The Kyrie 2 became one of the most popular sneakers on the market this past season. The man himself rocked fire colorways every game, WNBA superstars stunted in amazing ‘ways the whole summer and every kid on every playground had a pair.
Nike made sure to keep every release special. They changed up materials and patterns from time-to-time. Even when they went with the stock mesh and hyperfuse materials, they still brought the fiya ‘ways. The silhouette didn’t just look good–it played well on-court. Its curved outsole was something new and Nike’s next great designer Leo Chang used Zoom Air throughout the sneaker to keep it light.
Its performance and aesthetics are sure to earn it a retro release when Ky’s career is said and done. The Swoosh has realized how well-received the 2 was and has something big planned for its final release. “Customizers are doing it where they just paint up their own ‘What The’ versions,” Chang said. “So we started to think about how we could create something only Nike could do.”
The “What The” combines every story told through the sneaker to sum up Kyrie’s best season yet.
“It wasn’t about trying to be flashy by having multiple colors all over the shoe, it was more about the subtlety of integrating Kyrie’s stories through unique 3-D textural graphics carefully molded on both shoes,” designer Meline Khachatourian said.
Nike decided to keep the colorway to sail to unite all of Kyrie’s stories. Instead of mashing up the colorways, they brought the sneaker’s materials to life. Making the combinations subtle is a major change in the “What The” line. It marks the first time a “What The” sneaker won’t be able to be seen from all the way across the gym.
There’s one gold eyelet to celebrate the Cavs’ title run. The strap and heel feature different embossed design patterns. The lateral Swoosh is made out of wool. There are color pops on the collar and sockliner.
The Sail Kyrie 2s drop on December 12, exclusively in America, for $120.
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