Zion Williamson’s latest big night came on Friday against the Portland Trail Blazers. The No. 1 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft scored a team-high 25 points on 10-for-17 shooting in 29 minutes of work as the New Orleans Pelicans picked up a much-needed road win against a squad they’re fighting against for a playoff spot, 128-115.
Williamson’s outing came with a special pair of sneakers on his feet. He’s a well-documented fan of comic books and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and as such, the Jordan XXXIVs he wore against the Blazers were inspired by Thanos.
Zion Williamson warms up in a new Jordan XXX4 in Portland! #NBAKicks pic.twitter.com/KMKdCJ2CED
— 🏀 #NBAKicks 👟 (@NBAKicks) February 22, 2020
The colorway itself is pretty simple, as the silhouette blends shades of purple together with a few pink, red, and gold accents. The coolest detail, though, are the various dots throughout both kicks meant to represent the Infinity Gems. And as an aside, good lord, those socks are wonderful.
Williamson has made it clear in the past that he loves Thanos, telling the press at his opening press conference in New Orleans that the Avengers’ antagonist is his favorite MCU character.
Zion says his favorite Avengers character is Thanos. 😂 pic.twitter.com/iA4eqDxmiC
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 21, 2019
“Me and a group of friends, we went to see Avengers: Endgame, and if you know me, Thanos is my favorite character,” Williamson said. “So Captain America’s shield’s broken. I’m like, ‘We’re about to win. For once, the movie’s going to be realistic, and the bad guy wins sometimes.’ Because he’s the strongest.”
If you’ve seen the movie, you know how things turned out for Williamson’s favorite character. Even though it’s been a minute since it hit theaters, we won’t spoil it for those who haven’t gotten a chance to watch the movie yet. We’ll just say one more time that these sneakers are really, really good, and we have a feeling this won’t be the last time that we’re going to see Williamson wearing Marvel-inspired gear on the floor.
