If you watched last night’s NBA season opener, you witnessed the Boston Celtics putting an 88-80 beat down on the Miami Heat. For us, one highlight of the evening occurred during a commercial break, in the form of a slick Brandon Jennings Under Armour basketball ad (video below).

The Milwaukee Bucks’ point guard is the face of Under Armour basketball. Our friends at Sole Collector sat down with the rising star to talk about his new shoe release.
Sole Collector: What I want in a shoe is…
Brandon Jennings: Something different. I wanted something that I would play in. I’m a real picky guy when it comes to shoes. It has to be hot, it has to feel light when I’m in it, to be fast. Obviously, I’m fast. Just something different, and not something that everyone else is wearing.
SC: My favorite colorway is…
BJ: All black. I was real impressed with the movie Dark Knight, and I wanted to make sure my shoe was all black. I have a Camaro that’s just all black, and it’s kind of like the Batmobile. I like black, and black can go with everything. With these shoes, I can rock them with jeans like now, and that means I’m gonna rock ’em a bunch.
SC: The Micro G Black Ice is inspired by…
BJ: The strap is from my AP watch, and the stitching on it recognizes my family—my mom and my brother. The cut is just the Gumby haircut. (laughs) I rock so many hairstyles, you just never know. Also, I wanted to have an ice bottom. I always wanted to have a clear gum bottom shoe. It was important that we had that, and that was basically it. Why it’s called “Black Ice” is because of the air freshener in my car. I always keep a new Black Ice in my car, wherever I go.

SC: We waited two years to launch our first basketball shoe because…
BJ: I just felt like we should take our time. There was no rush. Everybody was waiting for it…and they didn’t know when [we] were going to come out with what, so it was just patience. We had patience and we have the right shoe, we have the right development, and everything was right about the shoe. You just can’t be in such a rush to just put a shoe out there and then have things go wrong. So, we wanted to make sure that we had the right shoe and we were able to be patient and take our time. There was no rush.
SC: My shoe launch is finally here and…
BJ: It’s a great feeling, but I’m still in the middle. It’s a humbling experience because of everything I’ve been through from two years ago. To be here launching my signature shoe, it’s a dream come true. Everybody dreams about being in the NBA and also having their own shoe. To even have that is a great feeling.

The Brandon Jennings Under Armour sneakers are available at eastbay.com. Also, be on the lookout for the full interview in Sole Collector’s basketball preview issue, coming soon.
Photo and Intro:  Zac Dubasik
Interview:  Nick DePaula
Source:  eastbay.com