Browsing the "Nike Zoom Kobe VII Elite" Tag
May 11th, 2012 by John K.
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The First Round of the 2012 NBA Playoffs is nearing its end, with two match-ups waiting for a decisive Game 7 to be determined. Kobe and the Lakers failed to close out their showdown with the Nuggets thanks to Ty Lawson’s career game (balling in the Nike LeBron 9 ‘Cool Grey’). The other LA team is still stuck in First Round limbo, as the Grizzlies staved off elimination with a key Game 5 victory. But six of the eight Second Round teams have already been established – one of them being the Miami Heat, who finally extinguished the battered Knicks in Game 5. To round out the headlines from the last two nights: The Sixers ‘upset’ the Rose-less Bulls, Tracy McGrady still hasn’t seen the Second Round, and Blake Griffin’s Hyperdunk Elites go under the microscope. Check out the highlights of the NBA from the last two nights and stay tuned for more 2012 NBA Playoffs coverage. Photos: espn
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May 7th, 2012 by John K.
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The NBA Playoffs continued over the past weekend, as we got a look a select number of new sneakers as the teams shifted ‘Home’ and ‘Away’. Starting off, Kobe Bryant wore a PE Black/Yellow colorway of the Nike Zoom Kobe VII Elite (not far off from the Gold), as he led the Lakers to a 3-1 lead over the Nuggets. The Lakers’ local counterparts also featured some new sneakers, like CP3′s ‘Home’ colorway of the Playoffs joints and Eric Bledsoe’s LeBron 9 ‘Christmas’. Out East, Carmelo pulled out NY’s first Playoff win in years in a White/Orange/Grey PE of the Jordan Melo M8, while Rajon Rondo led the Celtics to a 3-1 advantage over the Hawks while wearing the Nike Zoom Huarache 2k4 in a White/Green PE (Rondo once mentioned that the 2k4 was the most comfortable basketball shoe he ever wore). More of NBA Feet below, so take a look and stay tuned for more updates! Photos: espn
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April 26th, 2012 by Aaron Kr.
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Inside the Nike Basketball design studios, performance is everything. Every move and decision is made with maximum performance in mind, including the actual visual look of the shoes created within. The pursuit of ultimate functionality determines not only how a shoe performs and feels on your foot, but in many cases, it also dictates a lot of the aesthetic choices as well. Once the shoe has been fully developed and engineered to it’s full potential, it’s time for the color, graphics and materials team to further bring the products to life with a variety of color splashes and palettes to help to tell certain stories and give some additional identity to each colorway.
Yesterday, in part 1 of our Nike Basketball Elite Series interview with Nike Bball designers Jason Petrie and Leo Chang, we got the full lowdown on the technical updates made to each of the three models to upgrade from their original forms into this super premium postseason-inspired collection. Now we take a deeper look at why the Elite Series looks the way it does, from its shapes, lines and materials to the various color schemes and the stories behind them. Continue reading for all you wanted to know about the Nike Basketball Elite Series aesthetics and colorways, and be on the look out for the home and away versions of all three models hitting retailers this Saturday, April 28th.
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April 26th, 2012 by John K.
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The Nike Elite Series: Light Like Air, Stronger Than Steel. The pinnacle of Nike Basketball is the perfect emulsion of lightweight comfort and supreme performance, and the Nike Basketball Elite Series delivers just that. Fortified by Kevlar, Flywire, and Carbon Fiber, Nike Basketball has taken the science of materials and the conventions of footwear architecture with new heights, where it meets the promise of gold. This Saturday, the 2012 NBA Playoffs will commence, with Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Blake Griffin taking off with their championship goals. We’ve got a full video depicting the Nike Basketball Elite Series below, so take a look and remember the official release date is this Saturday, April 28th.
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April 26th, 2012 by John K.
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It seems like it was just a few weeks ago that NBA fans were seriously worried about a complete cancellation of basketball this season, but a sudden and fortuitous turn of events resulted in a shortened 66-game season. Now, Nike’s signature and marquee athletes prepare to go for the Larry O’Brien gold as LeBron James of the Miami Heat, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers, Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder, and Paul Pierce of the Boston Celtics navigate their respective teams – and right now it looks like these stars are headed for a crash collision. This Saturday marks the beginning of the 2012 NBA Playoffs, and you’ll see Kobe and LeBron wear their respective Elite gear, while Nike could have something special in store for Durant and Pierce. Your pre-Playoffs predictions for the Finals? Let us know in the comments below.
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April 25th, 2012 by Aaron Kr.
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Many sneaker fanatics and aficionados never take into consideration the painstaking efforts that go into creating the shoes that they love. The design process can be a tedious one, especially when you consider all of the factors that can sometimes tie a designer’s hands. One of the largest stumbling blocks is the need to keep materials and costs manageable in order to ensure that the final product is affordable for consumers and profitable for the brand. While we’d all love to see our Nike’s loaded up with large Air Max bags, full-length Zoom units, carbon fiber, foam and all those other costly amenities, the bottom line is that these coveted luxuries can often drive pricepoints out of control, urging the need for more cost-effective material options in their place.
But what would happen if Nike completely unchained the leash and opened the premium floodgates in the name of the ultimate performance basketball footwear? The answer is the Nike Basketball Elite Series, a no holds barred assault on the conventional design process and the budgeting limitations that can so often hold it back. For Nike Basketball designers Jason Petrie and Leo Chang, the Elite Series project is like a dream come true. With pricepoint constraints thrown out the window, the gloves were finally off to go out and reach for the pinnacle of performance basketball footwear glory. That kind of freedom doesn’t come along very often for most footwear designers, and when it does, it’s accompanied by a responsibility to meet lofty expectations.
For Jason, Leo and the rest of the Nike BBall team, the solution was to go back to the beginning to analyze and evaluate every aspect of each existing model to determine each and every place where performance could be enhanced. Materials were added, removed, invented, tweaked and shaved down, making the shoes lighter and stronger, as well as more responsive and comfortable, all in the name of providing NBA athletes and the consumers who buy the shoes with the ultimate option for the rigorous post season push. Right down to the types of threads that are woven into the laces and the sticky grips that contour to your step on the footbed, every possible detail has been considered and tailored to maximize the overall function of the shoe. The price tags might seem a bit high when you see these hit stores this weekend, but you get what you pay for and the Nike Basketball Elite Series has just raised the bar for what performance luxury can mean to a sneaker.
Continue reading for part 1 of our interview with Jason Petrie and Leo Chang and check back tomorrow for the follow-up featuring everything you need to know about upcoming Elite Series colorways.
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April 20th, 2012 by Brendan Dunne
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This weekend has quietly turned out to be one of those massive ones for all things Beaverton between the Air Jordan XII ‘Playoffs’, the Nike Air Force 1 Low VT ‘Camo’, and the second batch of Nike Fly Knit goodies arriving as well. To top it all off some sneaks originally scheduled for next weekend miraculously got bumped up at at least one online retailer, with the ‘Away’ versions of both the Nike LeBron 9 Elite and the Nike Zoom Kobe VII Elite up for grabs now at Jimmy Jazz. Click through for a look at both before you make your decision and act fast if you wanna cop, but if you miss out and would prefer the digital route, you can pick up either pair right now on eBay.
Nike LeBron 9 P.S. Elite ‘Away’
Black/Metallic Gold-Black
516958-002
04/28/2012
$250.00
Nike Zoom Kobe VII Elite ‘Away’
Black/Metallic Gold
511371-001
04/28/2012
$200.00
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March 24th, 2012 by Aaron Hope
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The Los Angeles Lakers continue to improve their position heading into the NBA Playoffs, currently sitting at third place in the Western Conference with about twenty games remaining. That means the Lakers are now firmly on track to host at least the first of their playoff series, a fact that might limit the playing time for this Nike Zoom Kobe VII Elite ‘Away’ colorup. This black-based colorway adds a golden Swoosh to its severely snake-scaled uppers, the kind of premium elegance that’s befitting the reworked carbon fiber heel counter (a texture echoed on the new Elite Series packaging). Check these out in a set of new images after the jump and let us know how far (into June) you think these can carry Kobe and co. via SA
Nike Zoom Kobe VII Elite ‘Away’
Black/Metallic Gold
511371-001
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