History[]
Kevin Durant's sixth signature shoe takes much of its design cues from fine watches1. Hexagons are seen on the outsole of the shoe which tie back to the number six. The tongue logo shows KD's number 35 and the number 6 in the negative space. A lightning bolt on the heel of the shoe ties back to KD's team, the Oklahoma City Thunder. Many of the colorways continue the "weather" theme that is a signature part of the KD line going back to the Weatherman colorway on the KD IV and KD's statement that he would be a TV weatherman if not a basketball player.
The construction of the shoe made everyone think of a soccer cleat upon first viewing. The asymmetrical lacing system was a major cause of this. Leo Chang stated that he took no inspiration from a soccer cleat, however. The upper is constructed with hyperfuse and Flywire locking things down.
Small details once again return on a KD shoe. The name of KD's childhood mentor Big Chucky appears on the heel area of the outsole. The phrase "Seat Pleasant's Finest" appears near the toebox on the outsole.
The base price of the KD VI was $130, with limited colorways being marked up to $150 and the Elite model at $200. Fans have bemoaned the fact that the KD line keeps increasing in price even though KD once said that he wanted to keep his shoe line affordable. That didn't seem to stop sales of the shoe, however, as the KD VI line was undoubtedly the most successful line of the KD series to date.
This was the first shoe of the KD line to receive a unique box with KD branding on it. The box featured the main themes of the KD VI: watches and lightning. Each previous KD was presented in the generic orange Nike box. Many of the colorways were presented in their own unique boxes, and each of those is noted below.
The KD VI was unveiled June 27-28, 2013 in KD's hometown of Seat Pleasant, MD. An event was held at the Seat Pleasant Activity Center with host Michael Wilbon talking to KD and Leo Chang about the shoe.
Who Wore It[]
- In the NBA:
- Kevin Durant
- Gordon Hayward
- J.J. Barea
- Wilson Chandler
- Derek Fisher
- College Teams:
- Texas
- Duke
- Michigan State
- Oregon
Product Information & Releases[]
Shoe | Colorway | Style Code | Release Date | Retail Price | Color |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
D.C. Preheat | 618216-400 | June 29, 2013 | $150 (US) | Gamma Blue/Dusty Grey-Flash Lime | |
Seat Pleasant | 599424-700 | July 3, 2013 | $130 (US) | Yellow/Midnight Navy-Tropical Teal | |
Meteorology | 599424-006 | August 3, 2013 | $130 (US) | Black/Atomic Red-Medium Olive-Noble Red | |
NYC | 599424-800 | August 17, 2013 | $130 (US) | Total Orange/Armory Slate-Team Orange | |
Bamboo | 599424-301 | September 14, 2013 | $130 (US) | Gamma Green/Flash Lime-Linen-Raw Umber | |
Texas | 599424-002 | October 10, 2013 | $130 (US) | Black/Green Glow-Urban Orange | |
PB&J | 599424-801 | October 19, 2013 | $130 (US) | Red-Black-Gold | |
OKC Away | 599424-004 | October 31, 2013 | $130 (US) | Black/Metallic Silver-Team Orange-Photo Blue |