D-Wade's Jordan 2010s

I find it interesting what the Miami Heat have done in the off-season leading up to the current NBA 2010/11 season. With a big load of cash, and some careful trading, the Miami Heat have assembled one of the greatest trios (the 3 amEgos) seen in the NBA to date - LeBron James, Dwyane Wade (D-Wade), and Chris Bosh. This team should be winning more games. They have the talent. What they do not have is proper team chemistry or dynamics. I offer one more possibility as to why Miami is not winning as many games as initially predicted. D-Wade's shoes - the Air Jordan 2010. To sum it up, they are a great shoe, but the ankle cuff is too stiff, they take a while to break in, and while they are being "broken-in", they cause pain and blisters. If D-Wade is getting new shoes every game, his shoes are what may be impeding him from playing at his top level.

I like the shoe, but it did take some time to grow on me. I initially did not like the idea of see-through section, and I still think it looks strange to see my socks through the clear section (see last few images of this post). It was Kitty Kat who actually insisted they looked good on my feet. The colour scheme (also known as colourway) is known as the "Welcome Home" scheme, and apparently is a reference for D-Wade's hometown of Chicago - a place where Michael Jordan (where the shoe gets its name) played his most successful basketball with the Chicago Bulls. After some wearing, besides the pain in my ankles, I also noticed some transfer of colour from the red leather onto the white (this has once again been captured in the last set of photos below). Luckily, I have one to rock, and one to stock - but if you have only one pair, the red does come off with some effort and a good shoe cleaner.

The box that the shoe comes adds to the experience of owning these shoes. The perforations found on the shoe's see through sections are also present on the outer sleeve of the box. On the underside of the box is some stylised text which reads: "I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed." This quote has been attributed to Michael Jordan, and is a reference to an advertising campaign involving Michael and his interpretation of success and failure. The quote is also found on the midsole of the shoe (in the black section).

The sole and ride of the shoe are great. The shoe makes use of a one piece Zoom Air unit, and you get a good compromise between support, yet a spongy cushioned feel of the floor. This translates to comfort. The shoe has many vent holes, but even then it feels like it heats up quickly. The toebox is not directly connected to the upper of the shoe, so it allows a comfortable flex for the toes.

As mentioned, I really like this shoe, but it is painful to wear initially. In my case, it took me around 2 weeks to break-in, and that was wearing it a few hours walking and other light physical activities every second or third day. I still feel the stiffness, and I have owned and used this shoe for over 6 weeks. Would I recommend this shoe? Yes - but as long as the person purchasing or using it is aware of the stiffness, and they employ some ankle or heel protection (either high socks or taping up of the ankles).

I believe this shoe initially retailed for AUD$260. I have recently seen it in shops for around the AUD$200 mark. I purchased the two pairs of shoes from the Nike Factory Store on Smith Street, Collingwood (in Victoria, Australia). From memory, they priced it at AUD$180, but if you bought a second pair, you received a 50% discount off the second pair. This means 2 pairs for AUD$270, or a pair for AUD$135. That price is comparable to prices found on-line, and when you factor in shipping, it is close to par. If you cannot afford a purchase of two pairs, find a friend and buy a pair each - but at the same time. From memory, they still have at least 20 pairs in stock.