P.J. Tucker is known for being a hard-nosed defender, which makes him so valuable on the court for the Houston Rockets, but he also holds the title as the NBA’s sneaker king, at least when it comes to Nikes.
What sets Tucker apart from so many others that have great sneaker collections in the NBA is that Tucker is willing to wear any of his hoops shoes on the court (Nick Young is the same way, but with adidas). Tucker has played in Yeezys (back when Kanye was with Nike) and all manner of retro Jordans, some of which are extremely rare and almost impossible to find.
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I’m not just talking about impossible to find shoes for the average sneakerhead, I’m talking about sneakers that are tough for even the most plugged in in the sneaker world to get their hands on. Tucker went on Complex’s Sneaker Shopping this week to talk about his favorite sneakers and also drop serious cash at Flight Club, but he also told some great stories about wearing some crazy rare shoes on the court.
One such story involved him playing in a Suns-Hornets game in Charlotte while wearing Shawn Marion 5s and having Michael Jordan even asking him where he got them (3:33 mark of the below video).
Joe La Puma: You’re playing in the Shawn Marion 5s, someone yells, ‘Where’d you get those?’ It was MJ.
P.J. Tucker: Crazy.
JLP: What was it like to have a shoe he didn’t even get?
P.J.: I’m literally in the corner and like I just hear somebody calling my name, and in NBA games that happens all the time. But that voice was distinctive and I knew who it was. So as soon as I turned around and seen him, I couldn’t even respond. It was crazy.
That Tucker could not only have that rare of a shoe and play in it is crazy on its own, not to mention the fact that Michael Jordan himself was curious as to where he was able to pick up a pair of Jordan sneakers.
Tucker also told stories about the dangers of playing in rare retro Jordans, as he’s had some rip apart on him during games, but he said one of the reasons he does it is to show kids that they should wear their sneakers and not be afraid of messing them up, because at the end of the day they are shoes and are meant to be worn. At the end of the episode, Tucker dropped over $16,000 on more sneakers as he continues to add to his absurd collection.
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