It's finally time to put an end to the regular season and get ready for some playoff action. If you think this season was stacked with sneaker heat, you better prepare yourself because playoff time is when real sneaker legends are made. Moving forward you'll only see the league's biggest stars wearing new colorways and showing off the player exclusives they've been working on behind the scenes all year long.
But before we get to that it's time to put a bow on the regular season and highlight the players that ended the 2020-21 year with the most heat on the hardwood.
10. Draymond Green
Draymond Green has quietly put together another fantastic season on the court and he's done so while consistently showing off his Converse basketball sneakers. Green, who signed a huge multi-year deal with Converse in 2020, wears the Converse G4 on the court. As the face of Converse Basketball, Green gets the perks of a near-unlimited supply of player exclusive kicks and you check out some of those sneakers below. All vintage, yet modern flavors from Green and Converse.
9. Frank Jackson
The Pistons aren't in the NBA playoffs, so you won't get to see any more sneaker heat from Frank Jackson, but his run to end the regular season was impressive. Jackson decided to unload a very specific part of his Jordan collection: a stash of low-top Jordan 13s. The Jordan 13 itself is a classic silhouette that was an integral part of Michael Jordan's final act with the Bulls as the sneaker he wore when Chicago won the championship in 1997. So Jackson gets a well-deserved shoutout for showing off some of the Jordan 13 lows he has in his collection.
8. Kevin Durant
The best Kevin Durant sneakers you'll see this year are still to come. It's playoff time for Durant and the Nets and as a major star for Nike Basketball, Durant is going to be showing off some pretty cool colorways in the weeks to come. Before the end of the regular season, the Nets star debuted the Nike KD14 so prepare to see some pretty cool things on that shoe in the near future. In the meantime, check out the Nike KD14 flavors Durant did get to lace up before the regular season ended below.
7. Kawhi Leonard
There's no official word on when you'll see Kawhi Leonard debut the next shoe from his signature line with New Balance, but it likely won't be too far down the road. Now as we wait for that news to drop, we'll continue to admire the New Balance KAWHI, Leonard's first signature shoe. The different colorways and player exclusives have been some of the best around the NBA this season and they'll be something to keep an eye on as Leonard gets going in the playoffs.
6. Stephen Curry
Stephen Curry just became the oldest scoring champion in the NBA since Michael Jordan did it in the late-'90s, he's an MVP finalist for the first time in years and some new data suggests that his sneakers could have played a big role in it all. Curry has been wearing his signature Under Armour Curry Flow 8 kicks all season, which come featuring new cushioning technology called UA Flow. UA Flow is a singular foam compound that brings lightweight cushioning and pioneering traction to Under Armour's performance footwear product. Under Armour recently worked with Second Spectrum to compare Curry's play this season (while utilizing the UA Flow technology) to his unanimous MVP season in 2015-16 and the numbers actually show a big difference. The comparison revealed that Curry's average speed, his distance covered per game and his blowby percentage have all increased this season. Those increases are truly remarkable when you consider it's looking back at one of the best offensive seasons in NBA history and that Curry is 34 years old now. Better believe this won't be the last time you see this technology on a Curry signature shoe.
5. Zion Williamson
It's unfortunate we won't get to see the Zion 1 in the playoffs, but you'll get a healthy dose of these once next season tips off. This is Zion Williamson's debut signature shoe with Jordan Brand and you got to see him in a handful of colorways but that was about it. The design of the sneaker is super clean with subtle details like a visible 'Z' on the upper of the shoe. Once the player exclusives start rolling in, it's going to be a show for Zion. We'll stay tuned for that.
4. Darius Bazley
Darius Bazley did not hold anything back as the regular season unfolded and we're beyond thankful for that. You'd be hard-pressed to see him wearing something on the court that wasn't a player exclusive made just for him. He bounced around between the New Balance TWO WXY and the low-top OMN1S, but it was all heat nonetheless. Take a look at the kicks that landed him in the No. 4 spot below.
3. Anthony Davis
We'll continue to amplify the fact that Anthony Davis solidified himself as one of the NBA's biggest collectors when it comes to the Nike Kobe Bryant line. Since being traded to the Lakers prior to last season, Davis has done an incredible job showing off just how extensive his collection is. He's somehow managed to take that to another level this year with a crazy run of player exclusives and if you follow him on social media it seems like the best is yet to come. So stay tuned because you're sure to see some wild Kobe PEs from Davis during the Lakers' playoff run.
2. Montrezl Harrell
There probably isn't another active NBA player more marketable as a Reebok spokesperson than Montrezl Harrell. He's a fiery big man that loves to flex on his opponents after scoring on them. It screams 1990s rugged basketball and, quite frankly, screams Reebok. To Harrell's credit, he's done an amazing job all season keeping us guessing as far as what Reebok kicks he's going to lace up next. The dude is a real sneakerhead and it's amazing to keep track of his creativity with his footwear.
1. P.J. Tucker
There isn't much bias when putting together these Sneaker King Power Rankings, but if P.J. Tucker makes a run to the NBA Finals with the Bucks it might result in the single-best sneaker playoff run we've ever seen. We're sure Tucker has a secret stash prepared for just this situation labeled 'Break Glass In Case of Finals Run' somewhere deep in his sneaker closet. You can check out the highlights of Tucker's sneaker run to end the regular season below, with one of the bigger gems being a Ray Allen PE of the Jordan 12 with the words 'Sugar Ray' etched on the side of the heel. Fingers crossed for an epic sneaker run in the playoffs.
