Grant Hill III

One of my favourite things about collecting sneakers is being able to pick up all the shoes that I wanted when I was a kid but could never get either because I could't afford them or because they just weren't available in the UK. However there's one shoe that I loved as a kid that had never been re-released, the Fila Grant Hill III.

I was a big fan of a bunch of classic 90's players, Penny Hardaway, Kevin Garnett, and of course Jordan. But my absolute favourite player has always been Grant Hill. Through his first few seasons he was one of the hottest players in the league and showed the potential to be the best player in the NBA. I vividly remember the awesome Grant Hill Sprite commercials that aired during the Saturday morning NBA shows on Channel 4 and I had a bunch of his posters on my bedroom wall. I can also remember going to a sports store in Cambridge that is long since closed where I bought my white & teal Pistons Hill jersey, and even though its regularly voted one of the worst uniforms ever I still love it. Unfortunately injuries derailed a large part of Grants career but he was still always my favourite player and he had some great seasons as a veteran with the Phoenix Suns and LA Clippers.

The III was definitely the best of Grants shoes. It really reflects the design trends of the 90's and the over the top styling that features on a lot of the shoes that I really love from that era. I think it definitely takes some design cues from the Nike Zoom Flight 95, especially the oversized EVA midsole and the pods on the side.

Up until this year they had never re-released the navy/white colour which was the version I always wanted. A black/white edition was released late last year, but I'm glad I waited for this colourway to release. I don't think I'll be playing basketball in them, but I'll definitely be getting a lot of casual wear out of them over the summer.

I got my pair from the US through eBay, and even with shipping & customs they were refreshingly low priced. I guess there's just not a lot of hype for retro Fila releases. I was especially impressed with the the packaging, with both the box & the lining paper taking design cues from the shoe which is a really nice touch. There were a couple of small quality issues with the finish of the shoe but nothing that detracts from it, and I'm definitely excited to have another great shoe from my childhood in the collection.

Basketball Diaries

Played a bonus basketball game this week with the Cambridge basketball guys and decided to break out the 2011 Air Jordan XI Concords.