It has been 130 years since Dr. James Naismith invented the game of basketball while teaching inside the gym at Springfield College, which was then known as the YMCA Training School. In honor of that historic moment, Converse has linked up with the Boston-bred boutique Concepts to drop a new sneaker collaboration coming soon.
The upcoming project entitled "Southern Flame" will include the first-ever basketball sneaker ever created, the Chuck 70 alongside the new All Star BB Evo. Both pairs draw inspiration from the peach baskets that Naismith used as early basketball goals with the first shoe donning a predominantly red color scheme while the latter pair comes in green. Adding to the peach basket theme are the fuzzy shoelaces included on each model.
"The Chuck transcends all—it’s the one sneaker that has an impact on everyone," says the Creative Director of Concepts, Deon Point. "The one angle we felt is sometimes forgotten is its roots in basketball. Not many even know the Chuck Taylor backstory, so hopefully this will shed some light on history."
The Concepts x Converse "Southern Flame" collection is releasing on Jan. 28 at Cncpts.com, Converse.com, Concepts' Boston and New York stores and at select retailers with the Chuck 70 retailing for $120 while the All Star Evo BB is priced at $140.
