And the industry needs this kind of innovation on the low end. He says basketball shoes can be as much as $350 these days. HAWKE: Joe Davis is a designer who used to work for Fila. I don't understand how they're able to do this for 15 bucks. JOE DAVIS (Shoe Expert): I could sum it up and say it's ingenious. We presented the two shoes, covering up their logos to an expert in shoe design. At about $95 they were over six times as expensive. NPR bought a pair of Starburys for $14.98 and found a similar looking pair of mid-range Nike Jordans. HAWKE: It's not as easy as you might think to saw a shoe in half. MARBURY: How do I guarantee? All they got to do is go get a chainsaw and cut it down the middle. HAWKE: And if that guarantee isn't enough, he invites consumers to do a comparison with top brands. I'm going to wear the sneakers the whole season. MARBURY: I'm going to wear this shoe on court. And Marbury wants to prove his low-cost shoe is NBA quality. Somebody's got to change the world, he says. He's anything but modest when you ask why he's doing this.
Retailer Steven and Barry's is producing the clothing line using his nickname, the Starbury Collection. In a world of multi-million dollar shoe endorsements by NBA players, Marbury is sponsoring low-cost athletic wear and a $15 basketball shoe. HAWKE: Marbury is turning tradition on its head. STEPHON MARBURY (New York Knicks Guard): Oh, my friend, my friend, we got one for you too. Standing in a cluster of star-struck tweens, Marbury handed out t-shirts. He came back recently to shoot hoops with kids from the local boys and girls club.
NBA player Stephon Marbury grew up here, about two blocks from the boardwalk. He is out to start a consumer revolution with a new line of ultra-affordable basketball shoes.Ĭoney Island, New York. But his latest off-court mission - to share the love, as he says - might just earn him comparisons to philanthropists and civil rights leaders. New York Knicks guard Stephon Marbury has been described as prickly, self-centered and overpaid.
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