JORDAN LUKA 1

First time I saw the Luka 1 from Jordan Brand was when Luka Doncic and Slovenia played Sweden at Avicii Arena last summer. He wore an all red color way, and it was hard to really tell what they looked like. Maybe because of tone in tone or maybe just because I was in awe of Luka the player and not the shoe. Anyway, as I looked thru some of my photos from the game, they were nice.

Before Luka got drafted, I asked Solesquad member Ludde Håkanson (who played against him for a couple of years in the ACB) if Luka was as good as his hype. "Not even close", he said. As I thought it was a combo of hate from Ludde and overhype from the media, he continued "he's much better." Since then, I've more or less waited for these to be released.

Last month I was doing a photoshoot with my friend and Storyteller Benjamin Yombi De Yombi for the Luka 1. Benji is a young up and coming player, and his generation thinks it always been like this. But I remember a time when no European players had their own signature soles. To me, this is a big thing. Just like Luka.

First thought when I got the shoes, was the L7 logo. Maybe it's the love for letters and fonts I got, or the fact that Luka chose 7 in honor of Carmelo Anthony. When Luka was drafted in 2018, number 7 belonged to Dwight Powell so he chose 77. But the logo still reminds me of what's what.

Second thing I really liked was the sleek low cut, and the flightwires on the side panels are a cool detail. On some models they are tone in tone, and on some they are highlighted. And it's the first time i've seen laces like these on a pair of performance soles.

The pods on the midsole is a detail that brings back memories from a lot of mid 90's soles to me, from Zoom Flight 95 to Uptempo 97. Maybe that's one reason why I like the Luka 1 so much. They remind me of more than just Luka's greatness. We already got a couple of colorways, both clean n simple to vibrant colorful. And they also come in the "Move To Zero" program. Luka sure is the future.