You may already know about how NBA superstar and newly-minted Brooklyn Nets member Kyrie Irving is a weird dude who’s pretty open to expressing his eccentricity through his dope signature sneakers. The dude has used the Kyrie 5 as a template for homages to everything from the TV show Friends to his obsession with the Illuminati and conspiracy theories. It’s rad. We could use more of that energy in both the basketball and sneaker world. However, the newest Kyrie 5 colorways are taking it to a whole ‘nother level.
(Photo Credit: Nike)
Nike has officially revealed the first two shoes of what’s long been a rumor but is now one of the beautiful, bizarre certainties of the sneaker world: the Nike Kyrie 5 ‘SpongeBob’ collection. Perhaps you’re familiar with SpongeBob SquarePants, the cartoon character who (if I may refresh your memory) lives in a pineapple under the sea/is absorbent and yellow and porish. The show is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, no small feat for an animated show and especially not for one as singularly bizarre as Spongebob Squarepants.
(Photo Credit: Nike)
To commemorate this anniversary — and to pay homage to what Irving himself has proclaimed as one of his favorite TV shows – Nike is releasing not one, not two, but FIVE SpongeBob-inspired sneakers. The line features three Kyrie 5s and two Kyrie 2 Lows.
The first drops in the line are the SpongeBob and Patrick Kyrie 5s. The SpongeBob colorway features a yellow upper with spongy speckles scattered about. The Nickelodeon logo is visible on the tongue and a small print of SpongeBob’s face is visible on the insole of the shoe. Nike’s logo adorns the back, albeit this time in a SpongeBob-inspired font. Even the classic Nike Swoosh has been sponge-ified for the colorway. However, the best feature in my opinion is the subtle red accent along the side of the shoe, drawing to mind the character’s ever-present red tie.
(Photo Credit: Nike)
The Patrick colorway features a number of the same touches, including the Nike logo on the heel, Patrick’s face on the insole, and a tiny Nickelodeon logo on the tongue. The primary upper is composed of a vibrant speckled pink and a lime-green and purple lower in tribute to the character’s floral-print trunks.
(Photo Credit: Nike)
Both of these sneakers will be dropping on August 10 via Nike’s SNKRS app. For now, they’re the only ones with official release dates (a select few sneakerheads were actually able to secure the shoe via early release today but that window has long since closed). However, there are still three more shoes in the lineup. Keep your ears to the ground for more info on the Kyrie 5 Squidward and the Kyrie 2 Low Sandy, as well as a Kyrie 2 Low that looks like it could be an homage to either Mr. Krabs or Mrs. Puff.
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