, who lives elsewhere in an undisclosed location, but they talk on the phone frequently.

Though he is only five years old, Philippe has had an exciting life. He has made friends with a french fry, been married to a flower, had a frightening encounter with a serial killer, been possessed by the soul of Billy Idol, run for president, and accidentally killed a robot.

Philippe enjoys hugs and is very gullible.

That was good

Best ever pair? Nike Air Force 180s, as worn by David Robinson in the early 1990s. Paid $400+ for them retail. They had pumps around the ankle and arch of the foot. Very high cut around the ankle and damn comfy (white, with a tinge of green and black).

The leather broke on mine and I cashed them in for a pair Reebok Omnizone IVs (and they were awesome shoes too) and Air Force 180s.

Have to say the Jordan XI's as my all time favourite back about 4 or 5 years ago but right now would have to say the Jordan XX's are my favourite.
Can't wait for the Jordan XIV's coming out soon!

Moses , those pump 180's, were they the ones which had a switch or dial, that you could pump up different sections of the shoe?
I remember Reebok had a version, I think called "The Switch" which did that, but I though Nike had them as well.
Or I'm talking ouit my arse and have no idea.

kent you know those catapults gave me extra hops.
the first nike pumps (green & white) not the 180 version.
180's
jordan iii, iv, v & vi's
cons 250s carolina blue

Favourite would have to be the Jordan X Retro's all Black.
Feel good on, good support and grip glue.

Air jordan 11 white/white All Star edition with just a touch of baby blue. You cant beat white patent leather!

hmmmmmm tough one here, i dont think i can pick one shoe, but i can pick a few out, like my shox stunners, jordan dj 2, huarache (old skool) and 2k4 and 2k5, shox bomber, jordan 3. but ofcourse prolly the shoe i want more than anything would have to be the rasheed air force 1's, seriously is there anymore of a shoe that just screams retro? wouldnt mind pair of the old nike pumps rodman used to wear, seen them go for about $1000 US on ebay once.

I know they have been much maligned , but i had a pair of the SHAQ (Reebok) Insta-Pumps - other than the stupid gas cylinder issue, they were REALLY REALLY comfortable .
When i took them to school - no one knew what the gas injector would do to you - they all ran away when i was pumping them up the first time.

They looked mean as too .

Nike Air Hurrache's were good too - until i found out the flames on the back resembled the Islamic "gay rapist god" symbol. Nike quickly recalled them .

My favourite is the PUMA LUFTS 2, high tops with velcro strap. The general wore them for years!!
Had the LA gear catapults,didnt help my leap much!!
What about the LA gear REGULATORS!!?? they were kinda like the reebok pump system

Dunlop Volleys - canvas,
not the greatest ankle support but the Aussie equivilent to the Chuck Taylors.

Moved into a pair of Asics - awesome grip

Puma were next, blue sole, red stripe, soft leather, C 81', stiches would fall apart by the 5th week, take them back & get a new pair - did that 3 times!

ProKeds - heavy but looked good

Adidas Top Tens - what a lot of players wore in the early 80's

Nike Destroyer - came out to fight the Coverse Weapons craze - Magic, Larry, Dr J

Puma Luft - worn by the Australian team for years, very heavy but great ankle support

And 1 - comfortable, solid, happy days

Dunlop Volley - back to the begining

Attn Skyhook:
I currently have a pair of the Insta-pump's that you speak of. They are in mint condition but unless you are size 15.5 US they are probably useless to you.

As an aside i also have a pair of Original Pumps with the basketball pump on the tongue and the ENERGY RETURN SYSTEM. Classic shoes, comfortable, but your feet sweat profusely when you wear them.

Check out Foot Locker this weekend, should have White/Forest Green XIV's. Contacts tell me that the XIV's that Jordan wore in his last ever game with the Bulls are being re-released Christmas eve.

Thanks blue collar - but im a 12- 12.5 .. 15 's are a bit roomy. I havent stuffed newspaper into my shoes since i was 10 !! ( when my feet were growing so fast i went thru 3 sizes in a year )

jordan 18 low. double stacked zoom air :D

yuk, you gotta be kidding me? And 1? most disgustin basketball shoes made in this era, poorly made and they look so bad, not to mention they aint that original.

jordans 4's white/cement
jordan 4's military blue
air force 5's low all royal blue
air revolutions
air alpha 1's
89 flights
jordan 5's, 9's, 10's, 11's, 13's
air huarrache 92's & 2k4's
lebron 2's low & highs.
these would be the best shoes i've played in over the years.

89 flights are available at kickz101 now. the old uptempo's that derek fisher still wears come out in dec.
more jordan 14's, 4's & 7's next year. and don't be surprised if alot of other kickz that your wore when you were a junior to come out.

Bought Nikes for the kids and they never lasted a season without falling apart. Bought some replacements with the same result. I think it comes from using sweat shop labour in an impoverished Indonesian kampung.

I have daughters playing and not many makers look after their needs. Best results have been from New Balance or Asics. Both are well built last until they are outgrown, have good grip, comfort but I suppose they are not sexy nor have enough bling nor cost a weeek's wages to make them popular.

The makers are missing out on a big market by ignoring female player's needs.

Worst I ever had is a tie between:

British Knights - soooooo heavy, but looked great. 1992 I think

AND

Original FILA Grant Hills - really heavy too.

my favorite shoes not necesarliy the best are my converse weapons. the yellow and purple lakers colours.

the ones that magic wore after mvp season.

nike and adidas and so on and so forth are not missing out on female market, its called no market in australia, chiks all wana wear asics. go to www.footlocker.com and you will find plenty of womens basketball shoes.

the jordan's 10/16's r da best

MM, yeah, the Air Force 180s had a switch on the heel. Awesome shoes. I'd give my left nut to find another pair of size 13s.

Main two pairs that I can remember owning were these:



and these



First pair that I can recall having especially for basketball were KangaROOS (anyone remember those? Looks like they still make them). White with a little velcro pocket to put your game money or playing ticket back in the days of Sturt Stadium in CLG.

Current shoes, that don't get much use, are red and white And 1s courtesy of Darren Ng. I have no idea what model. They look a bit like this, but I'm not sure:

A great website for retro shoes shopping is

http://www.rareairshoes.com/

My fav tyres are the Air Team Max Zoom and the Nike Shox Elite I.

Not sure if this has been mentioned before but, if you are into shoes , there is a great book called Sole Provider: 30 years of Nike Basketball. It's written by Robert"Scoop"Jackson, who used to be editor for Slam. I had a quick glance at it in a book store once, costs about $90.00 but great pictures and info about differnt shoes from George Gervin, right thru to Jordan and maybe Tim Duncan.

my fav pair would be my NHike Shox Vince Carter III's, great shoes, but i how use Nike Huarache 2K4's in team colours, also a good shoe.

Just confirming that the Black and Red Jordan XIV's are being released just in time for Christmas on the 24th of December, so all you Kiddies better ask Santa for a pair!

my favourite shoes would hav 2 b reebok pumps especialy the double pumps with the little switch on the back 2 chose wat air cushion u wanted 2 fill.

Nikes....no matter what have always been my bball boot of choice

The worst shoe i ever purchased

1999....Adidas KB 8......they gave me nothing but problems....my heels would be aching for days after games

The Iverson Question 1's were the most comfortable shoes i ever used!!! i loved them....

I remember the Reebok Double Pumps (dual chamber) that Dominique Wilkins wore.. always wanted a pair. "Bad News.. Niqe's got new shoes"..."I'ts the New Reebok Double Pump..Now get back up there!" (Dominique talking to the moving basketball hoop.) I found a photo online of them only recently.

I had the Shaq instapumps.. I do remember the LA Gear Regulators yet I havent been able to find any mention of them on the web..any second hand pairs etc.

I had a pair of Reebok Shaqnosis.. Still remember the laughter I got when I wore them on the court... I must admit they did stand out like dogs balls. Dad wears them fishing now.

I have ordered a pair of Rbk ATR Torch Pumps which have the old style pump on the tongue.

I have 3 pairs of shox that i got off ebay brand new for $30 to $150.00. Why would you buy em in shops!?

I would like to try on a pair of the new Adidas 1 basketball boots with the computer chip in em... pity the runners are almost half a grand!

Would you get beat up if you wore a pair of andrew gaze shoes?...you know the blue and white boots you can get from target for $20.00..because I reckon they look damn fine... ok ill shut up now

http://www.100percentauthentic.com/assets/itemimages/5239_dt.jpg

These are the double pumps as mentioned above...

Wish they were in the "Bringback" range... hehe

FERK!!!!

the new balance range is not mt favourite,but would be the best fitting shoe.

My favourite pair was a pair which I still own that have been resoled and held together by strapping tape - Brooks Arsenal KW. They were a great boot. Shame Brooks don't make basketball shoes anymore.

I also had a pair of New Balance shoes which James Worthy wore. Had a velcro strap around the back of the shoe. They also were nice to wear. Cannot remember what number they were now...does anyone know?

HELP.HELP.HELP.
Forty three year old with decaying brain needs help.
Hi guys.I bought a pair of Adidas basketball boots in 1983/84,a friend of mine was working at adidas uk,so I could get them really cheap.
White leather,silver stripes,hi-boot with velcro strap around the top of the boot.
Shop price at the time was a staggering £115!
Could anybody tell me the name of them.Cheers in advance.

will they ever bring out the robinson 180 pumps again like they have made the 180s again i have massive collection of jordans and 180s but cant get these i binned them when worn out sorry i did now can you help [email protected] thanks

i would like to get me a and1 or a nike shoes beacuse i need a new one.

i love evry basketball shoes

I used to wear Chuck Taylors - my homage to the old school.

Of course after 8 years of chucks my ankles, calves and hammys are paying for it now.

Lesson for the kids - don't play ball in Chucks ... however I suspect I am the only idiot who was stupid enough to do that

T-Mac 4's. They're wild.

my favourite are the Gaze's and the Tony Parkers

my favourite shoes would be Convere React by Larry Johnson! i was waering em wen i was 8 years old..and i remember the older guys kept asking me about the shoes haha i felt like a pimp.

oh and the white adidas superstar (the first one) they felt great, it was the shoes where i won my first championship (under 12's Renegades in Mackay QLD year 200). i remember wearing them at school too and all the guys that bullied me was soo jealous that they wanted to be-friend me so they would know wer to get em..haha suckas!

I feel absolutely guilty wearing Nike Air jordans made in malaysia becuase of the wat they treat their workers.Nike as a company tries to maximize their profits by lowering costs as much as they can. Nike has found several ways of doing this, one way is by paying people to work for overly low wages and long hours.They have exploited these people.The average pay for a Nike factory worker is $1.75 a day.Thats pretty poor considering they pay athletes 60 million dollars a year just to wear their brand of clothes.The biggest reason that I don't intend on buying Nike products is that I found out that the amount of profits Nike makes is huge,last year they made 16 billion dollars.I'm not going to spend $100 for shoes that I know can be made for less than $5. So, is a shoe that can be produced for $5 performance enhancing? Also, paying $100 for shoes, is that paying for a good shoe or is it paying for a brand name.after all of this i intend to bouycott Nike.

Out of my collection the Air Force max are my favs to play in, runners up would be Jordan 16, Jordan 4's were all gravy also. The 16's are like slippers but the soles fuck out hard (3pairs all died the same death). I remember having a pair of converse Kevin Johnson Run and Slams that were ok when I was young as. I try collect all the shoes that i used to fiend over as a kid ie LJ Cons/ Dee Brown pumps/ Jordans ect but loyalties def lay with tha swoosh (got swoosh's tatoo'd on tha sides of both feet so I always got em on).

HEY CAN ANYONE HELP ME OUT I OWNED A PAIR OF ALL BLACK NIKE SHOES THEY HAD CRISS CROSS VELCRO STRAPS AND THEN THERE WAS AN ANKLE STRAP AS WELL THEY ARE NOT THE Nike Air Force Max BUT SIMILAR WITH THE ANKLE STRAP THEY WERE MY FAVORITE SHOES AND I WOULD LOVE TO FIND OUT WHAT THE NAME IS SO MAYBE I CAN BUY A PAIR THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR ANYONE WITH HEPL

ahahaha put some desent shoes on this link mmk

This might get a chuckle but I'm actually being serious... I used to love avia basketball shoes back when Clyde "the Glyde" Drexler was avia's top gun back in the early to late 90's... They also had players like Robert Pack and Reggie Williams... Even though they were great shoes with the cantilever heel - avia could not make a serious breakthrough in the basketball category... It's a shame because their shoes were very comfortable and durable... Avia has re-invented itself as a great brand for triathletes and is a sister company to And One who is also owned by ASG (American Sporting Goods).

My Mate Nick has a pair of Ewings he's never worn.

I almost got onto the court for social at Morphett Vale before he caught me wearing them!

I would have to say the Air jordan 2's.This shoe is the pinnacle of clean and fresh design with style to spare.On a technical note this shoe hits the mark with form and function from the full length "air-sole" to the "dynamic-fit sleeve" tongue,featuring a "hytrel" heel counter and achieving maximum cushion using a full length polyurethane sole.The white and red with the black sole is the flavor of choice.

Late 70's asics (Tigers back then). Best shoes ever. Came in navy blue with white stripes and if you were really cool, light blue and white. Super comfortable and lasted forever. Were also really popular with shearers in the western district. I also loved the high cut Pumas. White with red stripe. Made out of kangaroo hide. Seriously comfortable.