Off-White™ x Nike Air Rubber Dunk Beefs up This Week's Best Footwear Drops
Alongside Kanye West’s adidas YEEZY BOOST 350 V2 “Carbon,” Russell Westbrook’s Jordan Brand/Converse “Why Not?” pack and more.
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October is right around the corner, and with the start of 2020’s final three months comes a fresh slate of footwear drops. We’re looking at everything from Off-White™ x Nike collaborations, fresh adidas YEEZY kicks from Kanye West and some ultra-clean collaborative Nike Dunks. However, you’ve got to get up to speed before we get into this week’s drops — so let’s take a primer on everything that went down in the world of footwear over the last seven days.
It was a big week on the footwear feature front at HYPEBEAST, as we spoke to tenured sneaker designer and renaissance man Salehe Bembury about his upcoming New Balance 2002 collaboration, launched our new Sole Mates series with adidas Running creative director Sam Handy and the adidas Superstar and talked to the Kids of Immigrants founders about their upcoming Vans Lowland CC collaboration. Of course, Kanye West and Virgil Abloh had their standard moments in the spotlight as well — the former gave us a full look at the upcoming slate of adidas YEEZY releases and a detailed look at the YEEZY BOOST 380 “Calcite Glow” and “Onyx,” while the latter debuted his “Out of Office” sneaker, a homage to classic tennis silhouettes. Virgil’s nemisis Walter Van Berndock barged in on the party as well with a wild spiked sneaker.
Jordan Brand had a dashing duo of debuts, namely the reveal of its expansive Holiday 2020 retro lineup and the official announcement of the Air Jordan 35. The Jumpman also continued its relationship with French football club Paris Saint-Germain, debuting a co-created Air Jordan 4. Nike SB Dunks made headlines multiple times as well: we saw official images of the “Invert Celtics,” got a first look at Concepts’ “Duck” collaboration and witnessed some of the rarest artist SB collabs of all time get auctioned off at Sotheby’s “Cult Canvas” event.
From a business standpoint, GOAT received a nearly two billion dollar valuation after a fresh round of VC funding. Completing the news were two Air Force 1s — KITH’s NYC collaboration and a Manchester Bee-inspired pair — a slime-covered Air Max 97 ahead of Halloween, the return of Nike’s beloved Air Raid, a salute to Kobe Bryant’s championship greatness with the Nike Kobe 5 Protro “5 Rings” and Louis de Guzman’s New Balance 574 collaboration.
Now that you’re all caught up, let’s dive into a dozen of this week’s best drops. As always, please note that releases may be delayed by the COVID-19 coronavirus, and head over to HBX to check out other new footwear styles.
MoMA x Vans Collection
Vans
Vans
Vans
Vans
Vans
Release Date: September 30
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: Vans and MoMA Design Store
Why You Should Cop: New York’s Museum of Modern Art — or MoMA for short — and Vans are back together again, cooking up artist-inspired takes on the Old Skool (Salvador Dali), Authentic (Claude Monet) and Slip-On (Vasily Kandinsky). There’s also a duo of colorful checkerboard-covered and MoMA branded takes on both the Old Skool and Era, making for a five-pack of casual kicks ideal for any and all art lovers.
Minions x Reebok Collection
Reebok
Reebok
Reebok
Reebok
Reebok
Release Date: September 30
Release Price: $70-$200 USD
Where to Buy: Reebok
Why You Should Cop: If you prefer animation to classic art, the Minions x Reebok collection might be the five-shoe capsule you’ll want to pay attention this week. There’s a special Question Mid for the villainous Gru plus Instapump Furys and Club Cs for both the Minions themselves and Gru’s Vicious 6 rivals, providing full family-sized fun and plenty of bright colors to boot.
Off-White™ x Nike Air Rubber Dunk “Green Strike,” “University Blue” and “University Gold”
Nike
Nike
Nike
Nike
Nike
Nike
Nike
Nike
Nike
Release Date: October 1
Release Price: $180 USD
Where to Buy: Nike SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: The latest Off-White™ x Nike collaboration from the mind of Virgil Abloh, the Air Rubber Dunk is big, bold, boisterous and bulky. Equal parts Dunk and P-6000, it boasts a look that’s heavily inspired by early ’00s skate shoes and features familiar embellishments like Helvatica text and zip ties. Three region-exclusive colorways will be available: the “Green Strike” is releasing in the Americas, the “University Blue” in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the “University Gold” in China and the greater Asia Pacific.
Air Jordan 16 and Converse Chuck 70 Hi “Why Not? Pack
Nike
Nike
Nike
Nike
Release Date: October 2
Release Price: $425 USD
Where to Buy: Nike SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: A two-shoe homage to the pugnacious play and fearless nature of Russell Westbrook, Jordan Brand and Converse’s “Why Not?” pack offers up an Air Jordan 16 and a Chuck 70 Hi. The AJ16 is dressed in stark black while the Chuck 70 takes on a crisp white, but both combine materials like supple leather and shimmering satin plus metal stud adornments — a salute to Westbrook’s love of punk rock-inspired metal jackets. In short, both are fearless — much like the man they’re made for.
Kids of Immigrants x Vans Lowland CC
Vans
Vans
Release Date: October 2
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: Vans and Kids of Immigrants
Why You Should Cop: Kids of Immigrants is all about community empowerment and DIY customization. That inclusive, free-thinking ethos is encapsulated perfectly on its first-ever Vans collaboration: a monochromatic Lowland CC. Each pair is hand-distressed by the KoI team, and comes with sandpaper and a paintbrush, encouraging purchasers to make the shoe their own and play a part in the brand’s larger narrative.
Nike Air Max 90 “Safari”
Nike
Nike
Nike
Release Date: October 2
Release Price: $140 USD
Where to Buy: Nike
Why You Should Cop: What do you get when you combine two of Tinker Hatfield’s most influential designs into one? The 2020 answer to that question is the Nike Air Max 90 “Safari.” Combining the Air Safari’s leather build, classic color scheme and seminal safari print with the Air Max 90’s endlessly sporty construction, the “Safari” is a colorful encapsulation of late ’80s-early ’90s Nike products, reworked for the modern day.
adidas YEEZY BOOST 350 V2 “Carbon”
Stadium Goods
Stadium Goods
Stadium Goods
Release Date: October 2
Release Price: $220 USD
Where to Buy: adidas and YEEZY Supply
Why You Should Cop: Kanye West’s adidas YEEZY BOOST 350 V2 “Carbon” was originally dubbed the “Asriel,” but caught fierce blowback from the Muslim community due to the religious undertones of its first moniker. However, after a quick name change the “Carbon” is ready for its retail debut — serving up a murky mixture of blacks and steel grays atop a milky white midsole.
Nike Air Max 3 (Air Max 90) “Laser Blue”
Asphalt Gold
Asphalt Gold
Asphalt Gold
Release Date: October 2
Release Price: $140 USD
Where to Buy: Nike SNKRS and Foot Locker
Why You Should Cop: The Nike Air Max 90 “Laser Blue” is an OG style that first released in Europe earlier this summer, and has now returned with a new name. This time around, it’s the Air Max 3 — an alternate title that was sometimes used when it first released — but is still equally as crisp, clean and classic as it was before. It’s also serving as a potential lead-in to the rumored revival of the Air Max 90 “Infrared” this holiday season.
size? x adidas ZX 5000 and ZX 10000C
Size?
Size?
Size?
Release Date: October 2
Release Price: £100-£105 GBP (approximately $127-$134 USD)
Where to Buy: size?
Why You Should Cop: size? is continuing its 20th anniversary celebration with a two-pack of adidas ZX releases: the classic ZX 5000 and the modernized ZX 10000C. Each takes on the signature size? palette of black and orange, but accents it in divergent fashions: the ZX 5000 uses crisp white and sail base tones with the ZX 10000C looking towards steel gray and a heavier application of black. Each is completed with a size? question mark on the heel, an alternate detail that’s fan service for size? supporters and ZX loyalists alike.
Slam Jam x Nike Dunk High “Light Gray”
Nike
Nike
Release Date: October 3
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: Slam Jam
Why You Should Cop: The first pair of Slam Jam’s two Nike Dunk collaborations to release, the “Light Grey” offers a simple color scheme that’s embellished in tasteful fashion thanks to flipped Swooshes, gummy details, unique perforations and more. We’ve seen a great deal of loud, wild, in-your-face Dunks over the course of 2020, but the “Light Gray” shows that less can still be more.
Reebok Question Mid “Crossed Up, Step Back”
Reebok
Reebok
Reebok
Release Date: October 3
Release Price: $150 USD
Where to Buy: Reebok (Member Access) and Foot Locker
Why You Should Cop: An exploration of Allen Iverson (crossover) and James Harden’s (stepback) lethal signature moves, the Reebok Question Mid “Crossed Up, Step Back” brings the Beard and the Answer together once again. Apart from its main inspiration, the “Crossed Up, Step Back” also pulls from old-school Rockets jerseys with red and blue pinstriped embellishments atop its metallic silver base.
Nike Air Force 1 Craft “Ridgerock”
Nike
Nike
Nike
Release Date: October 3
Release Price: $120 USD
Where to Buy: Nike SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: Serving up transitional rock and black tones, Nike’s Air Force 1 Craft “Ridgerock” enables its wearer to step from summer to fall in elevated style. These elegant hues sit atop a premium tumbled leather base as well, making for a shoe that’s stately in both look and build.
