With all the sites counting down their top ten for 2011, DeFY. New York decided to throw itself in the mix. Below you will find DeFY.’s top ten sneaker releases for 2011, enjoy!
#10.) ADIDAS RUN DMC 25TH ANNIVERSARY SUPERSTAR WHITE/BLACK
It’s never easy bringing something new to the table with a shoe thats been released in hundreds of different colorways, materials, etc. but Adidas as always came through with the goods. Something about reflective material on a Superstar coupled with the 25th anniversary of Run DMC & Adidas gives me goose bumps. Throw them on with pretty much anything and your good to go.
#9.) NIKE FOOTSCAPE WOVEN “LEOPARD”
Leopard skin is whats hot in the streets for 2011, and no other shoe for men did it better. Every time I see this shoe I hear Dave Chappele screaming LEOPARD, ILLEGAL LEOPARRRRRRDDDD.
#8.) NEW BALANCE 1500 X NICE KICKS
Matt from Nicekicks cited his inspiration for this shoe as the Mercedes 500E (the legendary Benz x Porsche Collab). Like the 500E, Matt took something great and made it better.
#7.) NIKE AIR FORCE 1 HYPERFUSE WHITE/GREY
The Nike Air Force 1 Hyperfuse in white/grey is the culmination of nearly 30 years of Nike technology. This shoe keeps you wondering what the Air Force 1 will look like in another 30 years.
#6.) CONVERSE ALL STAR ADDICT BURGUNDY (JAPANESE RELEASE)
A lot of people are probably scratching there head at a Chuck Taylor making the top ten for 2011 since they release every year, but these are far from your standard release Chucks. The Addict series is an up to date version of the 1960’s Chuck T (Vibram soles and all). This shoe is strictly for enthusiasts that love the 1960’s Chuck T but want their shoes modernized. If you love Chucks you gotta love these Chucks on steroids in this classic color way.
#5.) NIKE TOTAL AIR FOAMPOSITE MAX PHOTO BLUE RETRO
While we’ve seen retro’s of the Nike Total Air Foamposite Max before, never before has the flagship colorway been retro’d. Hype had been building ever since Kicksonfire.com posted my photos up polling people for a retro of these classics. Well, the polls can rest (for now at least) as Nike blessed us with one of Tim Duncan’s best for 2011.
#4.) NIKE AIR TRAINER SC II 3/4 INFRARED & CITRON/TEAL
Yup, thats right. Two colorway’s tie for the fourth place. The year was 1989, that was the last time we saw the likes of the Trainer SC II 3/4. After years of hardcore trainer enthusiasts begging Nike to release these gems (in the original colorway’s) Nike finally listened. Photo’s of Bun B sporting the infrared pair during a video shoot showed up and the shoe community knew it was on. The citron colorway with the teal sock liner followed and while the retro isn’t spot on, its close enough to keep us all warm and tingly for many years to come.
#3.) NIKE AIR FLOW RETRO BRIGHT CACTUS & LUSH TEAL
Another two way tie for third place. Just like the Trainer SC II 3/4, this is the first time we have seen a retro of this shoe EVER. Pre-dating the Presto by 11 years, this bad ass running shoe in the OG colors sold out fast leaving everyone begging Nike for a re-retro. With prices in the $400.00+ range we’re keeping our fingers crossed.
#2.) NIKE AIR MAG
Dissapointed by the lack of the self lacing feature? Us too. Nonetheless, this is the shoe that everyone has been dreaming about since the first time they saw Marty sporting them in Back To The Future II. With an actual release of the McFly’s, it gave us all hope that anyone of our favorite shoes could be retro’d at anytime. The fact that the proceeds went to a great cause just solidified this shoe as number 2.
#1.) NIKE AIR JORDAN XI CONCORD RE-RE-RETRO
The concord XI release is by far, the release of the year. When a shoe release can make world news how can you debate otherwise? Hype aside, the concords are a very special piece of footwear that almost never happened. With Jordan retired at the time Tinker Hatfield was cooking these historic kicks up, Nike did not support the idea of another Jordan release. Lucky for us, Tinker Hatfield pushed for the shoe and the rest is history.