Phoenix’s Devin Booker isn’t happy with the way Nike has rolled out his sneaker and Shaq, as Reebok’s new Basketball President, is trying to capitalise on it.
After nine seasons in the league, Booker finally got his signature shoe, the Book 1, which is set to be released by the Spring of this year.
Nike did a limited release of 500 pairs with the orange colorway, but many sneaker heads and NBA fans alike are disappointed with the way the sneaker giant has handled the rollout.
On a recent Instagram post, Complex Sneakers discussed if Nike fumbled the launch of Book’s shoe.
There was a clip of Complex’s Matthew Welty, who said he thought it was “weird” and “odd” that the shoe wasn’t released in Phoenix.
He also said the sneaker looked a little “too lifestyle” and “burlap sack-y”, and they definitely aren’t a shoe people are keen to wear.
Booker himself took the time to comment on the post, responding with, “A lot of people feel the same way,” (emoji tear drop face), while tagging Matthew.
The Suns stars’ reaction has led many to believe that Book isn’t happy with how Nike is handling the release of his first sneaker.
Once Shaq got wind of this, he took to IG immediately to try and poach Booker to come to Reebok.
The caption read, “Hey @dbook. I know y’all aren’t happy with the sneaker launch. You should come with @reebok . We just getting started. Hit me.”
Shaq was the man who put Reebok on the map, but he cut ties with the brand in 1998 to create an independent and more affordable basketball shoe for kids that was sold at Walmart.
He reconnected with Reebok in 2012 when the sneaker brand launched retro versions of his shoes.
Then, in October of 2023, Reebok announced that O’Neal would be the company’s first President of Basketball with Allen Iverson as Vice-President of Basketball in its effort to re-enter the basketball sneaker market.
As it stands, there are no NBA players signed exclusively to Reebok, but they have signed LSU center and reigning national champion Angel Reese to a multi-year endorsement deal.