Live From New York: Sabrina Ionescu and Nike Are Leveling Up

In the modern world, sports aren't just about what happens on the court, field, or track. Much of the buzz around athletes actually takes place before their events—that is, when they arrive at their respective venues and showcase their latest fashion creations. In basketball, that's referred to as a tunnel 'fit; in Formula One, a paddock 'fit; and so on. What athletes wear when they're not in uniform matters, especially to fans who might never get to speak to their heroes. Clothes are the perfect form of communication—a window into who your favorite athlete is and what they stand for. That's what Go Sports is all about. Yes, we care about box scores, the results of Free Practice 1 (even if it is at 3 a.m.), and RHOSLC-level rivalries, but today, sports fashion matters too. We're not ashamed to say so.

According to Sports Illustrated, WNBA point guard for the New York Liberty and University of Oregon legend Sabrina Ionescu was responsible for the third most-worn basketball shoe in the NBA this past season. Her Nike Sabrina 3s were played in for a total of 26,125 minutes, with wearers including Steph Curry, Derrick White, and more. The only styles worn more? The Kobe 5s and 6s, created by the late Kobe Bryant, one of Ionescu's biggest mentors, in collaboration with Nike during his storied career in the NBA. Ionescu's 1s (2023) and 2s (2024) were just as popular, both in the NBA and the WNBA.

This morning, her fourth Signature shoe, the Sabrina 4s, debuted, continuing her journey with Nike and no doubt ushering in a new favorite among star players across the basketball landscape. It's the partnership's most innovative collection yet, according to Nike, with "a TPU FlyPlate inspired by the feel of a sprinter's launch off the starting blocks." Nike engineers then reworked the technology to gear it toward basketball. "Together with a responsive forefoot Air Zoom unit and plush Cushlon 3.0 midsole, the technology provides the support and stability needed for quick reaction times on the court," Nike stated in a press release.

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To get the backstory on the Sabrina 4s, available now on Nike.com, I caught up with Ionescu midway through her season with the Liberty. Scroll down to read our conversation.

How does it feel to be releasing a fourth signature shoe and collection?

It's an honor. I can't believe we're on four. Time has just like flown by, but every single one has been so meaningful, and we've been able to create so much change, so it's an honor. I'm so blessed to be in this position—to be on the fourth—to continue to improve and want to get better every single year with the Signature line. So I'm excited for the world to be able to put them on their feet really soon.

What’s been the biggest takeaway from your experience creating now four signature shoes and collections with Nike?

You can't please everyone. At least for me, I am always like, okay, I want to create the best shoe for everybody. And then, so many people have so many different needs, and their feet are different, and what they like and what they don't like. So I think it's just been the understanding of you can't please everyone, and you just have to go out and do your best in terms of what works for you, what you think will work for the majority of basketball players—young and old—and how you can continue to improve every year. But it's just hard. Some people like them; some people don't. I think when you go out with the mindset of wanting to please people, you're not focused on what's most important: doing the best you can in the design of the shoe. So for me, every year, it's obviously collecting insight into what basketball players are saying—what they like and what they want to see different—but always knowing that I gotta just do what feels best and what we think is best as a team.

At the end of the day, you have to wear them. How much is it you and how you play and your style when you're making the shoe and how much is it looking the broad scape of basketball players?

It's really based on my needs and how I play. The feel, the weight, the traction, the comfort, and the cushioning—all of that is really based off what I need and what I feel is most important when I'm stepping out on the court, especially as a guard. So I'd say that is always the foundation and the principles of when we're pushing innovation. That's always at the forefront of what we're doing. But I think it's understanding that technology is growing every day, and we're learning more and more. So I think it's finding a great balance between pushing, but not steering too far away from what makes it a Sabrina's shoe.

What makes this particular collection special/different from the last three? How does it represent this unique stage in your basketball career?

I think it just continues to tell a really fun story. You can go out there and accomplish what you want, be who you want to be, while also enjoying the process, believing in yourself, and putting in a lot of hard work. You know, you don't get to where you are by chance, but you get there through a lot of hard work, believing in yourself, and continuing to tell that story. So, for me, it's been fun seeing the evolution of [Nike and I] being able to tell that story as I've continued to evolve in my career.

Aesthetics-wise, tell me about how you made some of the decisions you did for this collection.

I'm always tweaking a little bit, but also trying to keep what I really love in the shoe the same. So the vertical swoosh is the same. The S pattern that we have—like the haptic on the entirety of the shoe—is different. There's an eye, kind of like a gradient eye on the back, which we've always had. The traction, like pattern, is different. So we've just added a lot of different new and improved things while also keeping it the same. And then in the clothing, which is what I'm really excited about. The Aerofit is something that I haven't had in clothing and hasn't been done. So that's something I'm excited for everyone to feel when they're training and how it feels on.

Are there any pieces in the apparel collection specifically that fans of your style and your tunnel 'fits can expect to see make an appearance?

I'd say the Icon Hoodie is something that we had in the Sabrina One, which is just the hoodie that you're able to tuck the cords into the S label, and that's something that was in the 1 [collection], and then we brought it back in the 4 with obviously a different technology and in a different sweatshirt. So I'm really excited, but I would say the new Aerofit in the apparel collection, especially for training, is something you can wear. I can't tell too much, but it's sleeveless, so you're able to train in it. It's breathable. It's obviously Nike's newest material. So I'm really excited for consumers to be able to wear it and feel really, really good in it.

These collections often have little, minute pieces of personalization that you can incorporate for fans to find and experience a bit of who you are. So does this collection have any of those touches?

Definitely, like on the fly plate, it says everyone everywhere. That's something that I love because for the first few, it's been anyone anywhere, and we've evolved it. Just as we continue to grow my business globally, the shoes [are now] for everyone, everywhere. So that's been really exciting. And then I would also probably say the chrome logo that we have on a lot of the clothing reflects like a mirror, and it's to be able to see yourself in it, and you can see your own reflection. It's you versus you. You have to look in the mirror and see yourself, and you're able to go out and accomplish whatever you want because it's your own journey of finding your own purpose.

If you could have any player wear/play in this shoe, who would it be?

I think I would pick a young player, like I love Jazzy Davidson. She's been wearing a lot of my shoes. She's at [the University of Southern California], but she's an Oregon kid, as well. So I feel like that's always been fun. I've known her for a really young age, from when she was young. But I think she's the future. So it's really exciting to see how she's continued to evolve in her career. I hope she wears them.