The time when Gilbert Arenas played with Dolce & Gabbana sneakers
The genius (or madness) behind the reason that explained Agent Zero
Sports
June 2nd, 2021
June 2nd, 2021
A cult team corresponds to a cult player. The Washington Wizards of the 2010-11 season literally belong to the inspiration, talent and madness of Gilbert Arenas, a player beyond all logic. There are many iconic moments in Agent Zero's career, a symbol of basketball non-conformism and contraceptive aesthetic choices. adidas is well aware of this, having decided to invest in him - he will also be one of the faces of basketball in the Impossibile is Nothing campaign - before snatching the contract in 2009 after the gun scandal in the Wizards locker room. Among the follies of Arenas there is certainly the evening in which he showed up at the Staples Center with a pair of sneakers by Dolce & Gabbana. The problem is that he did not arrive at the arena with those shoes but took the court with a pair never seen before on the hardwood.
It was December 7, 2010 and the Wizards of Arenas arrive at the arena of the city of angels but also of Nick Young - aka Swaggy P - and Javale McGee, another character known more for off-field events than for his performances. Waiting for them are the Lakers of Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol. The mystery of the choice of shoes was revealed during "The No Chill Podcast", the podcast by Gilbert Arenas launched in April 2020.
"I didn't have a shoe sponsor at the time, so I was testing different shoes. That night we're in Los Angeles and Nick [Young] comes to the camp with these weird shoes under his dress. I look at his locker and think 'Man, they match our shirt!' and so I thought about wearing them. The only inconvenient thing is that they didn't have laces"
In an official match, against the reigning NBA champions, Gilbert Arenas played with a pair of D&G Velcro Strap Patent Hi-Tops worth € 320. Yong Bae Seok, the designer of that model who admitted to having created them thinking about a pair of basketball shoes, also returned to the topic: "Basketball players usually prefer laces, it's the only difference with a performance shoe. I preferred to insert the velcro and the tears to make it more robust. It will be served to Gilbert that night".
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