NBA Player Explains What It's Like to Be a Sneakerhead Overseas

Bismack Biyombo breaks down the sneaker scene in the Congo.

by Zac Dubasik

Bismack Biyombo was selected as the number-seven pick of the 2011 NBA Draft and is the league's only player hailing from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. (Not to be confused with Serge Ibaka’s neighboring Republic of the Congo). Following the draft, Biyombo signed an endorsement deal with Jordan Brand and has since gotten used to personalized Charlotte Hornets (and Bobcats) colorways of Air Jordans

It hasn’t always been so easy for him to acquire sneakers, though. In most of the world, sneaker bots are the least of anyone's worries. “To be honest, I never had myself a pair of Jordans growing up. I had Reebok, adidas, Nike, but I never had Jordans,” Biyombo explained. “It’s not like they were available to everybody. Only a certain class of people could have Jordans.”

He may not have had his own pair, but he was well aware of the sneaker brand's influence. “Of course, I’d see the [Air Jordan] 11s, and some of the other retros and get all excited about it, [but] I couldn’t even get my size in my country,” he said.

In recent years, the NBA has pushed more and more to expand its international fan base, and has also seen its number of overseas-born players grow. Going onto the season, the NBA included a record 101 international players, hailing from 37 different countries and territories.

It’s been a long journey from never even having a pair of Jordans, to not only making the NBA, but playing for a team owned by the man on the sneakers' logo. “Being a part of Jordan Brand is special,” Biyombo said. “I’m very blessed, and I thank God for that, to be in this situation where I am. It’s a special thing for where I’m from.”