From neon to all black, sneakers worn in TSSAA basketball state tournament mean more than comfort

MURFREESBORO – Tyler Lee stands out on every basketball court he steps on for Fulton, including the TSSAA BlueCross Boys Basketball State Championships in Murphy Center at Middle Tennessee State.

It’s not simply because he is the tallest member of the Falcons at 6-foot-5 and is averaging 15.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game and shooting 64.7% in the Class 3A state tournament.

He is also one of the few players for Fulton who does not wear the team shoe: Adidas Harden Vol. 6.

The junior "wore them out" after many intense games and practices.

Lee doesn’t relish the fact that he has more options for in-game sneakers than his teammates. For him, the shoes he and his opponents wear on the basketball court have a deeper meaning.

“Honestly, the shoes on the court can really determine if you're a basketball player, hooper or just out there to be out there,” Lee said.

Lee will wear his all-black Dame 8’s for the Class 3A championship game March 18 where Fulton can win a state title for the first time since 2016.

The Falcons' opponent will be Haywood, and seniorJanerus Snipe, whom Lee will likely guard, also has an affinity for dark sneakers.

In Haywood’s 57-51 victory over Ridgeway, Snipe wore one of Kevin Durant’s signature shoes that are all-black for a clear reason.

“When I wear all black it’s strictly business,” Snipe said.

His teammate senior Tylon Chatman wore a different pair of Kevin Durants and cares about his on-court footwear and overall fashion.

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“(My) shoe game mean a lot to me,” Chatman said. “It shows a lot of swagger. When you look good you play good, in my opinion.”

Haywood coach Rodney Chatman said that he decided to give his players a choice in their game sneakers.

“I try to give them freedom on shoes,” Chatman said. “We didn't do team shoes. I told them that ‘if you keep winning, you do good in the classroom, you know, be respectful kids, I’ll let you pick any shoes choose you want to wear.’”

While some of Fulton’s and Haywood’s players prefer dark kicks, Memphis Overton’s Xavier Alexander is on the other end of the spectrum.

In the quarterfinals game against McMinn County, he wore the Rick and Morty x Puma MB.02 where one shoe is purple and neon green and the other is pink and neon green.

“I like bright colors; all my shoes I got bright and they just comfortable to hoop in,” Alexander said.

His Overton teammate Jordan Frison wore the Ja 1 'Scratch' signature shoe.

“Getting these shoes is just like … I represent him and so I just want to come out, play hard and do what I’m supposed to do,” Frison said.

There were a few teams in that state tournament like Fulton that mostly have all of its players wear the same sneakers such as Frederick Douglass, who wore one of LaMelo Ball's signature shoes.

For Fulton junior Taj Kimber, wearing the same sneakers as his teammates reminds him that they are all a collective unit for one purpose: a state championship.

“We wear our team shoes with the team because it means something to all of us and we locked in as a whole,” Kimber said.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: TSSAA basketball state tournament: Top shoe choices by boys players