{"id":469717,"date":"2015-10-29T18:08:37","date_gmt":"2015-10-29T22:08:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.snkrsday.com\/?p=469717"},"modified":"2019-01-23T00:17:16","modified_gmt":"2019-01-23T05:17:16","slug":"throwback-thursday-nike-air-zoom-generation-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.snkrsday.com\/throwback-thursday-nike-air-zoom-generation-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Throwback Thursday \/\/ Nike Air Zoom Generation"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the new NBA season kicks off, a ton of people, including myself, are continuously perplexed at the swift nature in which the new season arrived. It seems as though only yesterday the Golden State Warriors were “champagne-ing and campaigning”<\/em> in the visitors locker room of The Q as they captured their first NBA title in over thirty years.<\/p>\n

Fast forward to this past Tuesday, and the two NBA Finals participants made their 2015 season debut as the Cavaliers and Warriors would both take the floor against various opponents. With LeBron James sporting his latest signature and Curry as well, today’s episode of Throwback Thursday<\/strong> will focus on King James and his self-anointed favorite sneaker of all-time: the Nike Air Zoom Generation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

To see for yourself, the history behind this silhouette, check out the video above and scroll through the pages below to enjoy.<\/p>\n

Man Child: LeBron James<\/h2>\n

By 2002, LeBron James was a bonafide prodigy in Northeast Ohio, as his Akron-bred talent continued to captivate collegiate coaches. Standing 6’8 and donning the ability to make flashy plays while exhibiting rare athleticism, LeBron James was undoubtedly the number one prep prospect in the country.<\/p>\n

However, his stardom truly began at the vaunted ABCD Camp in which he dethroned Lenny Cooke of the number one spot in the nation. Capturing the attention of Sonny Vaccaro, James’ name would continue to grow within both basketball circles and sneaker circles as well.<\/p>\n

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The Cold War: The Battle Between adidas and Nike<\/h2>\n

There was growing speculation that LeBron James was the consensous number one pick in the upcoming 2003 Draft. With his hometown area Cleveland Cavaliers holding the number one overall pick, this opportunity was golden for Madison Avenue and Northwestern sneaker companies vouching for the opportunity to have James as their leading man. With two proverbial giants in adidas and Nike coveting his services, the metaphorical “cold war” between adidas\u00a0and Nike\u00a0began.<\/p>\n

With Sonny Vaccaro at the helm for adidas, he described within his Sole Man<\/em> 30-for-30 documentary on ESPN in 2015 how adidas mismanaged James’ negotiations. Vacaaro would state,\u00a0“I said LeBron and Gloria, when your son signs, he’s going to get a $100-million. It was a statement of fact and where their mind should be. I go to adidas and outline a plan – ‘We can get this kid.’ But the only thing I gave a damn about was $100-million dollars.”<\/p>\n

Furthermore, Vaccaro would add: “I couldn’t believe what I looked at. The numbers changed; my<\/strong><\/em> numbers changed. I told Mr. James what his value is and then I’m going to give him a number that doesn’t even go on my appreciation of what his value is?! And I’m Sonny Vaccaro?!<\/em> It was over, there was no way in hell they were going to sign.”<\/p>\n

After that botched meeting, LeBron would ink a deal with Nike reportedly worth $90-million dollars canvassing over seven years, and subsequently becoming the largest sneaker contract ever handed out to a rookie in the NBA.<\/p>\n

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The Creation: Nike Air Zoom Generation<\/h2>\n

From the beginning, the Nike Air Zoom Generation was set to be a success merely by the deign team constructed in order to make this inaugural silhouette come to life by fielding the expertise\u00a0of\u00a0Tinker Hatfield, Eric Avar and Aaron Cooper. Utilizing LeBron’s controversial Hummer H2 as a muse, the Nike Air Zoom Generation would be created, looking to pay homage to all of LeBron’s talents. With the hopes of creating the “most comfortable shoe”<\/em> LeBron has ever played in, the design team featured Nike Zoom Air cushioning throughout the entirety of the model as well as introducing a “Sphere Liner” that would add comfort and performance functionality.<\/p>\n

A notable tidbit within the creation of the Nike Air Zoom Generation is the fact that Nike urged LeBron James to don the number 5 instead of his customary 23 due to the fact that Michael Jordan made the number so synonymous with himself. Working five stitch patterning within the upper of the silhouette, Nike placed an urgency for the number change. However, LeBron stuck with his gut and opted for 23.<\/p>\n

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Creative Colorways<\/h2>\n

Much like any Nike LeBron signature sneaker thus far, the Nike Air Zoom Generation laid the groundwork for his impressive line to have an array of notable iterations and hues. For the aforementioned signature, we witnessed LeBron sport the Original Black\/Red makeup during his first game in Sacramento, that is exactly 12 years ago to the day (October 29, 2003).<\/em><\/p>\n

In addition, LBJ would wear the technical-termed “First Game” iteration\u00a0during his first home game, which incorporated mostly white hues throughout\u00a0the upper and wine\u00a0accents along the upper as well. Also, LeBron donned the\u00a0“Wheat” during the Rookie vs. Sophomore game back in 2004 during All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

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Nike Air Zoom Generation Legacy<\/h2>\n

Since the release of the Nike Air Zoom Generation back during the Fall of 2003, the legacy of the model continues to remain formidable as countless numbers of sneakerheads vouch for a retro release. However, with no re-release in sight, there have been a variety of NBA stars to keep this model within the evoked state of sneaker enthusiasts such as Norris Cole, Jamaal Franklin, Nick Johnson and Nick Young.<\/p>\n

In addition to those names, LeBron James himself dubbed this sneaker to be his favorite model of all-time within this GQ short with Will Welch and Mark Anthony Green, as seen below.<\/p>\n