LeBron James’ first season with the Los Angeles Lakers didn’t go as expected, with the 16-year veteran missing the NBA Playoffs for the first time since 2004-05 with the Cleveland Cavaliers and having his consecutive Finals appearances streak snapped at eight.
Nevertheless, James’ signature shoe line with Nike has continued to forge ahead. On tap within the week are a pair of two highly-anticipated releases. The first is a “triple black” version of the LeBron James x John Elliott Icon QS.
The shoe features the midsole tooling of the LeBron 8, with the latest colorway introducing black detailing contrasted against translucent panels on the upper. The Icon QS was first unveiled in a white upper and released last August.
“There are three forces at work — the John Elliott brand connects to Nike and the LeBron brand connects to Nike,” Elliott said of the partnership when it was debuted.
“Nike gives both an opportunity to explore, to employ a huge range of solutions and to make sure that you’re solving for problems. Although our brand is able to innovate in various textiles, with Nike we have a whole new set of options.”
Along with the Icon QS, the collaboration included multiple pieces of clothing. The black colorway of the shoe will be available for pre-sale at the John Elliott Los Angeles store (8808 Melrose Avenue) on May 22.
A wider release is scheduled for May 25 on SNKRS, the John Elliott store, johnelliott.com, Kith Soho and kith.com.
Sandwiched between the two release dates is another #LeBronWatch, set for May 24. After recently paying homage to Bo Jackson, James and Nike now honor tennis legend Andre Aggasi.
The LeBron 16 “Hot Lava” is releasing in separate black and white uppers. Both pairs incorporate splatter and detailing from the Air Tech Challenge 2 that Aggasi wore when he reached his first first grand slam final at the 1990 French Open.
Whereas the Swoosh on most other releases of the LeBron 16 was on the side of each heel, it’s been moved to the midsole. The change is accompanied by Nike Air branding on the heel counter and the tongue.
