Zion Williamson Ditches PG 2.5s for Modified Kyrie 4s After North Carolina Injury
Zion Williamson's sneakers were the talk of college basketball on Feb. 20 when he slipped and bursted through his PG 2.5s at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C. The freshman phenom has been out of the lineup since the injury, but returned on Thursday during Duke's84–72 win over Syracuse in the ACC Tournament.
Ditching the Paul George's for a modified version of Kyrie Irving's 4 model Nikes, Williamson went a perfect 13-for-13 from the field for a double-double in his return.
"The shoes were incredible in this game," Williamson told reporters after the win.
The custom-made white and blue Nikes featured the Blue Devils' logo on the back and were designed to offer more support for Duke's 6'7", 285-pound freshman star.
"I couldn't really specifically tell you if I wanted to," he said. "I just know they're a little stronger than the regular Kyrie 4s, so I want to thank Nike for making these. They felt very comfortable."
Krzyzewski explained to reporters that Nike sent "their top people" to Durham the day after Williamson ripped through his shoe against UNC to figure out what went wrong with the PG's. After assessing the damage, Nike then went about figuring out how to make a more "supportive" shoe for Zion to play in through the postseason.
"They came back within a week with different alternatives to make sure that it was done right," Krzyzewski said. "So their immediate, great response was appreciated and it was something that we have grown to expect from our relationship with them."
Coach K added that Zion had worn his PG's in too many games before the blowout which may have contributed to the rip. Williamson has also been advised to change his sneakers more often. Another shoe catastrophe (hopefully) avoided.
