There’s not too many NBA players who can say they single handedly made a specific shoe brand famous. The most obvious one is Michael Jordan as his retro releases cause mayhem at malls across the globe. But after the All-Star Weekend in 1991, the legacy of dunk contest champion Dee Brown will forever be linked to the moment when he made his Reebok Pump sneakers iconic.
After being crowned champion with his trademark ‘no-look dunk,’ the Reebok Pump technology would rise to the top of the basketball sneaker game in the early ’90s. The 12-year veteran described that the shoe was simply “ahead of it’s time.”
We caught up with the former dunk champ to talk about his legendary shoes, Gerald Green‘s own rendition of his ’91 dunk, his new role with the Sacramento Kings and about how he still has bounce.
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Dime: The sneaker that you made famous, the Pump Omni Light was back on the shelves this past June by popular demand. Talk a little bit about why you love this shoe?
Dee Brown: I mean the biggest thing when it first came out it was such a ground breaking shoe. Just the unique thing with the Pump, being able to form fit your foot with the shoe. And you know, I played in those shoes so it wasn’t anything that I thought was a gimmick or anything. I really used those because I didn’t like taping my ankles, you know? I wasn’t a big guy on taping ankles and stuff like that so I used the shoe for my support factor and so it was great. I didn’t have to tape my ankles. I could pump my shoes up and get the right [fit] depending on how I wanted to feel [that day]. If I wanted to go tighter, if I wanted to go a little looser, wear two pairs of socks- whatever. So it was good. That’s why I like these shoes. And the other thing- the look. You know being in Boston, we didn’t get a chance to wear black shoes a lot and when that shoe came out, we started to get the chance to wear black shoes and it was such a clean shoe. You know, all black with the little white accents with the orange ball which kind of threw it off the charts right there and that’s why I think people like it now. Because it’s such a clean looking shoe. It’s got a lot of colors to it. It’s a very simple shoe but it’s so advanced, you know. I just think that shoe was ahead of it’s time.
Dime: Talking about the little orange ball on the shoe. Take us back in time to the ’91 Dunk Contest and talk about your thoughts leading up to the very moment in which those shoes became iconic.
DB: Well, people always think that I kind of pre-planned that or Reebok told me to do it. Before the dunk contest, even when I had signed with the Celtics, I already had a Reebok contract already because I wanted to be with Reebok because they’re close to Boston and at that time in Stoughton. So my relationship with them, the person that I dealt with was Joanne Berzaken, who was one of the best people to deal with on a day to day basis as far as getting our shoes and our gear and stuff like that. So when I got invited to the contest it was pretty much “Hey..don’t embarrass us all” (laughs) and do what you do with the shoe and the Celtics. And just go out there and do what you can do because I had won the dunk contest the year before in college.
But there was no pre-planning. I didn’t tell them that I was going to do it, they didn’t tell me to do it. It was kind of like I got to get something different to get the crowd into it- to get the crowd on my side. You know, I was kind of the guy that nobody knew about as far as the dunk contest and so when I did it people were like “Wait a minute, this kid’s pumping his shoes up!” and it kind of go the crowd into it, got the judges into it- you know, Magic, Isaiah, those guys were excited… obviously the play-by-play commentary on the side, so it was great. Obviously people remember that.
It kind of spearheaded that shoe. You know, I tried that last dunk which I had never practiced before. I made that dunk up on the fly, the no-look. I had never practiced that dunk before. That was the first time I did it so either I was going to run to the side of the backboard or we’d be talking about it 20 years later, so everything was spontaneous. You know, certain things come to you and it just did. But that was the great part about that. Nothing was planned by myself or Reebok it was kind of just a spontaneous thing that became a whole marketing campaign upon itself. All of a sudden, you have people wearing Pumps and trying to do your dunk and Reebok became at that time (really popular)- really pushing Nike for selling that shoe versus selling other shoes like Jordans and Barkleys and the other ones that were out at that time. So it was exciting to be known about a shoe. You could say “Reebok Pump” and the first name that comes up is mine. It just makes you feel good that you’re iconic with that shoe. A lot of people can’t say that. You say “Nike” or “Jordans” it’s one person. It’s MJ. You say “Pump” you say “Dee Brown.” To be put in that category is fun to think about (laughs) but it’s kind of baffling sometimes that I made that kind of impression on kids and at that time putting shoes on the map.
Dime: Speaking about the same theme with the retro shoes, Reebok’s received great feedback in the sneaker game by bringing back the retros but they’re also dropping a shoe this fall that’s solely inspired by your iconic shoes- the Pumpspective Omni. What does it mean to have your legacy live on and play such an instrumental part in the new school sneaker game?
DB: It’s good again because now, you’re part of the whole process of just being… you’re officially old school now. When something comes back again and everybody thinks it’s hot, you’re an old school legend now and that makes you feel good because I’m still young. I’m 45 years old and I’ll go out there and play if I need to but for somebody to say when they see that shoe, when they see the Pump, “Wow… man I used to wear that shoe when I was a kid and I told my mom to save money up. That’s what I wanted for Christmas. I wanted the Pump because I thought it was going to make me jump higher and it made me jump higher because I saw you do it.” You know it makes you feel really good to be a part of that whole retro part of shoes. To come back and be a part of that history and that legacy of your name always being a part of it- that’s something that they can’t take away.
There’s certain things in your career that identify you. Obviously playing with the Celtics and playing with some great players. But on a personal level, obviously winning the dunk contest just the way that I did with the dunk and pumping my shoes up. I guarantee you that I’ve been in 20 countries over the past 10 years and no matter where I go from China to Australia to Spain, everybody knows the Pump. Everywhere I go people say, “You’re the guy that did the…” and guess what? They do the whole routine. They bend over and they pump the shoes. They don’t just say it. They got to show you how you did it. Not one shoe. They’ve got to bend down with both hands and do it with both tongues. And that makes you feel good that people still get excited about that. And I’m talking about people my age now or people that have kids now and there like, “Hey… you don’t know who this guy was? When I was your age…” and it’s this whole generational thing. It all just comes full circle and it just feels good that people are still talk about it and [that] my name’s still a part of what people think about the shoe and what they think about me.
Keep reading to hear about Brown’s new role in Sacramento…
Dime: Of those people who’ve gone through your routine from that dunk night, have you had any guys try to re-enact the whole pump and then go into the dunk routine as well in front of you?
DB: Well, I’ve judged some dunk contests when I was working for ESPN so I did a lot with this show called “City Slam,” which I did a lot of ’round the country dunk contests judging for ESPN about four or five years ago. It was a lot of fun seeing guys try and do your dunk and stuff like that. But I think the guy that I was most impressed about who did it was Gerald Green. I remember, I was working for ESPN at the time and he called me and he said, “Mr. Brown” — you know he made me feel old. He said, “Mr. Brown, I want to do your dunk but I want to put a little twist to it. Can you come out to Vegas because I want to have you as part of the prop,” and at that time I couldn’t get out there and I felt bad but he ended up doing it. He jumped over Nate Robinson, he had on the seven jersey, had the pumps and did the no-look (while) jumping over Nate. To me that was the best one because he was a Celtic at the time, he was a Reebok guy, he did the dunk, had my jersey on, and did it with the shoes so it made you feel good to have a guy that came after (you) give a tribute to you by doing that dunk in the dunk contest and kind of asking your blessing first for doing so. I give him a lot of credit for doing that and even we know that year he ended up winning the dunk contest.
Dime: Moving onto your new role this season with the Sacramento Kings, how crazy is it that Reebok athlete and Kings point guard Isaiah Thomas will be rocking a shoe that you, one of his new coaches, inspired?
DB: You know, I haven’t said anything to him yet so it’s funny. He’s been working out the past couple of weeks and I know he wears Reeboks and stuff like that. I haven’t said anything to him about it but I’m going to wait until he pulls ’em out and rocks ’em and I’m gonna bust up on him like, “Hey man… if you’re going to wear that shoe, you better represent me the right way,” you know (laughs). I’m just waiting for the right time to do it. I know some of the guys that wear the shoe, obviously I’m a big fan of Jason Terry and also the other guys who also wear Reebok, so it’s good to see these guys obviously rocking the shoe and being part of the whole Pump legacy.
Dime: With this new transition in your young coaching career after going from the Springfield Armor of the D-League to the Pistons and now the Sacramento Kings, a young team with a lot of potential, how excited are you in making this transition?
DB: It’s been great. I had a chance to learn being a head coach in the D-League for a couple years then working under Lawrence Frank in Detroit for two years, obviously a great basketball mind to now the transition of moving into a bigger role in Sacramento with a new coaching staff in Mike Malone. You know, (it’s) my first time on the West Coast [in basketball]. Every team that I’ve played for, coached for, or worked for, I’ve been on the East Coast the whole time.
The biggest thing for me is just transitioning to the West Coast and getting used to the time change but I’m excited about it. (We’ve got) a nice young team, new ownership group, the city is excited about the team staying here, and the new arena should be done in 2016 so there’s a lot of good things happening in Sacramento so I’m just happy to be a part of it. I’m eager to learn and grow. You know, your aspirations like any coach in this league are to get better and whatever opportunity presents itself, whether it’s moving up on the bench or people consider you for head coaching jobs in this league, you just work hard and hopefully people notice your hard work and dedication and your knowledge of the game. It’s the way you work yourself through the chain. If it takes 10 years, you just keep working hard and keep your eyes open and your ears big and you obviously just want to be the best coach and developer that you can.
Dime: As the director of player development with the Kings, how excited are you to get to work with guys like Isaiah Thomas, Greivis Vasquez and Ray McCallum as your young core in the backcourt?
DB: I mean, that’s the good part because like you said it’s a young core and these guys are eager to learn. Ray and Isaiah have been already here for the last couple of weeks working out and it’s early September so they’ve showed a commitment that they want to come into the gym and learn. You know obviously, we’re going to be on the court a lot together being point guards. Right now, Greivis is right now at the FIBA World Championships with Venezuela supporting his team but he’ll back here soon. I’m excited to work with all of those guys. Obviously Greivis had a great year last year in New Orleans. He was one of the top point guards in the league last year and has improved every year he’s been in the league. To have a young core who want to learn and want to work hard- I’m excited about that. My biggest challenge is always to be to keep them motivated and stimulated mentally and keep them running things so that we can build this core the right way here in Sacramento.
Dime: How do you think playing alongside some of the all-time greats as a member of the Celtics will help to contribute to your rise as a young coach in the NBA?
DB: Well you just learn how great players always respected the game. Playing with guys like Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Reggie Lewis, those guys were the best of the best at their positions but they were the hardest workers. They were great culture guys in the locker room. They helped me a lot when I was a young player and those things rubbed off on me early in my career so I was really blessed to play with guys like that early in my career because I realized what it took to not just get in this league, but to stay in this league at a high level- what we call “staying power.”
You know I played 12 years in this league and I attribute a lot of that to being around those guys every day because they showed me how to do things the right way- how to get to the gym early and how to leave late. And I’m trying to do these same things with the guys I get a chance to be around every day. Again, as I grew as a player, I had the chance to mentor guys like a Chauncey Billups who was a rookie when I was in Boston, Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady, who were rookies when I was in Toronto. So I got the chance to mentor great players and give them back knowledge as a teammate.
Even to be around guys that probably didn’t get the credit that they deserved like a Charles Oakley or an Antonio Davis, those guys that are just the grinders- grimy, hardworking guys. They might not be Hall Of Famers but you need those guys on your team to win a championships and win games, so I’ve seen all of the spectrums. I’ve been a captain with the Celtics, I’ve been a sixth man, I’ve been a veteran guy that played 10 minutes a game and watch the young athletic guys have the spotlight. Being in those different roles helps me to teach guys at different levels, from your best player to a guy who hasn’t played in a game in a month but he’s still focused and when the opportunity comes he’s ready to contribute to the team.
Dime: I’ve got to ask: Do you ever get out there on the court and try to recreate that moment that we all remember from ’91 All-Star Weekend?
DB: You know what man? I always get challenged by these guys that ask if I can still dunk and I still can dunk. There was a Pump event a few months ago at the Rucker that I did for Reebok and you know you can’t embarrass yourself at the Rucker. There’s always playground legends at the Rucker so I threw one off the backboard and dunked it in jeans at 45 years old. People still think that I can’t dunk but I can. But to do the no-look dunk, you know what, I don’t think I have enough health insurance to try that (laughs). I’ll leave that alone. I’ll talk about it but to try and recreate that dunk, you know what, I know where my limitations are at now. But when I need to throw a dunk down and, or, maybe get over the rim just to show the guys I still can dunk, I’ll show it to ’em.
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