On Friday in Los Angeles, LeBron James debuted the Nike LeBron 16 “Medicine Ball” inspired by Bo Jackson. That version of the LeBron 16 hits retail outlets this weekend. The encore to the “Medicine Ball” is scheduled to drop in April, however, when the Nike LeBron 16 “MPLS” becomes available at Nike.com and other retail outlets. The “MPLS” is designed to pay homage to the Minneapolis-era of Lakers basketball which lasted from 1947-60. According to Sole Collector, the “MPLS” releases on April 19 and will retail for $185.
Designed in a wolf grey and white-university blue colorway, this throwback to the Minneapolis Lakers franchise was first introduced in Kobe Bryant’s signature Nike line. The shoe is delivered in grey Battleknit, with the current Lakers colors replaced by the university blue and yellow that were worn in Minneapolis. The sneaker includes an ‘LJ16′ on the tongue and a ’23’ numbering on the insoles.
It’s easy to forget that the Los Angeles Lakers nickname is actually inspired by the nickname of the state of Minnesota, “The Land of 10,000 Lakes,” When the franchised opened in Minneapolis in the late 1940s, they were led by Hall of Famer George Mikan who averaged nearly 30 points per game. Mikan would retire in 1954, and four years later Minneapolis drafted another Hall of Famer named Elgin Baylor who quickly asserted himself as one of the game’s elite talents. During 13 seasons in Minnesota, the Lakers would ride those superstars to five championships before moving to L.A. in 1960.
This will obviously be the first time that LeBron pays homage to the Minneapolis Lakers in his signature shoe series. It also comes at a time when he could definitely use a couple players like Mikan and Baylor on his squad. Maybe Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka will be able to find a similarly dominant and fundamentally sound center along with a first-team all NBA forward somewhere this summer who can support LeBron’s efforts next season.
