This is a ongoing personal design vision project consisting of multiple concept sneakers, with the combined purpose of getting the New Balance Brand back into the basketball sneaker industry. As, NB currently has no basketball line, the biggest challenge of this project will be figuring out how I can create a cohesive, compelling series of shoes with no existing product DNA to fall back on. There may be some opportunity to leverage some of NB's running platforms into these sneakers, but for the most part the designs will be from scratch.
Ideation Sketches
Concept Refinement
Concept 1
This concept is for a sneaker catered to the wing player. Guards and Small Forwards need the lightest most responsive shoe possible to perform at their best. This sneaker accomplishes this through a minimal heel drop in the midsole tooling, so that the player has an in control, low to the ground feel while wearing it. It also features a mesh inner bootie that is over 50% exposed so that the overall weight of the shoe is kept down and it is super breatheable. The molded TPU ankle piece along with the debossed N logo and hang tag branding will all be key design elements that carry through the line.
Concept2
Concept 2 (REVISION)
I took a second look at concept 2 and felt I need to tweak the silhouette a bit to differentiate from the other shoes in the line. Everything can't be a standard mid top. I bumped up the collar height on this one and added a mid foot strap as well. This sneaker is now taking on the persona of a "safety first" model. It sacrifices light weight and flexibility for ankle stability, mid foot support, and underfoot impact protection. Its best suited for low post players who need the support to confidently play their game.
Concept 3
This concept is a basketball adaptation of NB's classic 990 model
This project is a work in progress. Stay tuned for more posts!
