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The world of basketball and sneaker culture has always celebrated big names. With the likes of Allen Iverson and Shaquille O’Neal engaged now as the two legends of the NBA, a massive wager has been put by Reebok on his comeback. The possibility of this revival has set the fans crazy.
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On Instagram, Iverson merely revealed, “We back like we left something June 4th @reebok @netflix @shaq #Me&bigbro,” thereby confirming the comeback. The footage behind the announcement depicted Allen speaking and saying that it was ‘all about pride’ and looking back at Reebok when it was number two in the sneaker world.
The coolest thing, however, was Allen Iverson dropping some serious truth bombs about what it will really take to make this revival fly. He put forth that ‘The product can be there. You can look good. But if the game’s not there, the town is not there, it’s not going to work’. Hence strangely, it is not just about making cool shoes; they really need to regain the cultural relevance that once made Reebok a powerhouse in the late ’90s and early 2000s.
The comments blew up with fan reactions, with one really summing up the general feeling: ‘Always wanted to see what AI and Shaq would’ve been together.. never dreamed it would be in a corporate sense! Go kill em!’ They then quickly solidified their approval, saying that this partnership made perfect sense because they are ‘the 2 biggest athletes in Reebok for sure.’
Sneakerheads immediately started to demand a retro release of classic Reebok. ‘Bring back mid and high top shoes ….I tore my Achilles in some low tops hooping,’ one lamented. ‘Bubba tell Reebok to put OG quality to the re-release Answers. The quality on the V was trash my man,’ another pleaded. Calls for retro releases continued, as multiple users named specific pairs such as Question Mid and Answer 9s/10s they wanted.
That started some chatter about other Reebok athletes which carried the brand. Another commenter gave Shawn Kemp props: “Kemp carried the reebok brand with those signature shoes of his too.. those kamikaze joints were one of reeboks best selling sneakers and he wore them to the nba finals too.” That brought out some nostalgia for the days when Reebok had a deep roster of signature athletes across multiple sports.
The announcement comes in a timely manner, alongside a series of attempts at self-discovery by Reebok in the recent very hard times of the sneaker market. Now officially in the fold are two of the most charismatic and influential athletes ever to grace the basketball scene-Iverson and Shaq. This brand finally has all the stars lining up to make some noise. In fact, both would be good brands for Reebok; since Iverson’s Question and Answer line that he launched for them, was arguably the most successful basketball shoe in the late 90s and early 2000s, and Shaq had his own equally popular but much cheaper line of signature sneakers and which also went way beyond the playgrounds across America.
The coolest thing about this collaboration is how it ties into generational space. The old school grew up seeing Iverson and Shaq in their prime, while the younger sneaker culture is just now learning about these two legends through their own release programs and highlights. If anything, the June 4th date machine given by Iverson would seem to be the start of something big that relates to the Netflix documentary hinted at in the hashtags.
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While other information awaited from the sneaker world, let it be said at least once-Iverson said, “we back,” and people listened. That may just be enough-well, the comebacks of culturally significant personalities like Iverson combined with businessmen of the highest caliber like Shaq-make the perfect recipe for Reebok bringing back its former glory. Can they really make it? That is uncertain to assess for now. But it’s quite certain that very soon will go down as one of the more interesting brand resurrection stories of recent times.