Nike Air Force One

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The Nike Air Force One was an innovation in its own right. Before it, developers were trying to eliminate “the smile”. That’s what they called it when the sole of a shoe began to separate from the upper. Nike tried to eliminate that factor, and came up with a design that featured a ½ inch thick insole. It was the beginning of a new era in basketball. The original model featured a strap, which is what made us love it. It was the best of both worlds: form and fashion. Although its original purpose was to decrease ankle sprains, the strap became a global fashion icon, and could hang with the best of them, even baggy jeans and beepers. More than anything, Nike designers took the most valuable resource, AIR, and found a way to put it into the insole of the shoe. Its legacy has been carried on throughout the years, and has blessed the feet of everyone from pro basketball players to the kids on the playground, everywhere from hardwood to concrete, and has been passed down.

The most noticeable NBA player that uses the Air Force 1 in today’s game is Rasheed Wallace. Even before the retro thing started to be a retro thang, Rasheed was rocking the vintage. Old Skool…..the only way to go. He’s giving the most recognizable hoop shoe ever created a chance to relive and resurrect itself. SOLO! He doesn’t care what others think, whether it’s clean, dirty, old, original or patent leather, Rasheed Wallace doesn’t mind, and even the refs have to respect him for that!