King James’ Nike LeBron 4 “Fruity Pebbles” Returns in This Week’s Best Footwear Drops

With the year's first two months now complete, many brands have already hit mid-season form, as illustrated by this week's list of best sneaker releases. The usual suspects of Nike, Jordan Brand and adidas are joined by Crocs, Dr. Martens, ASICS and ANTA as an exciting slate of drops are set for the next seven days. However, before we outline all ten of this week's best releases, let's go ahead and review the past week's key headlines from the sneaker space.

Kicking things off on the feature front, we teamed up with retail intelligence platform EDITED to dive into the state of the sneaker industry and the hype (or lack thereof) behind it. Closing out February, we also sat down with Helen Kirkum as she takes on her position as Birkenstock's first artist-in-residence in its new space in East London.

Pivoting to traditional news, three on-foot breakdowns of new Nike releases were served up -- featuring the Nike Air Max 1 '86 "Air Max Day," Futura x Nike SB Dunk Low and Nike KD 17. As for Jordan Brand, rumors were being shared left and right with word of another Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 Low OG "Olive" release and a second colorway of both the A Ma Maniére x Air Jordan 4 and A Ma Maniére x Air Jordan 3 also being noted. Rounding things out for the Swoosh, Awake NY revealed the entirety of its forthcoming Jordan Brand collection.

Elsewhere in the industry, adidas oversaw the announcement of releases from two of its key partnerships -- adidas Y-3 with the S-GENDO RUN and Fear of God Athletics with the Fear of God Athletics 1 and Los Angeles sneakers in "Clay." For New Balance, Joe Freshgoods unveiled his two New Balance 1000 colorways ahead of their April release period. PUMA also made noise with its four One Piece-themed Suede sneakers. Lastly, new silhouettes were presented by Off-White™ with its The Baller sneaker, Salomon with its XT PU.RE ADVANCED silhouette and Red Wing Heritage with the Shop Moc Toe Oxford.

Now that you're up to speed with the latest and greatest from the world of footwear, let's go ahead and outline all ten of this week's biggest releases. Afterwards, be sure to swing by HBX to shop styles that are available for purchase now.

Jacquemus x Nike J Force 1 “Earth”

Release Date: March 5
Release Price: $175 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: French label Jacquemus has quickly established itself as one of Nike’s premier partners -- introducing its first collaborative silhouette with the brand last year via the J Force 1. Now, to kick off the duo’s 2024 run, a new “Earth” colorway joins an expansive range of apparel. Looking closer at the sneaker, a mesh base and suede overlays appear in the aforementioned brown hue while its signature woven sole combines a lighter brown, a mustard yellow and white at the outsole.

ANTA KAI 1 “Artist on Court”

Release Date: March 6
Release Price: $125 USD
Where to Buy: ANTA
Why You Should Cop: Kyrie Irving is stepping back into the footwear game with the release of his first signature shoe with Chinese brand ANTA. Bringing forth the ANTA KAI 1, the duo has prepared a vividly-colored “Artist on Court” look that draws inspiration from the beliefs of Native peoples. Debuting this week, the sneaker kicks off a new chapter of footwear releases for Irving as ANTA continues to grow its global presence.

adidas YEEZY SLIDE & FOAM RNNR “Onyx”

Release Date: March 7
Release Price: $70 USD to $90 USD
Where to Buy: adidas
Why You Should Cop: YEEZY season has returned once again, and while Ye has expressed his dissatisfaction with his adidas deal, the Three Stripes is continuing to release its remaining YEEZY products. Following up on last week’s “Steel Grey” launch of the YEEZY BOOST 350 V2, the YEEZY SLIDE and YEEZY FOAM RNNR are now set to return in the fan-favorite “Onyx” colorway. Both see the dark gray hue cover the entirety of the two silhouettes once again, just in time for the warmer weather that is to come.

Nike LeBron 4 “Fruity Pebbles”

Release Date: March 7
Release Price: $250 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: LeBron James continues to prove that he remains capable of anything on the court. Eclipsing the 40,000 point mark just days ago, the King is poised to make the most of his remaining time in the league. Meanwhile, his work with Nike Basketball has revisited many of his oldest signature shoes and colorways, with the sought-after LeBron 4 “Fruity Pebbles” PE now arriving as a general release 18 years after first appearing. The grail sees all of its special detailing return with its white leather upper joined by a multicolored cereal-inspired midsole that is complemented by six distinct colors at the semi-translucent outsole.

Rick Owens x Dr. Martens 1460 Jumbo Lace Boot & 1918 Boot

Release Date: March 7
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: Dr. Martens
Why You Should Cop: With years of collaborations under their belt, Rick Owens and Dr. Martens are no stranger to each other. Time and again, Owens has elevated Dr. Martens' classic silhouettes with larger-than-life shapes. Now, for the duo’s second installment in their latest architectural collection, the new DMXL sole has been applied to the 1460 and 1918 boots. The former features thick wrap-around laces in Owens’ signature “Pearl” finish, matching the thinner laces of the latter that climb up the tall boot.

ASICS UB6-S GT-2160

Release Date: March 8
Release Price: ¥17,600 JPY (approx. $117 USD)
Where to Buy: ASICS
Why You Should Cop: Kiko Kostadinov is one of the key masterminds behind ASICS’ ascent in the footwear industry. Modernizing the Japanese brand via his penchant for utilitarian design, Kostadinov has introduced a myriad of silhouettes with the brand, as well as elevated various existing models. For his latest work with the brand, his studio has adjusted the GT-2160 into the UB6-S GT-2160. Its shape is more sleek while the tongue has been raised with a new asymmetrical tab applied to it. On top of this, all three colorways sport unique color compositions that complements the duo’s previous projects.

Social Status x Nike Attack “Status Symbol”

Release Date: March 8
Release Price: $140 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: James Whitner’s Social Status was the first partner to outfit the reintroduced Nike Attack last year, preparing it in three colorways that connected to an overarching “1st & 15th” story. Now, the campaign is set to conclude with the “Status Symbol” iteration tying the entire project together. Once again, tear-away layers have been applied to the Swooshes and heel as this black and white look is enlivened by green at the co-branded tongue and optional laces.

Awake NY x Jordan Air Ship

Release Date: March 9
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: EQL SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: Awake NY and Jordan Brand are set to kick their partnership off with the release of their first co-created sneaker, the Air Ship. A love letter to Michael Jordan's Brooklyn roots (he was born in the borough) and NYC's thriving basketball culture, the Awake NY x Jordan Air Ship boasts a crisp color scheme and special details like debossed "A" graphics and snakeskin collars. An early access raffle will be held on EQL starting March 6

Air Jordan 4 “White & Gold”

Release Date: March 9
Release Price: $210 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: The Air Jordan 4 is gearing up for what could be its biggest year yet. Between the return of beloved colorways like the OG “Military Blue” and the introduction of its first proper takedown model with Air Jordan 4 RM, there’s plenty to look forward to from the AJ4 this year. Adding to the fun, a women’s-exclusive “White & Gold” shines bright this week as the tried-and-true combination of leather and mesh returns to the silhouette with an almost-entirely white sneaker accented by hits of gold.

Futura Laboratories x Crocs Classic Clog

Release Date: March 11
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: Futura Laboratories
Why You Should Cop: Legendary artist Futura has been busy throughout 2024 so far. Teaming up with both Supreme and Salehe Bembury’s Crocs Pollex division last month, his brand Futura Laboratories is now joining forces with Crocs for two Classic Clog colorways and a set of Pointman Jibbitz charms. Both pairs of the slip-on see various callouts to Futura’s art with his signature and atom motif both reappearing as co-branding hits the straps of each.

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