The Steph Curry sneaker watch is heating up.
After news broke in early November of the NBA sharpshooter’s Under Armor deal coming to a premature end, all eyes have been on Curry’s shoe selection during tunnel walkthroughs, pregame warm ups and regulation action. The buzz around his strategic sneaker story and potential supporters continues to grow with every game, and Curry is making the most of it.
On Monday, before the Golden State Warriors’ home win over the Utah Jazz, Curry arrived at Chase Center in a special pair of Air Jordans that had a historical connection to their Utah rivals.
Sneaker The free agent’s shoe of choice for the tunnel was the black and red “Flu Game” Air Jordan 12, a style made famous by Michael Jordan during Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals where the Chicago Bulls defeated the Jazz by a slim margin. Jordan was famous for this action, in some accounts chalking it up to flu or food poisoning. Despite the illness, Jordan played 44 of 48 minutes and scored 38 points to lead his team to a crucial victory.
After the “Flu Game” nod, Curry switched to the Air Jordan 14 “Last Shot” for the warmup, another black and red look associated with an important piece of Jordan lore.
The Nike Sabrina 3 sneaker worn by Curry during Monday’s game.
Nike
By the time it was reported, the lifelong Warriors star had lined up another pair to play in: WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu’s Nike Sabrina 3. Ionescu was in attendance and joking with Curry pregame, but the biggest news to come from the Warriors’ win was that it was the first time Curry had played a game in Nike shoes since 2013.
After the game, Curry confirmed to reporters that his sneaker selection was intentional.
“It’s great to understand the history of the game and the themes of some of the teams we’re playing,” Curry said. “I took out the flu games and the finals shorts and then played in the Sabrina 3s. Everyone should be on guard. I’m trying to get everyone some good product. It’s fun to honor some eras (and) moments in the game, current athletes who are doing great things. Just having fun with it.”
The Currys became the subject of controversy Monday after reports said the failed bid to sign WNBA star Kaitlynn Clark to Curry Brand was a contributing factor to the end of her Under Armor deal. Under Armor immediately denied these claims and called the reports “false.”
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