Every athlete with a signature shoe deal tries to add some personal elements to the overall design of the shoe going out under his banner. It becomes a medium for them to tell their story. While some add a part of their identity or their family members’ names to the design, Zion Williamson decided to honor Naruto with his sneaker collection. During a 2022 interview with GQ, the Pelicans star revealed his reasons.
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The Japanese manga series about the journey of a young ninja named Naruto Uzumaki has had a massive impact on Zion’s life. Dedicating his sneaker collection to the popular character was the best way to honor the impact.
The two-time All-Star said that he has been through a lot in his life and throughout that journey, he has felt the support of Naruto. He believes that it was the motivation from the manga/anime character that helped him become a world-class basketball player and make a name for himself. The special bond is intact even today and Zion believes it’ll be there forever.
Zion said, “From what I’ve been through to get to where I am and what I go through to this day, Naruto has always been there and always will be.”
The Pelicans star’s first Naruto x Zion x Jordan collection dropped in 2022 and was received well by the fans. The second installment of their collection dropped in 2023.
Zion’s love for Naruto isn’t just restricted to sneakers. The 24-year-old has been spotted wearing clothes with different manga characters printed on them, including Naruto. Several other aspects of his life have been influenced by Naruto and Zion sees a lot of similarities between himself and the ninja.
Zion Williamson’s training was similar to Naruto’s
Zion’s love for Naruto is similar to how most fans see their favorite athletes. He tries to find himself in Naruto’s story and there are elements that he believes are nearly identical. “For a while, nobody took Naruto seriously, and then he went and trained with [master shinobi] Jiraiya for three years, right? And he came back at 16 years old, goated,” Zion said during the interview.
He connected the character arc of Naruto to his own journey to becoming a professional NBA player. Zion stated that he was trained by his stepfather Lee Anderson, who is, in a sense, his master Jiraiya.
The Pelicans star believes that Anderson taking him under his wing was perhaps the most important thing that happened to him and became a turning point in his life.
