Nike Hooks Up EYBL Campers with Player Exclusive Basketball Sneakers
Youth basketball has always been a focal point of Nike Basketball. The EYBL program has put a spotlight on the best young basketball players since 2010, and the program’s Academy camp has been training the next NBA and WNBA superstars every summer since 2015. In addition to skills training and competition circuit, EYBL has become synonymous with special edition sneakers, giving elite teenage hoopers access to dozens of exclusive Nike basketball colorways.
This summer, high school ballers who got an invite to The Academy were laced with four different player edition sneakers, including the Lebron 22, KD 18, GT Cut 3 Turbo, and GT Hustle 3. The Lebron is blue and seafoam, covered in shiny patent leather with gold accents, while the GT Cut 3 Turbo has an all black textured upper with gold lateral side panels and metallic blue medial panels with blue Swooshes on the tongue. If you ask us, though, the stars of the pack are the GT Hustle 3 and the KD 18.
The GT Hustle 3 has a tri-colored woven upper unique to each shoe. On the right shoe, the majority of the upper is blue, with red surrounding the laces, and black side panels. On the left, the red and blue switch places, with most of the shoe covered in bright crimson. Both have grey Swooshes on both side panels and a metallic finish on the half-speckled midsole.
The KD 18 is the cream of the crop, covered in a metallic silver finish with electric blue outlines surrounding the side panels as they extend into lace loops. The toebox is a mix of cream leather and dark green mesh that extends through the tongue, which also features EYBL logos on the lace stabilization system.
EYBL Academy campers will go home with a deeper bag on the court and a much deeper bag for their sneaker collection, but unfortunately for the rest of us, these ones probably won’t hit wide release. Download the Sole Retriever mobile app to stay updated on the latest releases, raffles, news, and more in the sneaker and streetwear world.
Zach Harris is a writer based in Philadelphia. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone, Vice, Complex, High Times, and more. He is obsessed with skateboarding and bowling. He is still looking for his first 300. zach.h@soleretriever.com
