Now, for a big one. Packer Shoes has been doing it longer than almost anyone but few know that the Reebok Pump 20 was actually Packer’s first collaboration. The Packer Shoes Pump 20 celebrates Dominique Wilkins, the Human Highlight Film. The shoe matches Wilkins’ Hawks uniform, with some great small details, and is meant to be the All-Star Game shoe Dominique never had.
Mike Packer explains, in an interview with SneakerFreaker, that one of the ideas for this collab was a what if: what if Nike had signed Wilkins and Reebok signed Jordan? That idea was probably hard to bring to market, but the idea Packer Shoes ended up going with was phenomenal. Check out Reebok’s interview with Mike Packer below — it’s crazy how soft-spoken he was back then.
This Pump rocks premium tumbled leather on the upper and beautiful perforated leather on the tongue. The red midsole, speckled with black and yellow, pays homage to the Hawks. Grey hits the heel and the Pump release. Notable details include the gorgeous gold stitched “’85” on the left heel and “’90” on the right heel — both years in which Wilkins was the Slam Dunk Champion. Additionally, the lateral side of the right shoe’s toewrap features a gold stitched “21” for Wilkins number. The lateral side of the left shoe’s toewrap features a large gold stitched star. The craziest part was this Pump was sold with five different lace options.
Chad (aka @sneaker_galactus) displayed his pair of the Packer Shoes x Reebok Pump 20 at his sneaker exhibit (pictured below). The Pump 20 box was signed by number 21 himself, Mr. Wilkins. Of course, Deeboks has his pair signed as well.
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I love sneakers. Editor in Chief at WearTesters.com.
Formerly: PR for StreetSmartNet, Editor at SneakerHistory.com.
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