When Fear of God’s Jerry Lorenzo first signed on to adidas in 2020, sneakerheads knew that he was meant to be a replacement for Kanye West and the Yeezy brand. And, of course, given his previous work with Nike on past collabs, there was absolutely no reason to doubt Lorenzo’s ability to whip up something special for adidas. Heck, at the time, the fashion designer even said that Fear of God x adidas could probably rival Michael Jordan’s Air Jordan Brand. So, naturally, expectations were sky high. Could he actually deliver?
Well, it’s been six years since those comments and that deal, and, unfortunately, not a single release has been praised or has even come remotely close to an Air Jordan release. No, most people would agree that the Fear of God x adidas sneakers haven’t even reached the same level as Kanye West’s Yeezy releases. And if we go even further, most would agree that they felt a bit like Yeezy rip-offs, in a way. Same colors. Same materials. Similar designs.
And, again, unfortunately, the upcoming adidas Fear Of God Athletics Basketball III doesn’t change any of that.
While Lorenzo officially ended the partnership with adidas last year, there’s still one last set of clothing and sneakers to release. But, again, it’s pretty much more of the same here. The same colorways. Those same laces. That same shape. Heck, the only real difference here is probably the materials. But those seem familiar too.
If you’re thinking the adidas Fear Of God Athletics Basketball III looks a lot like the Yeezy Boost 500 or 700, you’re not alone. Maybe it was adidas’ plan for the collection to mimic Ye’s Yeezys all along.
Having said all that, the adidas Fear Of God Athletics Basketball III might be the best release of the entire collection so far. It’s a pretty clean sneaker. Suede and knit up top. It looks like something from a sci-fi future. And had they led with this release, it might have ended a little differently.
But don’t be mistaken, this isn’t really a basketball sneaker. It looks more like something you’d wear on a fashion runway than something made for balling on the streets. And maybe that’s been the problem with these releases all along. They were made to sell fashion and were never practical enough to ball in.
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