Nike will be releasing the latest colorway to its KD7 collection globally later this month. (In the Philippines, SRP is PhP 8,195.)
Called the Lightning 534, it is a homage to a facet of New York City, tailored to Kevin Durant's interests in meteorological phenomenon.
Kevin Durant likes the Big Apple's overall electric feel, as well as the buzz it imbibes. One just cannot easily dismiss his Rucker Park debut.
The colorway's name is derived from a couple of things:
534 depicts 5th Avenue (5) and 34th Street (34), which is where the
Empire State Building is located. (Due to copyright issues, Nike cannot
use "Empire State Building" as part of the name)
The iconic landmark gets struck by lightning at an average of 25 times a year (like the photo you see here).
The purple nature of the KD7 plays to the purple hue of the New York City sky whenever said lightning strike takes place. Visual representations of weather patterns are reflected on the graphics of the swoosh logo as well as on the outsole.
For more details on the KD7 Lightning 534, you may check out your neighborhood shoe outlet, or watch the YouTube clip below.
By now you are familiar with that Nike commercial involving LeBron James. If you are not, let me refresh your memory a little bit.
The title of the video is "Together," highlighting and celebrating the pride and emotion that came with James' return to Cleveland this past offseason.
Directed by the Malloy Brothers, Nike Basketball collaborated with advertising firm Wieden + Kennedy to conceptualize the short.
It depicts a huddle by James with the Cavaliers, with Cleveland citizens inside and outside of the Quicken Loans Arena joining in as a show of unity. One team. One city. One goal.
Among those participating are Cavs teammates Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters, Anderson Varejao, Shawn Marion, Tristan Thompson, Matthew Dellavedova and Joe Harris, LeBron's mother Gloria, his high school coach at St. Vincent St. Mary's Dru Joyce, as well as the children from the LeBron James Family Foundation.
To complement the short, a 10-story 25,000 banner was unveiled on Ontario street. Nike recorded the reveal through time-lapse on its YouTube page:
On the day LeBron officially makes his season debut, Nike will also debut the LEBRON 12 HRT OF A LION on its stores. For those who relish creativity, it is also ready for custom design at www.nikeid.com wherever NIKEiD is available.
Before the month of May ended, Nike released the Hypervenom, its latest football shoe in Rio de Janeiro, with the Brazillian wunderkind Neymar.
The Hypervenom aims to help the wearer quickly create space in and around the penalty area, with the ability to get off a shot from any angle. In the case of Neymar, he wanted a boot that would help enhance his agility, giving him the space to get off a shot before opponents can close him down.
To quote Nike Football VP for Footwear Phil McCartney, “The Hypervenom is the ultimate expression of this new breed of athlete
who is unpredictable. He is agile. He is quick. And he can finish like
very few players on the planet.”
This development is as a result of the evolution of defenders becoming as quick, agile and skillful as the forwards they guard on the pitch. Using feedback from the likes of Wayne Rooney, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Neymar, the Nike Football design team, led by its Design Director Denis Dekovic, then developed a boot that would allow the player to be quicker not just in foot races, but also with the ball in their feet in small spaces. As a result, wearing the boot would enhance their natural agility and thus, be able to virtually create chances out of nothing.
Dekovic adds, “These players have a flair and unpredictability that gets the crowd on
their feet. They are the players that fans, teammates and opponents
expect to pose the biggest threat. The challenge for us is to harness
that talent and give the player the best product to increase that
advantage.”
The boot's upper uses the NIKESKIN system, which features a soft supple mesh bound with a thin polyurethane film, finished off
with the Nike All Conditions Control technology (ACC) that provides the
same level of foot-to-ball control in both wet and dry conditions.
For Dekovic, “Mesh delivers an amazing level of comfort and feel. The athletes asked
us to deliver a boot that gets as close as possible to the feeling of
playing barefoot. Mesh takes us a step closer to
doing that. The ACC finish keeps the mesh dry,
but doesn’t take away any of the suppleness or comfort so the
performance and intent of the design isn’t affected.”
Complementing the upper for the Hypervenom is a new foot last that is their most anatomical to date for Nike, as they decided to remove excess materials and placing the foot closer to the ball and the ground. They also decided to create a decoupled outsole that would increase the wearer's ability to create separation from the defender. Working with top podiatrists, Nike added a groove in the forefoot that helps to quickly activate the first metatarsal,
the bone that defines reaction time of the foot’s first movement.
The chassis of the outsole features compressed nylon for a
high-response, plate that helps deliver strength while being incredibly
light. The stud configuration and length is designed to allow for faster
penetration of the surface and ultimately a quicker release – all
innovations designed to help players create space quicker than ever
before.
The shoe made its official debut during the FIFA friendly between England and Brazil, worn by Neymar and Rooney on June 2. Also set to be wearing the boot are Ibrahimovic and Polish international Robert Lewandowski.
Details are still unavailable as to when it will be available in the local Nike stores, but the SRP of the Hypervenom is at PhP 10,295.
Hello and I wish you all a Happy National Heroes Day in the Motherland.
In a sport that is regarded highly by its citizens, any achievement by someone or by a team garner attention in these parts. Sure, the opponent is currently composed of imports plying their trade in the continent, but we Filipinos take pride in beating the Americans in the process of winning a tournament, something we have not accomplished in 14 years. Look at the curated reaction from the Motherland.
It was a satisfying victory for a nation starving for success in a sport it dearly loves. And as such, they come home on a holiday that honors heroism, something they have in spades.
How will Andy Murray fare in his first major since his gold medal-winning performance?
