Style
Adidas made ‘90s-inspired ‘Fresh Prince’ basketball shoes for Donovan Mitchell
Two variants throw it back to the Bel-Air Academy uniform.
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’s 30th anniversary may have been last year, but the iconic show is good as an evergreen source of inspiration for sneakers.
Donovan Mitchell and Adidas are joining a long line of Fresh Prince sneaker history with the release of two new variants of the D.O.N. Issue 3 that invoke the Bel-Air Academy uniform. While both pair blue with a red paisley print, the pattern is applied differently as a nod to how Will Smith wore his school-issued jacket. One pair saves the paisley for accenting, while the other goes with an all-over print to channel Smith turning his jacket inside out to make it more stylish.
As the name suggests, the D.O.N. Issue 3 is Mitchell’s third signature sneaker. It features Lightstrike cushioning for the first time in the series after previously utilizing Bounce, while TPU paneling is strategically placed across the upper to lock in your feet. And at $110 a pair, the shoe is on the more approachable end of Adidas’ basketball line.
Will Smith approved — Both sneakers, as well as a yet-to-be-confirmed third that invokes Bel-Air Academy’s basketball uniforms, have been made in collaboration with Bel-Air Athletics, the Fresh Prince-inspired brand its star launched in 2019.
The Adidas kicks mark the first official sneaker collaboration for Smith, but it’s not with the brand most commonly associated with the show. Smith often wore Air Jordans on the series, and Jordan Brand released a commemorative Air Jordan 5 in 2013 that commands upwards of $400 on the resale market today. An alternate version was then released last year to coincide with the show’s 30th anniversary — which could be the last such Jordan now that Smith has gone to Adidas.
The latest trip back to Bel-Air has already begun with the more bold version of the D.O.N. Issue 3 already on sale through Adidas’ website for $120. The second color variant will follow on Thursday, September 9, while we still wait to hear more on the basketball uni version. And now that the NBA’s on-court guidelines have loosened, we can’t wait to see the Fresh Prince paisley during a game.
