Sneakerhead from South Florida who turned his passion into a career. When not writing for Sole Retriever, I enjoy attending concerts and catching the latest movies. Email: nick@soleretriever.com
As we type this up, LeBron James is in the midst of his latest trip to China, the Forever King Tour. He touched down in the country last night, and to coincide with the start of his 15th China tour, Nike officially unveiled his next signature sneaker, the LeBron 23, revealing three debut colorways. Alongside the pair inspired by him and his son Bronny playing as the first NBA father-son duo, his achievement of scoring 40,000 points, and his back-to-back NBA championships with the Miami Heat, the LeBron 23 now recalls the first sneaker LeBron wore in the NBA.
Even if you’re not a fan of LeBron James, you probably know the story of his first sneaker, the Nike Air Zoom Generation. Nike created the sneaker for James before he even set foot onto a professional basketball court, and one of the first colorways he wore on the NBA floor became known as the Nike Air Zoom Generation First Game. Technically, this white, red, and navy color scheme was the pair he wore during the Cavs' first home game on November 5, 2003, with the away game against Sacramento (his NBA debut) on October 29, 2025, being dubbed the Debut colorway.
The First Game colorway is faithfully recreated on this LeBron 23, with the metallic gold Swoosh from the pair applied to the midfoot and outlined in red trim just like the original. The all-new Crown Containment System, which sees LeBron’s crown logo act as a reinforcement for the engineered mesh base, comes with a navy base and red netting to mimic the materials found on the original Air Zoom Generation.
Outlining the crown logo on the upper is navy, while the engineered mesh base, leather tongue, and mesh sockliner are white. LeBron’s L23 logo is coated in gold on the heel and medial midfoot. One feature that is a bit deceiving is the date “10-29-2003” embroidered on the sockliner. As mentioned above, that is the date LeBron first took the NBA floor, but it was the white, black, and red Debut colorway he wore, not the white, red, and navy First Game pair from November 5.
The Nike LeBron 23 Grand Opening will be released in the Holiday 2025 season through Nike and select retailers online and in-store. Available in men’s and GS sizing, the retail price is set at $210 and $160, respectively. Download the Sole Retriever mobile app to stay updated on the latest releases, raffles, news, and more in the sneaker and streetwear world.
Images via kicksvision
