Looks like the NBA may ban the debut of Kanye West’s first-ever Adidas basketball sneaker this upcoming season according to ESPN’s Nick DePaula.
Kanye’s sneaker doesn’t violate the league’s footwear color restrictions but it would not be approved to be worn during games, due to its heel pattern. De Paula wrote, “While the monochromatic sneakers won’t violate the league’s footwear color restrictions, the issue is the reflective ‘3M’ heel panel, which the NBA would find potentially distracting for both in-arena spectators and television viewers,”
The NBA has yet to receive and review the shoe in person so we could still see the Yeezy sneaker on the feet of Adidas NBA players, as an alternate version without the reflective heel panel would likely be approved.
The league goes through an approval process for on-court shoes twice a year with the first being in August for the first half of the season and again in December for the second half.
Kanye has shared on his Instagram that these shoes have been 3 years in the making with over 300 alterations. Let’s hope Mr. West can make the necessary alterations and get his shoes approved to be worn during games this season.
