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Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Unbanned explores the dynamic life of AJ1 from its unlikely origins to its role in disrupting NBA rules, birthing sneaker culture, and influencing a social and cultural revolution. This is the story of a shoe that changed the world.

Director

Dexton Deboree

Year

Genre

documentary, sport

Box Office

N/A

Production

N/A

Awards

1 nomination

Cast information not available.

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Explore 578 Clips

He was like,
"Oh, wow." - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

He was like, "Oh, wow."

You literally were like, "Oh." - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

You literally were like, "Oh."

Wait. Uh, how are you
gonna ban greatness? - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Wait. Uh, how are you gonna ban greatness?

Damn. That really just changed
the entire course. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Damn. That really just changed the entire course.

I don't really remember a shoe - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

I don't really remember a shoe

♪ Let's do it ♪ - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

♪ Let's do it ♪

♪ If man
Is the father of the son ♪ - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

♪ If man Is the father of the son ♪

Early 1980s,
I was 20 years old, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Early 1980s, I was 20 years old,

You had slum, ghetto situations
of disenfranchised and then - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

You had slum, ghetto situations of disenfranchised and then

But you didn't have
that particular drug - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

But you didn't have that particular drug

It was not a good look
for people of color - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

It was not a good look for people of color

You know,
whether it was a music artist - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

You know, whether it was a music artist

-We wanted to be heard.
-We had gotten into - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

-We wanted to be heard. -We had gotten into

We had just come out of the
Vietnam War and Watergate. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

We had just come out of the Vietnam War and Watergate.

People who were clamoring, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

People who were clamoring,

You know, there has to be more." - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

You know, there has to be more."

Well, some
of the same things - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Well, some of the same things

That decade was--
it was a certain - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

That decade was-- it was a certain

We are everywhere!
Fight that! - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

We are everywhere! Fight that!

-Give us what we want.
-Give us what we want! - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

-Give us what we want. -Give us what we want!

The NBA was in a fairly
precarious position. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

The NBA was in a fairly precarious position.

Coming off those years
in the '70s, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Coming off those years in the '70s,

The national television audience
at that time - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

The national television audience at that time

Like you-- that, you know,
it didn't have the feel - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Like you-- that, you know, it didn't have the feel

We were struggling
with some really unfair - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

We were struggling with some really unfair

And a fight
between J and Bird - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And a fight between J and Bird

We were constantly
trying to upgrade - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

We were constantly trying to upgrade

So it was
an outlaw league and, again, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

So it was an outlaw league and, again,

I was the commissioner
of the NBA from '84 to 2014. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

I was the commissioner of the NBA from '84 to 2014.

It was a-- a difficult time
for the league - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

It was a-- a difficult time for the league

There was no... video capture. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

There was no... video capture.

But I think we might
have been in a relationship - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

But I think we might have been in a relationship

And Converse had no idea
what to do with the NBA. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And Converse had no idea what to do with the NBA.

If you knew
anything about Nike, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

If you knew anything about Nike,

John McEnroe, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Nike was a very volatile, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Nike was a very volatile,

My name is Tinker Hatfield
and I'm director of-- - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

My name is Tinker Hatfield and I'm director of--

There was a time when the people
of the outside world, the uh-- - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

There was a time when the people of the outside world, the u...

Nike had lost touch
of who they were, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Nike had lost touch of who they were,

And I told Nike, you know,
"You guys gotta - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And I told Nike, you know, "You guys gotta

We're not that company anymore."
And I said, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

We're not that company anymore." And I said,

Obviously,
I don't think you can foresee - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Obviously, I don't think you can foresee

It's not real. That's not-- - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

It's not real. That's not--

And there's always a look
for a stand - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And there's always a look for a stand

Uh, where that stand's
gonna come, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Uh, where that stand's gonna come,

And from time to time,
in every generation, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And from time to time, in every generation,

And it's like Sam Cooke said,
"A change is gonna come." - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And it's like Sam Cooke said, "A change is gonna c...

My name is Elizabeth Semmelhack - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

My name is Elizabeth Semmelhack

Created in
the middle of the 19th Century, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Created in the middle of the 19th Century,

The fact that you had
a rubberized sole - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

The fact that you had a rubberized sole

And of course lawn tennis
was something that was enjoyed - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And of course lawn tennis was something that was enjoyed

But by the end
of World War II - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

But by the end of World War II

We didn't wanna be
associated with wearing sneakers - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

We didn't wanna be associated with wearing sneakers

And it's not until the 1970s - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And it's not until the 1970s

There was a time
in America, I mean, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

There was a time in America, I mean,

Canvas Converse, white or black, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Canvas Converse, white or black,

But when you got
your first pair of Cons, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

But when you got your first pair of Cons,

Chuck Taylor
is the first person - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Chuck Taylor is the first person

If I asked the average person, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

If I asked the average person,

And they would say,
"Hey, Dr. J, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And they would say, "Hey, Dr. J,

You could see Adidas around.
Like, you know, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

You could see Adidas around. Like, you know,

♪ I wear my Adidas
When I rock the beat ♪ - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

♪ I wear my Adidas When I rock the beat ♪

If your sneakers slip and slide, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

If your sneakers slip and slide,

I'm from the time
when it was weird to have - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

I'm from the time when it was weird to have

Back in the day,
people would come in - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Back in the day, people would come in

Just cause the way
they looked on the wall, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Just cause the way they looked on the wall,

The game was, I'mma
walk into the sneaker store - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

The game was, I'mma walk into the sneaker store

It's just that--
it was weird to have - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

It's just that-- it was weird to have

If there was anything you were
gonna take care of - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

If there was anything you were gonna take care of

Growing up in the hood - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Growing up in the hood

Our shoes were our Bentleys,
our Maybachs. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Our shoes were our Bentleys, our Maybachs.

Our connection, my connection - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Our connection, my connection

Magic Johnson
and Larry Bird - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Magic Johnson and Larry Bird

And they did an ad
back-to-back - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And they did an ad back-to-back

They didn't really sell across
to New York City cats - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

They didn't really sell across to New York City cats

You didn't wait for
All-Star Weekend to come out - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

You didn't wait for All-Star Weekend to come out

You didn't really
wanna have anything to do - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

You didn't really wanna have anything to do

And then
when you saw them, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And then when you saw them,

You're like,
"Wait. This is the guy - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

You're like, "Wait. This is the guy

Sneaker culture
in basketball, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Sneaker culture in basketball,

It was just cup soles
and standard toe cups, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

It was just cup soles and standard toe cups,

Things were stale
and a little flat in the world - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Things were stale and a little flat in the world

Jason Mayden,
former senior design director - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Jason Mayden, former senior design director

In '84, I became
a fulltime employee - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

In '84, I became a fulltime employee

A lot of Nike's original
designers didn't come from - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

A lot of Nike's original designers didn't come fro...

And so they knew
how to manipulate - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And so they knew how to manipulate

It was a half-ass
shoe company. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

It was a half-ass shoe company.

And it was more
of a marketing effort - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

And it was more of a marketing effort

Adidas was killing Nike, - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

Adidas was killing Nike,

They were like the fashion hit,
not Nike. - Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1

They were like the fashion hit, not Nike.

Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1 poster

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Unbanned explores the dynamic life of AJ1 from its unlikely origins to its role in disrupting NBA rules, birthing sneaker culture, and influencing a social and cultural revolution. This is the story of a shoe that changed the world.

User Rating: 0.0 (0 ratings)

Director: Dexton Deboree

Writer: Dexton Deboree, Alex Trudeau Viriato

Production: N/A

Genre: documentary, sport

Year: 2018

MetaScore: N/A/100

ImdbRating: 6.9

BoxOffice: N/A

Released: 14 Feb 2019

Awards: 1 nomination

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