The Juicemanji Guide To Surviving Holiday Sneaker Season

This holiday season will feature an insane amount of big releases from Nike and Jordan Brand. In my opinion, Nike and JB have gone way overboard and should have staggered these releases over a longer period of time. In any case, most sneakerheads will do what they can to cop everything they can over the next month and a half. I'm here to hopefully relieve some of that holiday shopping stress by offering my advice on how to cop some of these releases with minimal effort.

Let's start with some of the general release Jordans that will be dropping:

Jordan IV "Bred" 11/23 (Black Friday

Jordan IX "Olive" 11/17

Jordan XI "Bred"  12/21

Jordan IX "Cool Grey" 12/15

All of these can be had fairly easily online, except for maybe the XIs. Other than the initial releases on the major sites, you can always count on a restock or two on Finishline. I also find it very easy to cop GR Jordans on a lot of the euro sites like Crooked Tongues, Sneakers N Stuff, etc. If the Bred XIs are a must cop for you and you can't leave it up to chance going online, I suggest you start making arrangements now.

As far as some of the more limited releases go, (Doernbecher IXs, Thunder IVs, Galaxy Zoom Rookies, Galaxy BG Hyperdunks) they'll all be available online and/or twitter RSVP. Start calling in favors if you're not trying to deal with too much bullshit.

With the Nike Basketball X-Mas lineup, I would just play it by ear. Those will all be easy to come by, just like they were last year. There doesn't appear to be a standout, classic colorway like the Grinches from two years ago.

Also remember that most Nike and JB shoes end up in the outlets anyway. Don't be afraid to play the waiting game. If they don't hit the outlet, the resale market will always cool down with the hyped shoes of the moment. The Dunkman and Floridian LeBrons and Tiger Camo Hyperposites won't be tough to come by after they drop and you won't have to break the bank either.

I know there are countless releases coming in the next few weeks, but don't let that stress get to you. Focus on the tougher releases (Bred XIs, Thunder IVs, and DB XIs) because those won't come cheap after they sell out. Anything else will be much easier than you think. Just be patient and keep stacking!

WHAT THE SHIT?!

YOOO! What the fuck is this? These camo foams are atrocious. Gentry Humphrey can't be serious with these shits. Who is in Gentry's ear?

This looks like some shit Master P would rock in the late 90s, bruh. Stupid ass paintball camo shoes, man. Man if they're gonna make Master P-camo Foamposite, why not make a Foam with one of those ugly ass Master P album covers on it?

Nike sportswear puts out some real garbage from time to time. Fix this shit, Gentry.

Finally Back

After going on a month long road trip, moving to Los Angeles, starting a new career and getting settled in my new home, I've finally found some quiet time for me to post on the blog. There has been plenty going on in the sneaker world and I'm looking forward to sharing my thoughts on all of it. LET'S GO!

The Shoezeum

This past Friday, I started a road trip that will take me from L.A. to Miami, with stops in Indiana, Memphis, New Orleans, Austin, and a bunch of other places of interest. While I was in Vegas, I stopped by the Shoezeum. Some of you might remember last year, when Jordy Geller started the Shoezeum in San Diego. If not, here's a vid:

Well now he's moved his amazing Nike collection to Las Vegas and I recommend that anyone who loves Nikes and Jordans take the time to check it out.

The pic above details the different displays in the Shoezeum. A lot of them are themed, while some are simply organized by shoe, like the Foams, Air Maxes, etc.

One of the first displays is the "Back To The Future" display. You got your Delorean 6.0 Dunk Lows, Air Mags, McFly Hyperdunks, and McFly Hypermax. 

This was a pretty impressive collection of Jordan Retros. This wasn't all of them, but it was pretty dope to see the way these were set up.

A display featuring different variations of the Nike Air Max 1 and Nike Air Safari, two of my favorite shoes of all time. Notice the CLOT Air Max 1 in the lower right hand corner. This is the only shoe with see thru panels that I've ever liked.

They had pretty much every Nike Tennis shoe with historical significance, including the Nike Air Oscillate. The Air Oscillate was Pete Sampras' signature shoe during the prime of his career. This is a forgotten classic, as most of today's sneaker community tends to ignore any non-Agassi tennis retro. 

The 'Posite collection was very dope. They had more than just Foam Ones and Pros. They had Flightposites, Clogposites, etc.

They had the Converse x Jordan Brand pack, commemorating the 30 year anniversary of Jordan hitting the jumper that won the national championship for North Carolina. This is 1 of 30 in the world. It's tough to see in the pic, but the pack also includes an autographed Carolina jersey.

There was plenty more, but this is the last pic I'll leave you with. The Air Max 97s. My favorite shoe of the Air Max series and a very underrated shoe in the US. These are much more popular in Asia. They know what's up.

The Shoezeum is a must visit for Nike/Jordan lovers. I only have two complaints, the first being that the Shoezeum is pretty much only Nikes and Jordans. I remember seeing maybe three non Nike related shoes in the entire place. I would have liked to see Adidas, Reebok, and New Balance get some shine also. 

My second complaint is that there aren't any plaques or signs detailing the significance of each display. I knew everything, but I found myself basically giving a tour to my fiancée. Any non-sneakerhead would have no real way of knowing the significance of some of the very rare shoes on display, like UNDFTD Jordan IVs, or Paris SB Dunk Lows. Jordy, the owner, and the very cool staff are around to chop it up and answer any questions, but I feel like it could be a better experience for the non-sneakerhead if there were plaques with information on each display case.

In any case, I had a great time at the Shoezeum and they're open until midnight in Downtown Las Vegas, so go check it out when you're in town.

Back To Posting, Sort Of.

It's been a couple of weeks since my last post. I've been incredibly busy lately, packing up all my shit and moving from San Francisco to Los Angeles. It's been eight incredible years in the Bay Area, but it was time for me to move back to my hometown of Los Angeles. I'm pretty excited about carving out my place in the L.A. sneaker scene.

I am on a month long road trip across the US of A with my fiancée and we are currently visiting some of her family in Bloomington, Indiana. I will have some time to post over the next couple of days and I hopefully can post some of my sneaker related sightseeing during our stops in Miami, New Orleans, and Austin. 

I'm about to post on my trip to the Shoezeum, in Las Vegas. Sorry for the lack of content lately, but thanks for still checking in and I'll continue to bring the kind of original content that made you check this blog out in the first place. Thanks for the support.

Sneaker Rant Vol. 3

Jordan VI/VII "Golden Moments Pack"

The Jordan "Golden Moments Pack" is dropping this Saturday, and much to the dismay of the sneaker community, most retail locations are holding raffles for this pack. Footlocker, Finishline, etc., have all sited "safety" as the reason for holding online raffles. Most collectors prefer to control their own fate with a first come first serve system/campouts. I personally am too old and my time is to valuable to be camping out for kicks.

I know that people are upset because they believe that these raffles will be rigged...BOO-FUCKING-HOO! If you fuckers knew how to act/police yourselves at these line ups/camp outs we wouldn't be in this situation. I know that the people that wild out, throw bottles, start fights, bum rush lines, and generally fuck shit up do not truly represent the sneaker culture. However, when we don't do shit about this behavior, we tacitly condone it. In the future, we have to protect our image because the Concord and Galaxy drops made the culture look foolish.

I like this pack and think the price point is reasonable, but I wouldn't go out of my way to cop because I'm really down on Jordans right now. They represent a lot of what's gone wrong with the culture and the shit bums me out.

If I happened to hit on a raffle or online, I'd at least cop as a trade chip. If the quality is on point (doubtful), I would consider keeping them.

Nike Air Max Hyperposite

Also dropping on Saturday is the Nike Air Max Hyperposite. I'm still not sure how I feel about this shoe. I am a technology nerd when it comes to kicks, so the idea of a foamposite/hyperfuse/air max combo is dope to me. I'm not crazy about the pattern, however. This is a shoe that I could see myself liking better in person than in pictures.

I will not be copping this shoe because of the $220 price point. I have to LOVE a shoe to shell out that kind of cash. I wouldn't rush to cop these because I think they'll sit. Maybe people who miss out on the GMP Js will cop these as a consolation prize, but I doubt it. These strike me as a shoe you can get on sale, so if you're thinking about copping and you have some patience, wait these out.

The LeBron X is looking very nice so far. It's very similar to the LeBron 8 V2, but with more advanced tech specs. This shoe has the first ever fully visible zoom air unit. Not only is this without precedent, but the shit looks DOPE. The reverse swoosh is another distinctive touch that is rarely seen on Nike product. By no means do I think this is a classic silhouette, but I do think some good colorways can spawn a classic or two in the LeBron X line.

That's all I've got for this rant. Thanks for reading. I truly appreciate the support. Peace.

Remembering Eddie Jones and the Jumpman Pro Quick

The Los Angeles Lakers, my hometown team, acquired Dwight Howard today and I'm extremely giddy about it. Not sure it has completely sunk in yet. I was trying to come up with an idea for a post related to how Adidas might approach having their first signature athlete in L.A. since Kobe was reppin' for the three stripes. I ultimately came to the conclusion that I didn't feel like writing about how Adidas will make purple and gold Howard shoes.

I ended up reminiscing about some of my favorite Laker teams of the past and one that always comes to mind is the 95-96 Laker squad. This was the last year before Shaq and Kobe. The team was young, exciting, and even had a recently un-retired Magic Johnson. The player that defines the era between the "Showtime" Lakers and the Shaq/Kobe era is Eddie Jones. Eddie was that dude. He was a hyper-athletic kid from Philly who could shoot, guard the opposing team's best guard, and finish with the best of them. Eddie was so dope that he was the reason Kobe came off the bench in his first two seasons. If you aren't familiar Eddie's game, peep this vid. Nine minutes of Eddie Jones dunking on just about everyone.

If you don't have 9 minutes to spare, here are some of the gems:

• At the 1:48 mark, Eddie drives and dunks all over Hakeem Olajuwan
• This one is amazing because of all the people involved. Magic Johnson posts up a young rookie named Kevin Garnett, and delivers one of the best alley oop passes you'll ever see. This one is straight basketball porn. 2:23 mark.
• At 3:09, rookie year Kobe gives Sean Rooks a shoulder rub. Awkward.
• Monster putbacks at 4:04 and 4:29.
• Back to back dunks on 7'6'' Shawn Bradley at the 6:06 mark.
• At 8:30, Eddie picks up a loose ball in transition and takes off from just inside the free throw line to dunk on Andrew Lang.

As Eddie Jones became a bigger star, he drew the attention of Michael Jordan. So much so that Jordan decided to sign Jones to "Team Jordan" when Jordan became it's own brand in 1997. My favorite team Jordan shoe that Eddie used to rock was the Jumpman Pro Quick:

This was a favorite of mine at the time that they dropped. These were among the first "team" Js ever, so they sold very well. They were especially popular in L.A. because people thought of them as Eddie Jones' shoe. This shoe, much like Jones, has been relatively forgotten despite its greatness. Maybe that's why I have such a soft spot for them. I would love to see these retro. Jordan Brand recently retro'd the Vin Baker team shoe, Jumpman Pro Strong, so these might be on their way also.

You can expect to see more sports and music related posts on the blog because they are part of the fabric that makes up sneaker culture. So with that said, please continue to visit the blog and thank you all very much for taking the time to check. I love being able to share my passion for kicks with others who share it,

No Thank You

"Handle The Wood Or Ride The Pine."

What the fuck?! I know "ride the pine" is a reference to sitting on the bench, but "handle the wood"? Is that some kind of baseball reference that I'm unaware of? This shirt is suspect as hell. Shit sounds like an ultimatum that a pedophile youth coach would give to one of his players. Who came up with this shit, Jerry Sandusky? Too soon? 

Nike iD Air Max 1 "Poor Man's Robots"

I always encourage other sneaker lovers to make Nike iDs. To me, Nike iD is one of the best things Nike has going and they're a great alternative to consumers who want something that few others have, but don't want to deal with the hassle that comes with limited releases.

A lot of people get nervous with iDs, because you aren't ever really sure how the shoes will look until you have them. It does take a leap of faith, but I have made a bunch of iDs and they've all come out great. Ask anyone who has used Nike iD and they will swear by it. Even if you don't like your shoes or there is a defect, you can always return them to any Nike location (outlets included) or just ship them back for free.

I also believe people have a hard enough time keeping up with Nike releases that they never feel like they have the extra cash to do an iD. I would suggest those people pass on the 278th colorway or the Kobe, LeBron, or KD, and be an individual and make something no one else will be rocking.

In any case, my newest iDs just came in and I couldn't be happier with how they came out. I've always wanted a pair Kid Robot Air Max 1s, but I ain't trying to pay $1,000 plus for a pair.

Nike "Kid Robot" Air Max 1

 So I took to Nike iD and made my own twist on the Kid Robots. The AM1 on Nike iD doesn't offer leather as an option, so I went with the denim option. I also added some yellow just for shits and giggles and I like how it came out. Excuse the pics, I'm not much for photography, so I take all my personal pics with my iPhone. Sue me. Yes this is my kitchen. Here are the pics:

The denim on these is pretty nice. The suede is different from anything I own. It's almost like a short cut  felt material. Overall, Nike generally puts some pretty good quality materials on their iDs and these were no exception. The Air Max 1 iD also offers corduroy as a material, so you can really mix it up if you're thinking about doing an iD of this Nike classic. 

I'll be doing posts featuring some of the iDs I've done in the past, so stay on the lookout for those. I'm still considering which laces to go with, so please tell me what you think in the comments, or hit me on twitter, @juicemanji. Thanks for peeping the blog. 

Quality Cop: Nike Flyknit Trainer

The Nike Flyknit is the newest, super hi-tech, future shit to come from Nike. Nike spent four years developing the technology and creating countless samples to make this shoe. Basically, Nike created computerized machines that can sew a durable, lightweight, one piece upper. There's pretty much zero physical labor involved in building the Nike Flyknit. Aside from the performance and cost advantages that this new technology creates, Flyknit technology also offers design capabilities we've never seen in a shoe.

Aside from the comfort, what sold me on this shoe was the insane detail. The knit upper allows for a type of design intricacy that we've never seen on a sneaker. There are tons of crazy patterns on this shoe. I took a couple of up close pics to try and give you an idea, but you have to see it in person to really appreciate the detail.

The shoe is beautiful and exceptionally comfortable. The only downside is the $150 price point. If you plan on wearing the shoe to run, work out, etc., I would imagine that the shoe is worth every penny. I usually would suggest that you wait for these to hit sale racks, but I'm not so sure they'll last. I checked Nikestore.com two days ago and they still had plenty of sizes in all of the colorways, but now there are only scattered sizes. Niketown San Francisco still had plenty, and I imagine most Nike stores will have plenty of sizes. 

If you're someone who generally likes to have trainers and runners in your collection, the $150 price tag shouldn't be a deterrent. Cop these shits. If you spend $160 on some plastic leather Jordan retros and can't appreciate these, I don't know what to tell you.