OKC Thunder: Offseason kicks report

Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook (Photo by David Becker/NBAE via Getty Images)
Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook (Photo by David Becker/NBAE via Getty Images)
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Darius Bazley of the Oklahoma City Thunder poses for a portrait. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Darius Bazley of the Oklahoma City Thunder poses for a portrait. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Darius Bazley: The Intern

The intern, the New Balance guy, Darius Bazley. Whatever you want to call him, the Thunder’s 2019 first-round selection brings an interesting new angle to our OKC kicks reviews. Bazley skipped college last year to train and spend the year learning the business side of being a professional with an internship at New Balance.

This comes on the heels of New Balance making a huge leap into the basketball world signing Kawhi Leonard. Now Bazley seems to be the second member of the New Balance family in the NBA and has been spotted wearing New Balance OMN1S in preseason games as well as wearing New Balance’s lifestyle shoes off the court.

Whether or not you love New Balance shoes it is kind of cool to have a player doing something different and bringing variety to the table. Could Bazley be the next Thunder player with his own signature shoe? That seems like a legit possibility if New Balance wishes to continue its push into the basketball market.