The Most Underrated Sneakers of 2019

Nike ISPA React WR

‘Improvise, Scavage, Protect, Adapt.’ Built by Nike sportswear’s special projects, the Nike ISPA React reconstructed one of the most innovative releases in 2018 to provide a more utilitarian build. Inspired by ACG hiking boots, the ISPA React is perfect for gaining traction in the current sneaker zeitgeist as brands hike to the next cultural zenith – trail. Articulating Nike’s philosophy of performance and utility, the ISPA React is as technically sound and aesthetically avant-garde as anything we saw this year.

New Balance 997S

Yes, New Balance have dropped some hyped releases this year. The Toronto Raptors New Balance 997 sold out within minutes, while there’s still plenty of us looking to get our hands Slam Jam and Stray Rats versions of the NB 990v3. But it’s the New Balance 997S that slid under the radar this year, the retooled Steven Smith classic featuring enlarged panels, bootie fit and clean ENCAP Reveal midsole.

Li–Ning Furios Rider 1.5

Li–Ning went totally bonkers in 2019. September’s Arc Ace look as though they belong to the many abandoned reveries of Ridley Scott, while the Way of Wade 7 closed out Dwyane Wade’s career with a kaleidoscope of colourways that eclipsed any sneaker ‘World Tour’ in recent memory. Li–Ning are raging, and it’s the Furious Rider Ace 1.5 that’s fuelling China’s retro–futurist aesthetic. Get on the bandwagon or get off the road, Li–Ning will put the pedal to the metal in 2020.

adidas Norse Projects Torsion TRDC

Celebrating 30 years of Torsion technology, adidas Consortium tapped the widely–revered Scandenavian brand Norse Projects for an inspired collaboration paying homage to the architectural vernacular of Copenhagen. First appearing on adi’s ZX running range, the stripped–back colour palette emphasises the utilitarian attitude of the Norse Project Torsion. Somewhat Brutalist in its nature and totally ruthless in its execution, don’t let the Danish fog obscure you from this one – it’s straight fire.

Kiko Kostadinov ASICS GEL–Sokat Infinity II

Designer Kiko Kostadinov has been tearing through the ASICS catalogue of late, the ascendant young Bulgartian talent recently remixing the ASICS Edition GEL–Delva and linking up with legendary German photographer Juergen Teller for the GEL–Korika. Following up from the GEL–Sokat back in April, Kostadinov’s FW19 ASICS GEL-Sokat Infinity II taps 2000s basketball to execute an exaggerated upper emphasised by its elongated tongue. With a previous release taking cues from Tug of War games, the Infinity II installs a webbed heel counter from the classic Dan Gable Ultimate for a clean KO.

Air Jordan 1 Low

Forget Travis Scott’s reverse Swoosh, the Shattered Backboard 3.0 and Dior’s rumoured $2,000 collaboration, sometimes you just have to keep it clean – and low. The Air Jordan 1 received a kaleidoscope of colourways in 2019, but it’s the humble Air Jordan 1 Low that ducked under the radar this year, the super clean silhouette able to conform to any sartorial style. The Air Jordan 1 Low steps away from the hype by lopping off the neck on endless High and Mid iterations of the 1985 icon.

adidas D.O.N Issue #1

Inspired by Spider Man, the adidas D.O.N Issue #1 is the first signature sneaker by Utah Jazz highflyer Donovan Mitchell. Packing some serious heat beneath the bonnet, the Issue #1 is decked out with herringbone–patterned rubber outsole and propulsion clip providing all the kind of traction needed to activate your spidey–senses. With outsoles taking notes from Mitchell’s journey from Brewster Academy in New Hampshire, expect Donovan’s Mitchell to write an intoxicating new chapter during the 2019–2020 NBA. Let’s go Jazz!

Vivienne Westwood ASICS GEL–DS OG Trainer

The lynchpin of punk rock fashion, Vivienne Westwood continues to inspire sartorial attitude across the globe. Linking up with ASICS for three masterpieces inspired by 18th century French artist Francois Boucher, Westwood first referenced the classical style in her now–iconic 1990 AW collection, ‘Portrait’. Westwood’s visual style has not lost any potency during her reign in the fashion world, the GEL–DS OG Trainer our personal favourite of the collection, rendering her signature multi–coloured orb logo across the black synthetic and mesh panels.

Nike React Element 87 ‘Dusty Peach’ and ‘Moss’

Sneaker culture is a fickle beast. After picking up multiple ‘Sneaker of the Year’ awards in 2018, the heat emanating from the React Element 87 died right down this year, the idiosyncratic silhouette perhaps missing the kind of nuclear colab that defined Undercover’s four React Element iterations. The ‘Dusty Peach’ and ‘Moss’ renditions are are just as pretty as any previous colourway of the React Element 87.