Sneaker Rivals: San Antonio Spurs vs Minnesota Timberwolves

The Western half of the second round of the NBA Playoffs begins with the San Antonio Spurs taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves. This will only be the third time they have met in the playoffs, with the most recent matchup taking place in 2001 when Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett were still battling it out for the title of best power forward and Nike big man in the NBA. It’s a highly anticipated match-up featuring two of the most popular players in the league in Victor Wembanyama and Anthony Edwards. Well, hopefully it will be Anthony Edwards at some point during the series because he was unfortunately injured in the first round.

Despite having playoff experience and a top-tier defense that should give the young Spurs problems, injuries to Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo will probably limit the chances the Wolves have of advancing to a third straight Western Conference Finals. Edwards’ injury also means we might not see what new colorways of the adidas Anthony Edwards 2 he had planned to debut. Personally, I was hoping for an adidas Anthony Edwards 3 teaser or reveal, but that might be wishcasting at this stage.

Even without Edwards for at the very least the beginning of the series, the Spurs and Wolves both have enough interesting players to make checking out their sneaker rotations worthwhile, especially when the Spurs have a handful of players beyond Wemby who could make the leap at some point in the future while the Wolves bring the variety with the veterans they have on the squad.

San Antonio Spurs

Starting Five: Victor Wembanyama (Nike), De’Aaron Fox (Under Armour), Stephon Castle (Jordan Brand), Dylan Harper (Nike), Devin Vassell (Nike)

Sixth Man: Keldon Johnson (Qiaodan)

Despite being a small market team (at least by TV ratings, not by population), San Antonio has had amazing luck bringing in players who have had memorable sneaker runs. The five championships are fine, but remember when David Robinson wore the Nike Air Command Forces? He really was running the neighborhood.

Anyways, in the great tradition of Spurs big men who had memorable stints at Nike, Victor Wembanyama has taken the reins with memorable player exclusives and attention-grabbing ads. The question is whether or not that means he graduates to signature shoe status. Despite being a once-in-a-lifetime talent with a personality that relishes the spotlight, his once-in-a-lifetime frame makes him a tough sell to the kids.

I disagree with that long-held belief because it’s not like GOATs and athletic freaks of nature Michael Jordan, LeBron James, and Shaquille O’Neal were “relatable,” but they sold sneakers. Wemby can surely do the same. If we followed that relatability logic, Matthew Delaavedova’s Peak Delly 1 would be breaking sales records to this day. Just give us a Wemby signature shoe already, Nike, it’s time.

What makes Wemby’s sneaker situation even more intriguing is that two of his fellow high draft picks are also carving their own space in the sneaker world. Last season’s NBA Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle should be on any list for Jordan signature shoe consideration, while Dylan Harper already has a signature logo with Nike that’s a step above your interlocking initials and jersey numbers. Sure, the Anaheim Ducks vibes might be strong, but Harper probably doesn’t commission a chain of the logo to be made if he’s not already looking to the future.

Currently, the lone signature athlete on the Spurs is De’Aaron Fox. After debuting his signature Fox line under the Curry Brand umbrella, he moved back home to Under Armour when the Curry partnership ended. The newly minted Under Armour Fox 3 is now the most high-profile basketball shoe for the brand, which is something no one on the outside looking in could have anticipated heading into the season.

Rounding out the rest of the Spurs’ sneaker roster are Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson. Vassell and Devin Booker don’t have too much in common other than a shared first name, but maybe that’s a small reason why Vassell rocks with Booker’s signature line. Johnson is the face of Chinese brand Qiaodan and currently wears the Fengi Rise 3.0, a performance model that’s getting slightly above average reviews online.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Starting Five: Anthony Edwards (adidas), Rudy Gobert (Nike), Mike Conley (Jordan Brand), Julius Randle (Skechers), Jaden McDaniels (Nike)

Sixth Man: Terrence Shannon Jr. (adidas)

Anthony Edwards changes the calculus of this matchup beyond the obvious effect it will have on the series. Edwards and adidas were riding so high with his first signature shoe that the release of the sequel was pushed back by nearly a year. The adidas Anthony Edwards 2 has not garnered the same level of buzz as the original, but assuming Ant-Man returns later in the series, there will not be a higher-profile sneaker that will hit the court.

Rudy Gobert has been the NBA’s running punchline for years now, thanks to a combination of Shaquille O’Neal’s unrelenting criticism and his handsy treatment of microphones at the worst possible time, despite being the league’s best defensive center for nearly a decade before Victor Wembanyama entered the picture.

This battle of French big men is going to be the most critical matchup of the series, but one aspect where the two are tied up is on the sneaker front, as they both wear PE editions of the Nike GT Hustle 3. Wemby might have the slight advantage with the alien PE logo, however.

Veterans Julius Randle and Mike Conley could not be further apart when it comes to their respective sneaker journeys. Randle joined the likes of Joel Embiid and OG Anunoby to kickstart Skechers basketball sneaker division, while Conley has been a reliable part of Jordan Brand since 2016. On the PE front, Randle is rocking a colorway that is a tribute to his hometown of Dallas, Texas and Conley has been wearing a Wolves-specific version of the Air Jordan 40.

The X-Factor of the series might come down to two Wolves players who had big moments in the first round in Jaden McDaniels and Terrence Shannon Jr. McDaniels might have drawn the ire of three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, but maybe Joker could have asked Jaden about his LEGO Nike GT Cut 3s because those only released to the public in kids’ sizes. Shannon got the call during Game 6 against the Nuggets due to injuries from several players, and he made the most of it while wearing the adidas Subzone, a budget hoops shoe that one Redditor claims they picked up for $30 at an adidas outlet store over a year ago.

Historical Matchup: Tim Duncan (Nike) versus Kevin Garnett (Nike) (1999)

The San Antonio Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves have faced off twice in the NBA Playoffs prior to this meeting, with the Spurs coming away victorious both times in 1999 and 2001. The marquee matchup that sparks joy in old school fans were the battles between NBA Hall of Famers Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett. During their first playoff meeting in 1999, Duncan wore the Nike Air Vis Zoom Uptempo and Garnett rocked a PE edition of the Nike Air Flightposite with his jersey number. Duncan would eventually adopt the Flightposite as well, leading to this iconic commercial that, in hindsight, feels like a reflection of KG’s years in Minnesota.

Juan Martinez

From video game journalism to veteran of the sneaker blog era to podcasting about well, everything, Juan is smiling through it all and can't believe this is his life. After recently getting into Formula 1, he now has hot takes about who the greatest driver of all time is. Email: juan@soleretriever.com