10 things I’m waiting for.

1. "NIKE AIR" to re-appear on all Air Jordan retros. I know that the Jordan Brand (or is it Brand Jordan—I NEVER get that right) is its own thing now, but seeing that the shoes are still made in the same factories and the Jordan offices are still on the Nike campus, would it be THAT bad to re-issue the old models exactly like they were? It's not like many of the originals (even the ones that were kept deadstock) are wearable anyway. And even with those details accurately reproduced, any self-respecting sneaker fanatic/afficionado/addict would be able to tell the difference between the retro and the OG. Trust me, we know.

2. Lakai release the new Koston shoe. Obviously this one is gonna happen—it's official that Eric left eS for Lakai—but I'd like to stop checking the Lakai site every day to see what the new shoes are gonna look like. Pretty much every Koston shoe has been dope so far (and I know Eric is a Jordanhead), and Lakai has put out some serious stuff of late, so I KNOW this collabo is gonna work out. I just want it to happen soon. Now would be good.

3. Nike kill the Air Force 1 Mid. I know. The Air Force 1 is a cash cow, the golden goose, the all-time seller that allows Nike to do God knows what else. But seriously, does anyone actually even like the Mid? The highs are dope, and it seems like everyone and their second cousin goes through at least three pairs of lows every summer. But the mids? Gross. That permanent strap is horrible, the cut is uncomfortable, and they're not even an original style (the mid debuted in the '90s). And it's not like there were many significant mid colorways anyway. See, even the designers know.

4. Allen Iverson get a dope shoe. Look, the Question was great. No question. But that was 10 years ago now, and it remains the best shoe ever to bear Iverson's name. That's not good. Reebok appeared to be headed in the right direction with the Answer IV—the ones he wore in the NBA Finals—but then they made another wrong turn. I still can't figure out why the fastest player in the NBA frequently winds up with huge, clunky shoes that would look more at home on Shaquille O'Neal. Please, Reebok, find a new designer. Somebody young, somebody who actually understands where AI comes from. Could you imagine the crazy stuff Nike would have come up with for AI? I don't even want to think about it, it's too depressing.

5. eBay figure out how to police fake shoes. You ever look for a pair of Jordans on eBay? Or a pair of Dunk SBs? Crazy results, right? Tons and tons of pairs, most of which appear to be photographed in the same exact way. Rare colorways available for cheap. Sellers with complete size runs of hard-to-find pairs. And they're ALLLLLL fake. OK, not all of them, but so many that it's hard to trust anybody. I'll buy vintage pairs on eBay, but I won't mess with recent retros at all. It just isn't worth it. And while it might be difficult to vet every auction for authenticity, it seems that it would be fairly easy to at least eliminate the bigger sellers of fakes. eBay needs to come off the whole "caveat empor" hands washing and deal with the problem. It would benefit everybody.

6. New Balance retro more Worthys. I can't figure out why, when New Balance chose to retro a James Worthy signature shoe, they retroed the worst one—and then made it even worse by squashing it from a high to a mid. Throw me a frickin' bone, here. Start with the first one.

7. Nike, adidas, Reebok, release sub-$20 shoes to compete with the Starbury One. Why not? It's not like any of the big three (or big 2, since adidas bought Reebok) would be losing that much money. We all know that shoes are cheap to make, and there's no reason each of the bigger companies couldn't have one super-low budget basketball model in their line. If the Starbury takes off (and it just might—Steve & Barry's has a two-pair-per-person limit, and they're still flying off the shelves), I don't see why this wouldn't happen. Oh yeah, except for the whole big profit thing.

8. Kill Bape dead. I hate Nigo. It's nothing personal—even though I did get shut down at the opening of the NYC Bape store because I wasn't on the list, despite the fact that I RSVP'd to my invite and HAD IT WITH ME—just the fact that dude is cakin' off an Air Force 1 ripoff that simply comes in candy colors. Have you seen his rides? Dude's got one of everything—as well as Beatles guitars, a crazy crib, lots of ice. And his stuff just ain't that hot. He's got everyone going on the whole exclusivity tip, charging WAY too much for sneakers, sweaters and t-shirts (does anyone REALLY need a zip-up hoodie that zips all the way to the top of the hood?). Wack.

9. Everybody chill with the patent leather. It was dope as hell on the Air Jordan XI, and wack on pretty much everything else. Sorry.

10. Stop following and start leading. This is to y'all, not the companies. Don't be afraid to try something different. Leave the white-on-whites alone, lose the SB schedule, stop standing in line for the latest overhyped release. Be different. Pick up something from an outlet and swap out the laces, or put them on ice for a couple months and break 'em out when no one else has them anymore. Buy what you actually like instead of what you think you should like. And wear what you've got. Saving something for a sunny day? Make the next one it.