Handing LeBron James adidas gazelle buzz black and women, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar literally and figuratively passed the torch to The King as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. Dawning a custom adidas trefoil letterman jacket and pair of adidas Forums, the Three-Stripes has concurrently announced an honorary collection commemorating the impact and legacy of Abdul-Jabbar and the record he held for 39 years.
Featuring three unique designs of his synonymous adidas Forum, each sneaker boasts a disparate dedication to the varying aspects of the Hall of Famer’s career. Titled “Alpha”, the first proposition renders a clad premium fabric across its upper boasting bright blue and gold tones in connection to his 88-2 career and three-straight NCAA Championships at UCLA – which years come emblazoned in gold foil across the base of the vamp. Adorned in cream, purple and gold, the second effort, “Accolades” represents the era Kareem dominated and encapsulated the Los Angeles area with ninja throwing stars depicting the years he won NBA Championships at the heel. Dubbed “Legacy”, the silhouette Kareem wore to LeBron’s crowning achievement infuses hits of copper across an all-black upper representing his life-long commitment to social justice and racial inequality.
Releasing simultaneously with the launch of Kareem’s Club Skyhook on February 28th, only a select 33 pairs of each silhouette were produced in homage to Kareem’s retired number with the Lakers. While the “Alpha” will only be available to the first 33 VIP members of the Skyhook Loyalty Club, the adidas Forum “Accolades” will release at select LA-based retailers while the “Legacy” ensemble will be made available via an exclusive sweepstakes for adiClub members.
Throughout the month of February, Crypto.com Arena will display each of the latter signed silhouettes in a size 16 before eventually being raffled off for charity. In the meantime, enjoy official images of Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s adidas Forum “Evolution of Excellence” Collection below.