With the Holiday 2011 season about the begin, the big footwear stories at Sneaker News won’t stop! This past week brought on a number of notable headlines from Air Jordan, Nike LeBron, and Celebrity Feet, so let’s get right to it. Sneaker News started off last weekend with a first look at upcoming October and November Jordan Brand releases, like the Air Jordan 8.0 and the new Jordan Big Ups. Nike LeBron 9 was a common topic this week as well, as we brought you an exclusive first look at the Wolf Grey/Cherry colorway while offering previews of the LeBron 9 iD. Some Nike SB specialties like the Patagonia Mids and the retro-crazed Roller Derbys were worth noting, and the official debut of the adidas adiZero Rose 2 was no bull.

It was a big week for celebrities, as J. Cole, Jay-Z, Kid Cudi, Kevin Durant, and John Mayer are just some of the names featured in this week’s Celebrity Feet highlights. Nike Football created a special edition colorway of the Trainer Max 1.3 just for the EA Sports Madden ’12 team to celebrate the game’s Hall of Fame edition. In other celebratory gestures, the Nike Air Force 1 Low ‘Strick’, commemorating the cultural impact of streetball legend John Strickland, will be released in October. The Nike Mag 2011 continues to make headlines as we learn of Kid Cudi copping not four, but FIVE pairs, and a noted sneakerhead out West shows us what the Mags look like when worn around the neighborhood. Across the ocean, sneaker retailer Afew opened their Vintage Gallery, which housed some of the greatest sneakers from the early 1980′s-mid 1990′s era. There plenty more of Sneaker News Weekly Rewind to look over, so check in and get caught up with the help of the Authority in Sneaker News!

Tweet

Continue Reading   

Releasing tomorrow in Asia is the Nike LeBron 9 ‘China’ – the first released ‘Blue/Orange’ colorway of a Nike LeBron signature sneakers since the Nike Zoom LeBron IV ‘Birthday’. What makes the Blue/Orange so special (or painful, to some)? It reminds Cleveland fans of the ‘Hardwood Classic‘ colorways that LeBron used to wear during those special throwback nights in Cleveland, and it also reminds New York Knick fans about LeBron spurning the Big Apple to hit up South Beach (not to worry, the Knicks have their own Big Three and are ready to throw down). In any case, the Nike LeBron 9 ‘China’ contains all of the detailed aspects we expect a special edition shoe to see; limited edition packaging (only 9 available), detailed graphics, and Chinese lettering on the heel, which translates to ‘fire’. If you don’t want to wait for a state-side release and don’t have a DeLorean handy, cop a pair now from kicks_hnd on eBay.

Nike LeBron 9
Neptune Blue/Current Blue-Total Orange (China)
469764-800
10/1/11 (China release)

Tweet

Continue Reading   

Carmelo Anthony has a new home in New York; will he ever get the opportunity to wear his latest Jordan Brand signature sneaker at Madison Square Garden?  Some experts have suggested that if the NBA loses a single regular season game, the entire 2011-12 season is very much in jeopardy.  We’re very close to that point with preseason training camps having already been truncated, so it seems fitting that the first Jordan Melo M8 colorway released to retail comes not in the Knicks’ famous orange and blue, but instead in a palette that reminds us of the league’s last labor stoppage.  This new Melo M8 has a Bulls ‘home’ look to it, which is exactly what we didn’t see on the Air Jordan XIV thanks to MJ retiring just as the 50-game 1999 season took shape.  Click on through to examine this Chicago-style Melo M8 and pick up a pair today from Size?

Jordan Melo M8
White/Varsity Red-Black
469787-101

Tweet

Continue Reading   

Last Holiday season, Nike Sportswear unveiled the Nike ACG Bakin’ Posite Boot, a street/trail hybrid shoe which combined a Foamposite upper with a Max Air outsole. Of course that wasn’t the first sneaker to feature both Foam and Max; that title goes to one of Tim Duncan’s signature shoes – the Nike Total Air Foamposite Max. The Metallic Silver colorway was one of the originals from when the Total Air Foamposite Max debuted back in 1998, and here it returns again for a Holiday 2011 release. Find these latest Foamposite releases at Nike Sportswear retailers tomorrow, or grab yourself a pair now from solefreshsoleclean on eBay.

Nike Total Air Foamposite Max
Metallic Silver/Black-Photo Blue
472498-040
10/01/11
$225

Tweet

Continue Reading   

It’s hard to argue that the craze of customizable sneakers was started by anyone other than Nike iD. Fortunately, perhaps part due to the success of that line, other companies are following suit. New Balance let the 574 out for custom creations this year and Reebok has been holding it down with the Your Reebok program for a minute. The Reebok Pump Omni Lite ’32 Candles’ customs shown here are a product of that process, utilizing the textured ‘stingray’ material in conjuction with a dose of terry cloth and the so called “peek-a-blue” for a bit of color. Have a look at these crazy customs after the jump and let us know if Inside the Sneaker Box nailed it on this very special design.

Tweet

Continue Reading   

As we continue our look into what’s left of 2011 for Nike SB, here’s perhaps the simplest Dunk design we’ve seen from them all year. The Nike SB Dunk Low pictured above is befitting a ‘Blackout’ tag with its monochromatic suede upper giving way only to Anthracite embroidery accents. Despite the obvious similarities, they come off considerably darker than the Entourage ‘Lights Out’ edition thanks to a matte texture and lack of any significant contrasts; is this a situation where you would have wanted to see the ubiquitous white Dunk midsole, or are they perfect as-is? Click through to see more angles and stick with Sneaker News for the US release date.  via retrozpekt on eBay

Nike SB Dunk Low Pro
Black/Black-Anthracite
304292-023

Tweet

Continue Reading   

adidas Basketball is rolling on all cylinders with its new product roll-out, recently introducing the adidas adiZero Rose 2 with the ‘Unleash The Bull’ ad campaign. Following that successful marketing push, adidas will now focus its attention on another one of its talented NBA ballers – Josh Smith of the Atlanta Hawks. The high-flying do-it-all combo-Forward will be available for a meet-and-greet tomorrow, October 1st at the grand opening of Dick’s Sporting Goods Peachtree Square; eventgoers will have the opportunity to ask the Atlanta Hawks stars some questions while viewing the new adidas adiZero Ghost. Don’t miss out on this great regional event, and continue reading for another look at the Ghost!

Tweet

Continue Reading   

There’s a clear line drawn between the Hyperfuse and Hyperdunk. High-powered dunkers and enforcers, to the left. Lightning-quick floor generals and speedsters, on the right. Russell Westbrook is clearly in the latter category, and Nike recognized this budding superstar’s potential and made him part of the Zoom Hyperfuse roll-out last season (remember his ‘Why Not’ PE?). Here’s a look at a Russell Westbrook PE of the Nike Zoom Hyperfuse 2011; it features a Photo Blue/Team Orange colorway with a solid translucent outsole, a ‘camo’ detailed print on the inner lining, and a pixelated camo graphic on the tongue. According to Niketown Chicago, these are currently available at Niketown locations in Chicago, Seattle, and Los Angeles, and quantities are said to be limited. Continue reading for another look and if you’re a fan of Westbrook or this sick colorway of the Hyperfuse 2011, place a call to the three aforementioned Niketown locations and get your pair! via SLP_Product on NT.

Nike Zoom Hyperfuse 2011 Russell Westbrook PE
487424-400

Tweet

Continue Reading   

What could “Big things in the works…” signify? The Holiday 2011 season is where major brands like to make their biggest bang, and we’re hoping that Jordan Brand blindsides us with some sick releases. Perhaps a Candy Pack of Air Jordan IIIs? How about a fourth and final Air Jordan Year of the Rabbit release? Will the Black Flips arrive via Quickstrike fashion? Stay tuned to Sneaker News for ongoing updates, and let us know what you’d like to see go down next week.

Tweet

Continue Reading   

In the time since we saw the first Nike SB Zoom Stefan Janoski Mid with wingtip-style brogue detailing, we’ve seen the Team Edition 2 SB come along and stake a permanent claim on this classic footwear embellishment. Which one does it better? In this latest view of the Zoom Stefan Janoski Mid SB ‘Brogue’, we get a sense of how the soft caramel leather upper will look in real-world situations such as on a home’s hardwood floors. This pair comes with a deconstructed build that adds to the formal appeal along with a leather liner, and you can see all of these unique details when you click on the jump below. Let us know if you plan on grabbing these later in 2011 and if you’d like to have just a right shoe in us size 9, check out the sample from retrozpekt on eBay.

Nike SB Zoom Stefan Janoski Mid
Chestnut/Chestnut
472679-200

Tweet

Continue Reading   

The Nike Air Griffey Max II returned in 2011, and although it didn’t have quite the impact that the Air Griffey Max 1 did, the Max II is still considered to be one of the best Nike Retro releases of the year. This new Anthracite/Wolf Grey-Neo Turquoise colorway has a bit of a throwback Mariners flavor to it, but all in all this upcoming late-October release has all the makings of a hot commodity thanks to the season-specific two-toned grey colorway and the acute splashes of Neo Turquoise on the swoosh logo and Max Air unit. Expect these to start hitting Nike Sportswear retailers toward the end of October as these have a set release date of October 29th.

Nike Air Griffey Max II
Anthracite/Anthracite-Wolf Grey-Neo Turquoise
442171-030
10/29/11
$140

Tweet

Continue Reading   

The “volt” color has been fairly ubiquitous in Nike’s line up as of late, finding its way onto Jordans, Air Maxes, and just about any other line you can name. We’ve already seen this glowing tone show up on the Nike Zoom Hyperfuse 2011 once before, but the sample pair shown here uses it to a much more dominant effect. Lighting up the innermost layer of these otherwise white kicks, the electric shade definitely gives them a clean look, and paired with the light grey midsole and chrome-finished swoosh, the package is complete. This particular colorway isn’t scheduled for a retail release as of yet, but stick with Sneaker News for updates, or cop them now from fobxguru on eBay.

Tweet

Continue Reading