footwear_design
Direction Since this is Giannis’ debut shoe I wanted to sell a story. Giannis is unique in the NBA as he is only 1 of 4 active Greek players in the league, a huge minority. His background is unique and I felt that this should play a large role in his debut shoe which would be a massive milestone in his career.
Inspiration Giannis plays for Milwaukee, whose logo is a Buck or a Deer. Since this is the team that drafted him they have played the largest part in his career by giving him the opportunity to play at the highest level. I aimed to credit the bucks by using their playing colours and also adopting some of the natural forms seen in Bucks, such as the unique texture on the antlers.
Giannis was born in Athens, arguably the global capital of sport due to it being the origin of the Olympics. I wanted to use this part of his heritage to influence the shoe design. Using topographic data of Athens provides some interesting graphics that have meaning that I thought would look good on the shoe. Also, the elevation digram of the original Athens marathon provides an interesting shape that could also be utilised in the shoe while having meaning.
“ He’s going to be like an MVP, a champion, this dude he’s going to put Milwaukee on the map. ” - MAGIC JOHNSON
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