What defines a great athlete? Most argue championships, statistics and feats combine to build a portfolio of greatness. The Ali’s, Jordan’s, Woods’s of sports history check all three ‘greatness’/ greatest/ GOAT boxes we just mentioned; but too often we refuse to look beyond popular contributing factors. I reference the three athletes above for a specific reason, because we commonly acknowledge them as undeniably great- no questions asked. Another tier exists, the next tier down (unrightfully so), the great but‘s…
Tom Brady is great but what about ‘Deflate-gate’?
Tim Duncan is great but he’s sooo boring!
Deion Sanders is great but wait, there’s no real ‘but’ needed.
Why don’t we talk about him more often as an all-time great?
Check these fact:
- Deion’s the only athlete to appear in the Super Bowl and World Series (’95, ’92)!
- Ran a punt back for a touchdown in his first NFL game with Atlanta’s Dirty Birds (’89)!
- In his rookie season with the Yankees Sanders completed a rare ‘inside-the-park’ home run against Bo Jackson’s Royals (July 17, 1990… which is today)!
- Lastly, D’s the only athlete to have a touchdown and a home run in the same week (’92)!
- At the 1989 NFL Combine Sanders ran a 4.27 40-yard dash!
- x2 Super Bowl Champion with the Dallas Cowboys in ’95, ’96!
Now explain this to me, why don’t we talk about Deion, ‘Primetime’ Sanders more often in greatest of all time conversations? We just listed some of his major accomplishments and they’re enough to warrant a gaudy nickname like ‘Primetime’. “They gonna run me the max, they gotta double the racks” as Drake would say.
Prime had levels to his stunting. From the bandanas and high steps into the in-zone to the Jordans and signature shoes on his feet. He’s undeniably one of sport’s most entertaining athletes with a personality that lights up TV screens to this day. His Jordan 11 PEs from his NFL and MLB days stand as some of the most unique iterations of MJ’s eleventh’s signature. From murdered out MLB cleats to Redskin turf joints, Primetime kept his shoe game moving. 
The Nike Diamond Turfs, Deion’s signature line first one dropped in 1993 while playing for the 49ers/ Braves. The line ran with solid installments but ended in 1998 with the Diamond Turf V; the most popular pair arguably being the DT II. We’ve seen retros of the first three Diamond Turfs but never the last two. Retros happen pretty frequently (comparatively) of the DT I and II. Most casual fans of the shoe game can easily spot the 49er themed Diamond Turfs from a mile away with their glorious color blocking and design. Other famous athletes like the Laker’s LeBron James (that will never stop sounding good) commemorated Deion with Diamond Turf themed LBJ XV during the 2017-2018 season. Check out some pictures of Primetime’s best shoes below and do yourself a favor and watch some YouTube of this man at work!
Las Vegas native living in Portland, OR. Interests include: shoes, sports, music, video games and food. Extremely passionate about Nike and the Lakers. I’ve been collecting shoes for over 15 years! Follow me on IG & Twitter to see my personal collection and if you have questions. #rahbeekicksit
