Adidas & Fear of God Athletics Host Fireside Chat on Sneaker Industry

Adidas and Fear of God hosted a conversation on the future of basketball and the sneaker industry.

Adidas and Fear of God hosted a conversation on basketball and sneakers. / adidas

At the Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, Sports Illustrated's Kicks on SI was on hand for an exclusive conversation about the future of basketball and the ever-evolving sneaker industry.

In the Fireside Chat discussion, former NBA star and “All The Smoke” podcast co-host Matt Barnes moderated a conversation with Jerry Lorenzo, Founder of Fear of God ATHLETICS, Shane Ward, Design Director at adidas x Fear of God ATHLETICS, and Coach Cilk McSweeny about the mission of their partnership.

Barnes gave flowers to Lorenzo, who has been on the cutting edge of fashion and design with his innovative creations. “Jerry, you set the standard with your brand 13 years ago, and now coming full circle, being a father with your son here, and giving back on the grassroots level, “Barnes stated.

Scenes from the adidas x Fear of God event. / Rashad Grove

Lorenzo shared that his inspiration is from his son and all the young people that he meets.

“That's just always been where my heart is. I don't want to say it's strategic or this is where I feel like we need to go as a brand from a business perspective. This is where I want to go from a heart perspective,” Lorenzo said. 

He also spoke about the creative process of the Fear of God “Athletics II” which was revealed at the event and how he told him about all of the talented athletes at Overtime Elite.

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You know, when I'm thinking of making where I feel this beautiful product, the first people that come to mind are my son and the next generation,” Lorenzo added.

“I gotta thank him, because if it wasn't for him, you know, we wouldn't be here. He was always saying I needed to check out what was happening at Overtime Elite.” 

Ward added that high stand of performance on the court and style off the court will the the motif of future Fear of God releases.

“I'm just a representative of this incredible team of stone-cold killers. We talk about it on the basketball court we have the same thing on our product creation team that partners with Jerry,” Ward said. “We're cooking up some really good products that are coming out soon.”

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At the event, Fear of God Athletics in partnership with adidas, also announced that the Fear of God Athletics team will be joining Overtime Elite as the league's eighth team. The Athletics basketball team will don uniforms and sneakers designed by Fear of God Athletics. 

 "Fear of God has always drawn inspiration from, and been guided by the spirit of sport, both off and on the court. We are excited to be in a position to tangibly reach the next generation through this partnership with OTE,” Lorenzo said. ”Our goal has always been to inspire the next generation. 

“We are thrilled to represent Fear of God Athletics in the Overtime Elite basketball league! The inspiring work Jerry has done motivates us, and we’re eager to see how our program can reflect the values that Fear of God stands for,” McSweeney added.

Team Athletics will debut their new uniforms during their game against the City Reapers on Friday, November 8 at OTE Arena. The game is available for streaming live on Amazon Prime Video. Stay locked into Sports Illustrated's Kicks On SI for all of your most important sneaker news

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