FULL HOUSE: adidas All-Star exclusives
$3,015.
That's what you'll have to spend to get your hands on all 21 (Is that number a coincidence? We think not.) adidas All-Star exclusives this year. Of course that doesn't include the airfare to Las Vegas, where you'll have to be to pick up a majority of them. And even if you ARE in Vegas, there are no guarantees—the rarest of the bunch, the East and West Superstar Lux editions, will only be produced in runs of 100 each. You might want to get your hands on those first.
Anyway, yeah—unprecendented All-Star game (the first in a non-NBA city), unprecedented shoe release. Details and photos follow:
THE ON-COURT PACK
These are the shoes that will be worn on-court (duh) by the It Takes Five crew: Tracy McGrady, Kevin Garnett, Gilbert Arenas, Chauncey Billups and Tim Duncan. Nice that they all made the squad—because these colorways get made up WAY early, and it would be embarassing to have an All-Star shoe for a guy with no All-Star spot (no names, but it's something that's happened before). Oh, and keep in mind that adidas made the uniforms, too, so the colors should match lovely.
All of these should be available pretty much everywhere.
TRACY McGRADY, TMAC-6, $140
KEVIN GARNETT, KG Bounce, $130 (the illest of the bunch, IMO)
GILBERT ARENAS, GilZero Low, $100
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS, C-Billups, $100 (second favorite)
TIM DUNCAN, Stealth, $95
(I may post additional photos as the week goes on—right now I want to just make this one post with as many of the styles as possible.)
VEGAS PACK
So, maybe the on-court styles are too mellow for you? Or maybe they just aren't exclusive enough. Well, maybe these versions will work for you. Once again, five styles for five players ("the official off-court shoe series for the Big Five"). This time only 1,500 of each pair will be available, and only at "urban specialty stores." Good luck. Oh yeah, and they're $200 apiece. (C-Billups and GilZero Lows not pictured because I didn't have the samples to shoot—I might be able to get them off a CD later.) They come with special box, tags, bags and all that.
TRACY McGRADY, T-MAC 6
KEVIN GARNETT, KG Bounce
TIM DUNCAN, Stealth (the scroll across the tongue says "silence surpasses speech")
VEGAS URBAN PACK
Yes, there's more. If black and gold is too subtle (or too dark) for you, you can try white and green. Or red, white and blue with dollar signs all over—like some sort of Dapper Dan experiment. Once again, limited to 1,500 pairs, and this time sold only at "urban independent retailers." And once again, $200 apiece. Only this time there are only four styles, and two of them are T-Macs. KG and TD get left out. By choice? Who knows?
TRACY McGRADY, T-Mac 6 "Millionaire" (designed by Rolland Berry)
TRACY McGRADY, T-Mac 6 "Golden Foil"
GILBERT ARENAS, GilZero Low
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS, C-Billups (total love-hate with these, for me)
ORIGINALS SUPERSTAR LUX PACK
Getting tired yet? Well, we're almost through. Five more shoes for the Big Five, this time classic shelltoes made with patent and, well, "glazed goat leather." Mmmmm. 1,000 pairs of each style, available only at the adidas Sports Performance Store in Vegas. $90 each. Let's see if I can get them all ID'ed correctly.
TRACY McGRADY
KEVIN GARNETT
GILBERT ARENAS (my personal favorites along with the KGs)
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS
TIM DUNCAN (on second thought, these might be the best of all)
EASTERN AND WESTERN SUPERSTAR LUX
Well, not sure if we saved the best for last, but they're certainly gonna be the hardest for you to get your hands on. Rep your own coast with a 1/100 pair of kicks, only available at the adidas Sports Performance Store in Vegas. (While some of the other styles will be available online, these won't.) $100 a pop.
EAST
WEST
And that's it! Well, at least for now...