LeBron James took the court Sunday night for his record 20th NBA All-Star Game appearance while wearing a pair of his Nike LeBron 21 sneakers inspired by one of Deion Sanders’ signature shoes from the ’90s.
The special-edition sneakers borrow the same claw mark striping found on the Air DT Max ’96, aka the Air Diamond Turf 3. It also featured the same white and black color scheme with gold accents which just so happens to match the colors of the Colorado Buffalos, for which Sanders is the head football coach of.
Nike just reissued Sanders’ third signature sneaker earlier this month for the first time ever featuring Sanders’ logo, as well as a new. Although the brand has brought back Sanders’ shoes a number of times since they first launched, it did so without the marks because he was unaffiliated with the brand for a number of years until resigning in 2024 (hence the different name). In fact, at one point Sanders, then signed with Under Armour, said he’d never return to Nike.
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For this year’s NBA All-Star Game, Nike has also made another trio of contemporary basketball sneakers inspired by retro models. The GT Jump 2 was modeled after the Total Foamposite Max, the GT Cut 3 after the Zoom Flight 5, and the GT Hustle 2 after the Air More Uptempo.
James’ All-Star appearance is his 21st overall and consecutive, both of which are records. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar held the previous record for both with 19.
As of publishing, it’s not yet clear if Nike LeBron 21 “DT Max ’96” will release to the public or be a player-exclusive. This post will be updated if more information becomes available. Footwear News has reached out to Nike for comment.
About the Author:
Ian Servantes is a Senior Trending News Editor for Footwear News specializing in sneaker coverage. He’s previously reported on streetwear and sneakers at Input and Highsnobiety after beginning his career on the pop culture beat. He subscribes to the idea that “ball is life” and doesn’t fuss over his kicks getting dirty.
