The “Gold Medal” colorway stands out among the rest with its shiny golden swoosh and white design. Photo provided by Gino Bratti.
By Daniel Diaz, Staff Reporter
Welcome to the Hall of Kicks, a blog covering famous basketball shoes both current and from the past. This week’s shoe is a personal favorite: The Lebron X’s. They are the King’s 10th signature shoe, and Nike and James have dropped numerous colorways for the shoe. Some of the most popular colorways for the shoe are “Cutting Jade”, “Prism”, and “Christmas”.
The X’s were released in the 2012-2013 season and caught the eyes of many NBA players and fans alike. Players like P.J. Tucker, Nate Robinson, and Manu Ginobili all played in X’s during the shoe’s hay day.
The shoe itself is a visual masterpiece. The backward swoosh so fitting on the outside of the shoe, the different shapes and designs, the endless possibilities of colorways and intricacies from the shoelaces to the swoosh outline and beyond. At the time of its release, James was dominating on the Miami Heat.
The Heat had some of the most “fire” jerseys at the time, and James always brought the heat on his feet to match, constantly bringing out different colorways of the X’s.
James signed with Nike in 2003, a month before being drafted to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Since then, he has released 18 signature shoes, which is more than any other basketball player not named Michael Jordan. In 2015, James signed a lifetime deal with Nike worth more than $1 billion, which means we will see many more Lebron’s in the future. When it comes to earnings, the numbers for Lebron’s shoes are staggering. In 2019, Forbes reported that James makes $32 million a year from his shoes, with Jordan making $130 million a year through his Jordan’s.
Lebron James’s career accolades are on par with any player in basketball history. He is a four-time champion, winning championships with the Miami Heat, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Los Angeles Lakers. He is a four-time league MVP, 17-time All-Star, and currently sits third on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.
Many speculate he will catch Kareem Abdul-Jabar, who sits at number one on the list, by the time his career is over but only time will tell. If anyone can do it, it’s Lebron James. The longevity and dominance he has sustained throughout his career are of legend, and whether you like him or not, as an audience we are blessed enough to watch one of the greatest of all time play the game of basketball.
The Lebron X’s are one of many popular shoes created by Lebron James and Nike. Some other notable shoes are the Lebron 7’s, 8’s, 9’s, 16’s, and another personal favorite, the Lebron 15’s. As is the consensus among many basketball fans, Lebron James is only second to his Airness Michael Jordan not just on the court, but in the shoe game as well.
Time will tell whether James can catch Jordan in either.
