Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James recently debuted his latest colorway, but unlike routine sneaker reveals, this one carried a deeper meaning. He unveiled the newest LeBron 23 colorway right before MLK Day, and it carried significant meaning through its design. Here’s everything you need to know about it.

The teal sneaker marks one of the 23 colorways for the shoe, referencing James’ 23 years in the league, and is officially titled ‘Honor the King.’ The name refers both to Dr. King’s continued celebration across America on MLK Day, as well as James’ famous ‘the King’ nickname.

The pair was debuted by James in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies on 2nd January, and stood out immediately.

At first glance, the teal upper draws attention to the body, but the color isn’t aesthetically driven. Rather, it references the exterior of the Lorraine Motel, the location of Dr. King’s assassination in 1968 in Memphis, which was later reopened as the National Civil Rights Museum in 1991.

However, the decision to mimic the Lorraine Motel’s distinct aquatic sign and detailing on the shoe was met with a lot of backlash from fans online after images of the pair started circulating.

“Design is so subjective, and some people the design will resonate with, and others maybe less so, and obviously that becomes a little bit more charged when you have bigger principles at play,” Nike’s vice president of communications John Jowers said of the shoe. “I think the intent, though, was really to pay homage to Dr. King, his life and his legacy.”

Nike has paid homage Dr. King multiple times through basketball ventures, including the 2020 city edition jerseys for the Atlanta Hawks, which featured ‘MLK’ in a bold font, and used an ‘EQUALITY’ print on the heel of black Air Force One shoes released for Black History Month in 2018.

Inside the Details of the LeBron 23 ‘Honor the King’ Colorway

LeBron James’ latest sneaker also reinforces the intent to that Jowers talked about via secondary imaging. On the heel of the shoe, the word ‘EQUALITY’ is spelled out like the previous Nike releases, and the company also revealed a matching graphic shirt alongside the sneaker.

There’s also a personal layer to the sneaker. The shoe references 15th January, 2008, when a 23-year-old James scored 51 points against the Grizzlies in one of the most defining nights of his early NBA career. This connects his personal basketball history and on-court brilliance with a place that holds a lasting importance in American history.

So far, there’s no official release date for the shoes, but they’re expected to release sometime in February, and set to be priced at $210 in adult sizes. The Lakers forward also released a statement in tribute to Dr. King on Instagram, posting a series of pictures with him wearing an ‘Honor King’ shirt, writing:

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“Will Always HONOR YOU with the utmost dignity, integrity, love and most of all RESPECT!! Thank you for showing me that even when hate comes your way you still found love & positivity in it! CONTINUE TO SHINE BRIGHT DOWN ON US! HAPPY MLK DAY!..”

More details on the release of the sneaker should become available soon.