This week, Nike introduced a new hat collection taking inspiration from the signature sneaker lines of LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant. For the first time ever, the collection will incorporate and connect the players’ signature sneakers, drawing creativity from the designs, colors and stories behind the shoes.
All three stars were involved in the design process, which now includes three different hat silhouettes: the Pro (trucker), AW84 (5-Panel) and the True Snapback.
“Sports, fashion and self-expression directly link together,” said Ian Saiki, a senior designer of the collection. “We’re infusing some new attitude into hats and building on the footwear stories for Kobe, LeBron and KD. It’s exciting to see all the passion around athletes, teams and moments that we bring to life through a hat.”
The first step in this direction came last year with LeBron’s celebratory championship hat that featured a floral pattern and gold detailing, directly playing off his sneakers (shown below). Then this summer, Durant sported some prototype samples on a Nike Europe tour.
“The response was unbelievable to the hats I was wearing in Europe this past summer,” said Durant. “Nike had some unique styles I liked and my phone was ringing off the hook once people saw them.”
Nike plans to release new hats in the collection throughout the year. Stay tuned for details and check out the images below.
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