Sports gear magnate Nike had a bad day at the office, as the spotlight shifted to Zion Williamson and the Duke Blue Devils taking on the North Carolina Tar Heels, only for the main attraction to have his shoe explode 33 seconds into the sold-out game.
Williamson, the projected top pick in this year's NBA Draft, was forced to miss the remainder of the game with a knee injury. It was a terrible look for the brand, who outfitted him with the Nike PG 2.5 model:
Zion blows right *through* his shoe pic.twitter.com/uuiUayOSNL
— CJ Fogler AKA Perc70 #BlackLivesMatter (@cjzero) February 21, 2019
Nike later released a statement through a spokesperson, lamenting the issue and wishing the Duke freshman a speedy recovery:
“We are obviously concerned and want to wish Zion a speedy recovery. The quality and performance of our products are of utmost importance. While this is an isolated occurrence, we are working to identify the issue.”
The PG model has been a favorite of NBA players, as Paul George's signature sneakers couples eye-catching looks with a snug fit that offers maximum lockdown.
Yet Williamson's shoe didn't seem to have separated because of poor glueing, but actually seemed to have combusted and ripped through an unnatural force, as it broke through the side cushion system and the under-toe section of the outsole:
This is wild. pic.twitter.com/DLVpMSwZ6K
— Oruny (@OrunyChoi) February 21, 2019
Needless to say, this was freakish.
The only other memorable time in which this happened in a major basketball event was to the since-retired Manu Ginobili of the San Antonio Spurs, who also exploded through the side of a pair of Nike shoes:
Truly mind-blowing.
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