There are many various choices of athletic shoes that someone can pick from at this time. Someone can choose the type depending on whether they play a particular sport or not. If someone plays basketball a good choice for them would have to include Nike Basketball shoes. The company was initially founded in 1964 by Phil Knight. At that time the company was called Blue Ribbon Sports and later had its name changed. The name Nike was chosen after a dream was had incorporating the Greek Goddess of victory that has the same name. Shortly after the name change the company patented their well known swoosh as their emblem. The early sneakers were made with a sole that featured Air Sole units. These soles were made with bags of pressurized gas in them so they would compress at impact then spring back to size. This technology was brought to them by a former aerospace engineer. In the early 1980's Michael Jordan was signed to a contract to endorse the company. He was, at that time, early in his NBA career and was just beginning to take hold of the league and of his marketing potential. The Air Jordan line came out as his signature model in the next year. Nike was immediately put into the forefront of basketball with the Air Jordan line. Because the shoe was banned by the NBA since it did not meet the dress code Michael was fined every time he wore them. That led to even more publicity to the company, Michael Jordan, and the Air Jordan line. These fines kept them all on the news and the public's mind. In 1986 Michael won the slam dunk contest and became interested in playing a bigger role in the designing of the Air Jordan line. Because of this the line started being manufactured with materials that were lighter and in a three-quarter cut shoe instead of a high top. The Air Jordan line sales elevated to all time highs as it was now not only endorsed by one of the top stars in the NBA but also partially designed by him. That extra feature helped separate the line from other products as it carried a special Michael Jordan touch to it. After the Air Jordan line exhibited such great success many other NBA players also decided to endorse the company's products. This led to Vince Carter, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James all taking a part in the business. Many of these players also decided to lend a hand in designing their line so it would match their thoughts of what the line should look like. Since many players back the Nike basketball shoes they are definitely a good choice for someone that plays that sport. They are also very good looking shoes as many of the stars add their own personal touches to their lines. So not only are the good to play in but they are also nice to look at.
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