Nike, Are These Diet AMBUSH Dunks?
For a second there, I excitedly thought AMBUSH's Nike Dunk Highs were getting restocked. However, I realized Nike hit me with Welven Harris' "got 'em" once I got a better look at the latest Dunks.
Nike's Dunk train is still chugging along as the Swoosh unveiled official images of another new Dunk colorway. And let's just say, they look reallll familiar.
For the latest Dunk High, Nike gave the silhouette a navy blue, black, and white paint job, reminiscent of Yoon Ahn's "Deep Royal" spin on the model. Talk about Dunk-jà vu.
Nike's diet AMBUSH Dunks drops Ahn's tasteful updates, like the motorcycle-inspired extended Swoosh, squishy foam tongue, and exposed ridges on the ankle.
AMBUSH branding is also absent, of course. Otherwise, we'd be discussing a restock here, people.
Sure, the sneakers aren't precisely like Ahn's take on the timeless Swoosh silhouette. But judging off color scheme alone, Nike's forthcoming Dunk High oozes major AMBUSH vibes.
I mean, the footwear brand could've at least used a different shoe this go-around.
Nike's AMBUSH-lites certainly aren't surprising to me. The Swoosh often doubles back to reissue slightly-tweaked colorways from previous hyped collaborations.
For instance, the Air Jordan 4 "Shimmer" looked real Off-White "Sail" -ish. The Nike Air Max 97 "Bred" just dropped as an exorcised, blood-free version of the Lil Nas X and MSCHF's Satan shoe. Then, there were the Cactus Jack-esque Air Jordan 1 Low "Mocha" sneakers. The list goes on.
For crying out loud, the sportswear giant turned its Blue Ribbon SBs into what Gen Z would call poor man's sacai x Nike Cortez. And the sacai sneakers aren't even out yet!
Alas, the Nike Dunk High "Navy Blue" is just another instance of the Swoosh attempting to fly solo without the help of its collaborative band members.
The question is: will Nike successfully be a one-man show on release day like Justin Timberlake or flop without its NSYNC partners? We'll certainly see on the Dunk's pending drop date.
