The Kyrie 5, the latest in a very popular line of sneakers. will be released on Thanksgiving day The Kyrie 4’s are worn by dozens of NBA players, often including Jayson Tatum, and are known for being a pretty comfortable sneaker with a low enough price point to be more affordable than other premium signature sneakers.
Nike’s Ben Nethongkome (@benslamin on Instagram) joined the Nice Kicks podcast recently to talk about what went into the design, from working with Kyrie on some deeply personal elements…
“Can you recall his tattoo? You did a story on his Hamsa Hand colorway of the 3. You wrote a very good, detailed article on the meaning behind Hamsa, and we took inspiration from that. In talking with Ky, we said, ‘Yo, did you know that the meaning behind Hamsa is Arabic and translates to the number 5?’ This was his fifth signature shoe, and I just thought that it was poetic to incorporate that language here. We did that, and the language of the outsole took on the Hamsa Hand altogether. The Nike Air Zoom Turbo has that language on the inside. We’re just trying to project that.”
To an innovative forefoot air pouch designed to return energy on Kyrie’s cuts to make him quicker.
This bag we have inside the shoe is our newest innovation for Kyrie. It’s the biggest Zoom bag we’ve ever made [for him.] If you compare it to the Kyrie 1 forefoot, the size is 240% larger than the first one. It completely covers the forefoot. As you know, the signature geometry for Kyrie is that curved outsole, so we manipulated this bag to also mimic the curvature of the outsole. It’s not just a flat bag, it has these channels that are welded in that help to curve around the geometry of the outsole. Everything started with the bag. That’s the engine of the shoe.”
…And a whole lot more. If you’re into sneakers, you’ll want to check out this podcast. You can listen here:
It’s pretty cool to hear Kyrie’s involvement from the beginning, the thought process behind the shoe, and other elements for future collaboration and versions of the shoe.
The Kyrie 5 will be priced at $130 (compare that to the LeBron 16, which is $185 or the $150 KD 11), with other versions, like a low cut, priced a little lower.
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