Red basketball shoes

Red basketball shoes

The NBA has come a long way ever since banning a particular pair of black-and-red basketball shoes Michael Jordan wore during an NBA sanctioned game. In an ongoing effort to allow players to express themselves more on the court, the league is lifting footwear color restrictions this 2018-2019 season. For the first time in the NBA’s 72-year history, players now have full freedom to wear any color footwear of their liking.

Historically, the NBA has implemented a 51-percent rule. This guideline means that the majority of the footwear should be either white or black. The regulation is aimed at creating some semblance of uniformity and team unity.

The league started to relax footwear color restrictions by the late 2000s. Players were permitted to wear shoes in their full team colors. For example, players of the Chicago Bulls can wear all red basketball shoes while the Boston Celtics can wear all green basketball shoes.

Red basketball shoes: When and why

Red is the dominant color scheme in professional sports, including the NBA. The Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, Miami Heat, and the Portland Trail Blazers all have red as their predominant team color. All of these teams are also perennial playoff contenders.

Red is a color heavily associated with the Chinese. Because of this, colorways that mark the celebration of the Chinese new year almost always have a touch of red. Nike regularly releases CNY colorways especially for their top athletes like Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. 

Kyrie Irving once released bright red shoes to mark his debut as an actor. He chose bright red because it effortlessly matches the glitz and glamour of Hollywood. Adidas frontman James Harden once had an all-red basketball shoe that references his ability to turn scoreboards red because of the many points that he contributes in each game. 

Red is also used to honor special people and advance important advocacies. Derrick Rose had a red colorway called 'Brenda,' which pays tribute to his mother. Under Armour golden boy Steph Curry once released an all-red special edition to help spread awareness regarding the United Nations' effort to end malaria.