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Starbury Sneakers

by Kerri Aldrich on March 24th, 2007

Last summer, New York Knicks player Stephon Marbury endorsed a line of low-cost athletic shoes, the flagship shoe seeming to be the Starbury One. Marbury wanted to provide a good quality, affordable basketball shoe as an option for kids to alleviate the pressure of owning the extremely pricey counterparts endorsed by his colleagues.

From the 20/20 special featuring him last night:

Enter Stephon Marbury, the NBA star of the New York Knicks, often called “Starbury.” He grew up poor, in a housing project in New York City. Marbury, one of seven children, wanted Air Jordans as a kid but for his mother, he says, that was an automatic “no.”

So when Marbury became Starbury, earning $17 million a year, he said “enough” — he would come out with a line of sneakers that sell for less than $15. He teamed with Steve & Barry’s University Sportswear, a national chain with 200 stores, and came out with the Starbury line of sneakers, hats and jerseys. Nothing sells for more than $14.98.

And, as for the shoes, he says their quality holds ground with their pricier counterparts, though not all agree. Still, Marbury proves his endorsement of the shoe by wearing them when he plays with the Knicks. I find that very cool.

I’m curious to know if any of you have tried these shoes yourself or for your kids? It’s been quite a few years since my shootin’ hoops days, but I’d like to try them out and see if Marbury and all have been able to provide an honest to goodness quality alternative. Do you know anyone who has tried these out?

Keep reading to see the YouTube video of Marbury talking about the Starbury shoes and the motivation behind his endorsement of them.

photo credit: ABC News

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POSTED IN: Children's Clothing and Accessories, General Play Library Goodies