We’ve all heard about the shoes guaranteed to make you run faster and jump higher. At first, those dream loafers were called P.F. Fliers. Then Seinfeld let us know about Jimmy’s training shoes. Now, the NBA is banning a pair of shoes because they provide wearers an “undue competitive advantage.”
The shoes, called the Athletic Propulsion Labs Concept 1, were banned because: “League rules regulate the footwear that players may wear during an NBA game. Under league rules, players may not wear any shoe during a game ‘that creates an undue competitive advantage (e.g., to increase a player’s vertical leap).’ In light of that rule…players will not be permitted to wear the APL shoes during NBA games.”
The Concept 1s go for $300 a pair and advertise a “Load ‘N Launch device is implanted in a cavity in the forefoot of the shoe and serves as a ‘launch pad’ by taking the energy exerted by the player and increasing lift with the aid of an intricate, spring-based propulsion system.”
Apparently anyone who puts them on will see an average increase in their vertical leap of 3.5 inches. Great, now I might be able to touch the net!
