"during the 1979–1980 season. Micheal Ray Richardson briefly wore leather Converse All Stars with the New Jersey Nets after 1982, making him the next to last to wear the shoe in the NBA. Richardson's teammate, Mickey Johnson, was the last to wear All Stars in the NBA, when he played for the Nets in the 1985–86 season. Originally an elite basketball shoe, Chuck Taylor All Stars regained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s, making a shift to casual, retro-style footwear. The athletic shoe evolved into the shoe of choice and a favorite for subcultures, particularly artists and musicians. By 2000"
"designed the forerunner of the modern All Star shoe that it marketed under the name of ""Non-Skids."" The shoe was composed of a rubber sole and canvas upper and was designed for basketball players. In 1921 Charles ""Chuck"" Taylor, an American semi-professional basketball player, joined Converse as a salesman. Within a year of Taylor's arrival, the company had adopted his ideas for improvements to the shoe's design to enhance its flexibility and ankle support. The restyled shoe also incorporated distinctive All-Star logo on the circular patch that protected the ankle. After Taylor's signature was added to the ankle patch as"
"was a rubber shoe manufacturer, providing winterized rubber soled footwear for men, women, and children. By 1910, Converse was producing shoes daily, but it was not until 1915 that the company began manufacturing athletic shoes. The company's catalyst came in 1917 when the Converse All-Star basketball shoe was introduced. Then in 1923, a basketball player named Charles H. ""Chuck"" Taylor walked into Converse complaining of sore feet. Converse gave him a job: he worked as a salesman and ambassador, promoting the shoes around the U.S., and in 1932 Taylor's signature was added to the All-Star patch on the classic, high-topped"
"basketball shoes is the classic American image of a sneaker and the essence of Irving Watkinson’s design can be seen in the styles and brands which followed through the years including, for example, the Converse All-Star first produced in 1917. A low quarter utility rubber and canvas shoe, that was illustrated and feature in an 1890s Colchester Rubber Company’s catalogue, appears to have been used as the basis for, and modified to create, these surviving basketball sneakers. belief is supported by the fact that the sample basketball sneakers do not have matching stock serial numbers and the canvas panels are"
"sales of its Converse All Star basketball shoes. In 1917, while Taylor was still in high school, Converse began manufacturing one of the first basketball shoes. At least one source indicates that in 1918 Taylor wore Converse Non-Skids, the canvas and rubber shoe that was the forerunner to the Converse All Stars. In 1921 S. R. ""Bob"" Pletz, an avid sportsman, hired Taylor as a salesman for the Converse Rubber Shoe Company when Taylor visited the company's offices in Chicago. The previous year the company had introduced an earlier version of Converse All Stars as one of the first shoes"
"case. Sonny Vaccaro John Paul Vincent Vaccaro (born September 23, 1939 in Trafford, Pennsylvania) is an American former sports marketing executive, and lives in Santa Monica, California. Vaccaro is best known for his tenure with Nike, Inc., where he signed Michael Jordan to his first sneaker deal. Vaccaro left Nike for Adidas, then Reebok. He founded the ABCD All America Camp, an elite showcase of high school basketball standouts, which ran from 1984 to 2007. It featured future stars Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, and LeBron James. Vaccaro cofounded the first national high school All-Star game, The Dapper Dan Roundball Classic,"
"with an ""ALL★STAR"" logo. The low-cut shoes also have a tag with the same logo as the heel stitched onto the tongue. In 2013 the logo appearing on the heel and tongue was slightly altered to include ""CONVERSE"" in addition to ""ALL★STAR,"" but the ankle patches of the high-cut shoes remained unchanged. In 2013, Converse launched the Chuck Taylor All Star '70, which featured a build similar to the All Stars used for basketball that were built in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This retro model was different from the then-current Chuck Taylor All Stars due to various changes"
"in large part to the sale of its All Stars, the company began to expand and open more factories. As the years went on, the shoe gained more popularity and became a favorite for numerous groups and subcultures. Converse began to struggle financially during the 1970s, due to competition and ""poor business decisions"" as the shoe lost its popularity among basketball players. Many athletes switched to shoes with leather uppers and harder rubber soles made by Converse as well as its competitors. Tree Rollins was thought to be the last player to wear canvas Converse All Stars in the NBA,"
"Sonny Vaccaro John Paul Vincent Vaccaro (born September 23, 1939 in Trafford, Pennsylvania) is an American former sports marketing executive, and lives in Santa Monica, California. Vaccaro is best known for his tenure with Nike, Inc., where he signed Michael Jordan to his first sneaker deal. Vaccaro left Nike for Adidas, then Reebok. He founded the ABCD All America Camp, an elite showcase of high school basketball standouts, which ran from 1984 to 2007. It featured future stars Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, and LeBron James. Vaccaro cofounded the first national high school All-Star game, The Dapper Dan Roundball Classic, with"
"The video dust jacket of ""Hoosiers"" also featured the iconic black high-tops. The cast of several popular network television series such as the ""Dennis the Menace (1959 TV series)"", ""M*A*S*H"" (1972–83), and ""Happy Days"" (1974–84), among others, have also wore Converse All Star shoes. In 2015, Converse released the Converse All-Star Andy Warhol collection, in partnership with the Andy Warhol Foundation. In honor of Warhol's contributions to visual art, Converse designed the All-Star shoe to commemorate Warhol's subcultural influence. Although it was originally intended for basketball, powerlifting athletes have embraced Chuck Taylors as an ideal shoe for the sport. Chucks"
"shoes over a period of a year and a half. Carlos Arroyo went overseas in late 2011, and Maurice Evans last played for the Washington Wizards in April 2012. Nine switched to Nike: Acie Law (who went overseas) in late 2011; JJ Barea and Kirk Hinrich during the 2011–12 season; Luke Harangody and Larry Sanders after the season; Elton Brand, Louis Williams, and Kyle Korver for the 2012–13 season; and Chris Andersen during the season. Udonis Haslem, the last NBA player wearing Converse on the court, followed Miami Heat teammate Dwyane Wade to switch to Li-Ning in late November 2012."
"semi-professional basketball player in 1919 and as the player-manager for the Converse All-Stars basketball team in the mid-1920s, but he became widely known as a salesman and promoter of Converse All Star basketball shoes. Taylor traveled the country providing local basketball clinics, making special appearances, and meeting with customers in local sporting goods stores to promote the company's basketball shoes. During World War II he coached the Wright Field Air-Tecs basketball team during the 1944–45 season and served as a physical fitness instructor for the U.S. military before resuming his career as a traveling salesman for Converse. Taylor retired from"
"1986. The song paid tribute to the Superstar shoe, and attempted to flip the stereotype of the 'b-boy'. Many years later, Adidas eventually signed an advertising deal with the group. The deal made between Run-D.M.C. and Adidas was the first endorsement deal between hip-hop artists and a major corporation, and a Run-D.M.C. endorsed line of clothing from Adidas was subsequently released. The Superstar shoe has become part of popular youth fashion culture and are now worn regularly as casual footwear, rather than for sports. The Superstars, like the Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars, easily made the transition from the basketball court"
"for many years. The chevron and star insignia—a logo that remains on a large portion of Converse footwear other than the All Star—was created by Jim Labadini, an employee. Canvas-rubber shoes regained popularity in the 1980s as casual footwear, but Converse eventually became over-dependent on the ""All Stars"" brand, whose market collapsed by 1989–1990. By the year 2000, Converse was slipping repeatedly into receivership as debt piled up yearly. Converse filed for bankruptcy on January 22, 2001. Not too long after, on March 30, its last manufacturing plants in the U.S., closed down, as production fully moved overseas. In April"
"Allen Iverson Allen Ezail Iverson (; born June 7, 1975), nicknamed ""The Answer"", is an American former professional basketball player. He played for fourteen seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) at both the shooting guard and point guard positions. Iverson was an eleven-time NBA All-Star, won the All-Star game MVP award in 2001 and 2005, and was the NBA's Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2001. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016. Iverson attended Bethel High School in Hampton, Virginia, and was a dual-sport athlete. He earned the Associated Press High School Player"
"sneakers. He continued this work until shortly before his death in 1969. Converse also customized shoes for the New York Renaissance (the ""Rens""), the first all–African American professional basketball team. In 1962, center Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia Warriors scored 100 points in an NBA game while wearing a pair of Chucks, taking a 169–147 victory over the New York Knicks in Hershey, Pennsylvania on March 2. When the U.S. entered World War II in 1941, Converse shifted production to manufacturing rubberized footwear, outerwear, and protective suits for the military. The company resumed production of athletic footwear after the war's"
"been previously signed with Air Jordan brand, a subsidiary of Nike. Kawhi Leonard Kawhi Anthony Leonard (, born June 29, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Selected with the 15th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft, Leonard was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in his first season with the San Antonio Spurs. Leonard won an NBA championship with the Spurs in 2014, when he was also named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player. He is a two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, having won in"
"and the Nike Hoop Summit. Bob Gibbons Bob Gibbons is an American talent scout specializing in American high school basketball players. He is based in Lenoir, North Carolina. Gibbons founded All-Star Sports in 1974. Before that, he was a high school player and coach. He is one of those who is credited with transforming scouting of school-age basketball stars into an industry. Gibbons publishes an annual ranking of the top 150 high school players in the U.S., as well as separate rankings of seniors, juniors, sophomores, and freshmen. He has also been on committees that select players for the annual"
"Taylor's clinics and the Converse company's All Star basketball shoes. Taylor also made his own All-American selections. In addition to selling Converse All Star shoes and conducting basketball clinics, Taylor contributed to the development of the sport in other ways. In 1935 he invented a ""stitchless"" basketball that was easier to control. Taylor also promoted basketball internationally. When basketball became an Olympic sport in 1936, he designed a white high-top model with blue and red trim for the 1936 Olympic Games. The Converse All Star shoe remained the official shoe of the Olympics team from 1936 to 1968. During World"
"known as an elite, all-purpose defender and is often assigned to defend high-scoring swingman, making it uncomfortable for players to score against him. Allen has been named in the NBA All-Defensive Team six out of seven times from to . On February 26, 2016, in a game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Kobe Bryant presented Allen with an autographed pair of shoes that read ""To Tony, the best defender I ever faced!"". Both players were inactive for the game. As a Boston Celtic, Allen was donned the nickname ""Gucci"" by his teammates. With the Grizzlies, he earned the nickname ""Grindfather""."
"end. Popular during the 1950s and 1960s, Converse promoted an American image with its Converse Basketball Yearbook. Artist Charles Kerins created cover art that celebrated Converse's role in the lives of high school and college athletes. In the 1970s, Converse purchased the trademark rights to Jack Purcell sneakers from B.F. Goodrich. Converse lost their monopoly from the 1970s onward, with new competitors, including Puma and Adidas, then Nike, then a decade later Reebok, who introduced new designs to the sports market. Converse found themselves no longer the official shoe of the National Basketball Association (NBA), a title they had relished"
"Smith, Damian Lillard, Andrew Wiggins, Tim Duncan, Jeremy Lin, Iman Shumpert, John Wall and Nick Young. Adidas endorsed Kobe Bryant with the Adidas Equipment KB8 as his first signature shoe until July 2002. The company also endorsed Kevin Garnett until he opted out of his contract in 2010. Gilbert Arenas was an Adidas endorser until 2010. In August 2015, James Harden left Nike for Adidas by signing a 13-year contract reportedly worth US$200 million. In rugby union, Adidas is the current kit supplier to the All Blacks, the France national team, the Italian national rugby team and the South African"
"2001, Footwear Acquisitions, led by Marsden Cason and Bill Simon, purchased the brand from bankruptcy and added industry partners Jack Boys, Jim Stroesser, Lisa Kempa, and David Maddocks to lead the turnaround of America's Original Sports Company. In July 2003, Nike paid $309 million to acquire Converse. Nike approached the 1980s revival around 2010 to relaunch the footwear. Nike also expanded the Converse brand to other businesses apart from shoes, much akin to its other brands. By November 2012, Converse had disappeared completely from the NBA, as the last dozen players wearing the brand either left the NBA or switched"
"he joined the Chicago Bulls. In 2012, he was traded to the Atlanta Hawks, where in 2015, he was named NBA All-Star. In 2017, he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he was a member of back-to-back Finals teams. Korver was born in Paramount, California, and is the oldest of four children of Kevin Korver, a pastor for the Third Reformed Church in Pella, Iowa, and Laine Korver. Both of his parents played basketball at Central College in Pella. His grandfather, Harold Korver, is also a pastor at the Immanuel Reformed Church in Paramount, California. He grew up in"
"provider since 2004. Under Armour is widely known for its partnership with NBA athlete Stephen Curry, who is considered to be the ""face of their footwear line"". Originally signed to Nike, Curry joined with Under Armour in the 2013 offseason. As Curry became a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Award winner and one of the most popular athletes in the world, sales of his shoes have become a major factor for the Under Armour brand, with stock prices rising and falling based on the success of the Curry shoe line. Under Armour is also well known for its partnership with"
"as Bruce Springsteen, describing him as ""a legendary artist who's still got that magic he started with"", Mogwai (a favourite since he was a teenager), Prefab Sprout and Peter Gabriel, despite overcoming initial skepticism that Gabriel was ""music for your dad"". Smith's Converse All-Stars basketball shoes, worn at 2007's V Festival, went on sale on internet site eBay in a charity auction to raise money for MAG (Mines Advisory Group). They raised £52; slightly more than the RRP for a new pair. In April 2011, Smith ran the London Marathon along with band-mate Russell Leetch. They raised over £10,000 for"
"Lance Allred Lance Collin Allred (born February 2, 1981) is the first legally-deaf player in NBA history, international inspirational speaker, author and TEDx star of ""What is Your Polygamy?"" He is a Mexican American former professional basketball player. Allred is deaf, with 75–80% hearing loss. He is the first legally deaf player in National Basketball Association history. To improve his hearing, he wears a hearing aid. His autobiography, ""Longshot: The Adventures of a Deaf Fundamentalist Mormon Kid and His Journey to the NBA"", was published by Harper Collins. Allred was born in Pinesdale, Montana, a fundamentalist Mormon Polygamist Commune. He"
"comfort. Converse re-released ""The Weapon"" classic (which Kobe Bryant wore at least three times in 2002 and Andre Miller wore in 2002 from mid August to early September) several times from 1999 to 2003 and after, ""The Loaded Weapon"" in 2003, ""The Weapon 86"" in 2008 (and the Poorman version in 2009, and the John Varvatos version in 2012), ""The Weapon EVO"" in 2009, and its successor ""The Star Player EVO"" (sometimes reduced to ""The Star Plyr EVO"" or ""The Star Ply EVO"") in 2010. The first endorsers of ""The Weapon"" were Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, who were prominently"
"important in athletic shoe design, to implement new design features based on how feet reacted to specific actions, such as running, jumping, or side-to-side movement. Athletic shoes for women were also designed for their specific physiological differences. Shoes specific to the sport of basketball were developed by Chuck Taylor, and are popularly known as Chuck Taylor All-Stars. These shoes, first sold in 1917, are double-layer canvas shoes with rubber soles and toe caps, and a high heel (known as a ""high top"") for added support. In 1969, Taylor was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in recognition"
"sells for $37.95, although hundreds are given away free to underprivileged children. Pierce returned to Rice University to complete his degree, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in kinesiology in May 2012. Ricky Pierce Ricky Charles Pierce (born August 19, 1959) is an American retired National Basketball Association (NBA) player. He was named an NBA All-Star (1991) and was twice the NBA Sixth Man of the Year (1987, 1990) while with the Milwaukee Bucks. He graduated from Garland High School. Pierce played basketball at Rice University. He was drafted by the Detroit Pistons in the 1st round (18th pick)"
"at the NBA Store Holiday Toy Drive. The New York Knicks regularly held events like Autographs for Supplies at the NBA Store where New York players like Eddy Curry, Zach Randolph, and WNBA's Kym Hampton meet fans and signs items in an effort to raise school supplies for children and stress academics. In 2007, the store held a fashion exhibition to celebrate the Casual Male Retail Group acquisition of the men's big & tall clothing company ""Jared M."", a company popular among athletes and celebrities for its custom sportswear; several NBA players were happy to show their support since the"
"Fund, in aid of the David Lynch Foundation. Commenting, Varvatos said, ""Both inner peace and global peace are very important topics to me"".<ref name=""instyle7/14""></ref> In 2001, Varvatos and Converse formed a partnership and Varvatos was licensed to create a line of high end sneakers, John Varvatos' sneakers were usually produced in the style of High Top Chuck Taylor All-Stars. The partnership has since ended, and Varvatos now produces a Bootleg brand show line in a similar Chuck Taylor style. Varvatos had first received accolades from the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) in 2000 when he was honored with"
"estate sale in Vista, California. The sale was from a Victorian estate in Denver, Colorado. It is known that Dr. James Naismith relocated to Denver in 1895 to attend Gross Medical College and therefore, these original Colchester Rubber Company basketball sneakers are believed to be a prototype sample made for Dr. James Naismith. The basketball shoes which Irving Watkinson created were canvas high top shoes having a rubber sole which featured a turkey feather design to aids traction and jumping, a rubber toe guard cap and a ball logo at the ankle ball which provides protection. The design of these"