A Brief Guide To Nike SB Dunks

History of Nike SB Dunks

The Nike Dunk style sneakers have a long history with Nike. Having been first introduced in 1985 (during a time when basketball was becoming more and more popular), the Nike Dunk was initially a basketball shoe. It was a symbol of the cultural and corporate focus on basketball and sports in general: Nike wanted to make shoes that enhanced the performance of athletes. Along with Jordan 1s and Air Force 1s, the Nike Dunks are classic sneakers in sneaker history.

Over 17 years have passed until Nike finally realized that it was time to release sneakers specifically for the skateboard community: in 2002, Nike released the SB Dunks. Ever since 2002, the Nike SB Dunks became more and more popular as time passed by. There have been many collaborations with famous skaters, such as Koston and Janoski. To get further approval of the skateboard community, the four faces of the 2002 Nike SB Dunk campaign were Reese Forbes, Gino Ianucci, Richard Mulder and Danny Supa. Little did people know how impactful these sneakers would be in a decade or two.

The Rise of the Nike SB Dunks

Slowly and steadily (and notably), the popularity of the Nike SB Dunks was rising. The initial 2002 drop was very limited. With famous skaters representing the Nike SB Dunks, most – if not all – skaters in the skateboard community eventually found out about the Nike SB Dunks. Furthermore, these sneakers were already so popular to the skateboard community that it wasn’t hard to reach high sales with high demand.

In addition to performance, these sneakers had an aesthetic appeal to them. In other words, skaters looked good and performed well. These skaters WORE their Nike SB Dunks: they made holes in the shoes, discolored the shoes, and even threw away their shoes because of wear. In just 1-2 years after the initial 2002 drop, a new group of individuals started to gain interest in these shoes, and reasonably so, considering how aesthetically pleasing these sneakers were. This group came to be known as sneakerheads.

The “hype” around a pair of shoes determines how valuable a pair of shoes are. The hype creates demand, and hype is somewhat influenced by how rare something is. These sneakerheads were lining up all day and night to get their hands on a pair of Nike SB Dunks. A lot of the collaboration pieces of the Nike SB Dunks were low in supply, which made it hype and high in demand. Let’s take a look at some of these modern pieces.

Modern Releases of the Nike SB Dunk

Each and every collaboration piece of the Nike SB Dunk seems to tell a story like a piece of artwork does. This is precisely what Boston boutique Concepts tried to portray through its Lobster SB Dunks. Why would you make a pair of sneakers that’s named after an animal that we eat? It’s to tell a story.

Starting with the Red Lobster Dunks, Concepts also released iterations in blue, yellow, and purple.

What happens if you combine an already popular shoe with an already popular mainstream artist? You get the Nike SB Dunk Low Travis Scotts. Released not too long ago in February 2020, these sneakers are the definition of hype. Being an icon and idol even amongst celebrities, Travis Scott can touch any style of shoe, and it will look good.

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Now, what happens if you combine everyone’s favorite ice cream store with Nike SB Dunks? You get the Ben & Jerry’s Chunky Dunky SB Dunks.

Seriously, collaborations on SB Dunks are endless. This pair is definitely a piece of art. The colors go so well with each other, and the attention to detail is amazing.