words // Zack Schlemmer
With Michael Jordan's retirement, the 1994 All Star Game was the perfect showcase for the players to prove who would now be the best in the game. Scottie Pippen made a serious statement by becoming the game's MVP and showing that he was one of the NBA's greatest, even without Jordan. But that was only one of the statements he made at the 1994 All Star Game. The other was his bright red Nike Air Maestros. Never before had an All Star worn special edition shoes for the game, at least none as noticeable as Scottie's Maestros. Much like Dee Brown's Dunk Contest Reebok Pumps profiled yesterday, Scottie's red Maestros were a brilliant piece of marketing for Nike, who got everyone talking about the shoes during and after the game.
Whether it's Chris Webber in chrome C-Dubz or Tracy McGrady's one-red-one-blue adidas T-Mac 3's, almost every year at least one player has special shoes that stand out during the All Star game. Scottie Pippen started it all in 1994 with his bright red Nike Air Maestro.
