MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The boys’ state basketball tournament may have found its winners during Saturday’s trilogy of championship bouts, but here at MetroNews, we still can’t figure out who had the best shoes.
The basketball shoe used to just be a part of the uniform, and in some (becoming rare) cases it still is. Your team wore the same matching white and (insert team color here) shoes, unless there was a medical reason you couldn’t wear that brand’s size.
But, the game has evolved, and you can probably blame the NBA’s Christmas festivities.
We take this time to introduce Article A into evidence — LeBron James:
Over the last decade, NBA players have used Christmas Day as a chance to debut colorways and patterns not normally seen on their shoe of choice, and that has bled into the regular season.
And Article B — Jonas Jerebko (NOT on Christmas day):
After seeing those articles of evidence, it’s a simple translation of Reaganomics and other trickle-down theories, and you can see why high school gyms are walked over with an Easter basket’s array of pastels and highlighter-esque neons.
No matter if you choose to blame LeBron James, Ronald Reagan, or me for wanting you to blame anyone in the first place, it’s time to sit back and enjoy a photo gallery of the best shoes West Virginia’s tournament had to offer.