The 25 Most Iconic Sneakers Worn During Game-Winning Shots

Ask any basketball player and they'll tell you that hitting game-winners is all about having the right mentality at the right time. The greatest championship athletes have another thing in common: They stay laced in clutch kicks. We take it back to a mix of college and pro hoop moments throughout the decades and break down some great sneakers being rocked while hitting game winners. Hit the jump and check out The 25 Most Iconic Sneakers Worn During Game-Winning Shots and let us know which shoes and moments stand out the most.

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Kareem Abdul Jabbar - adidas Jabbar

adidas Jabbar — Kareem Abdul Jabbar

Year: 1974

Kareem was one of the first to players to get his name stitched into his kicks and he went on to rock the adidas Jabbars for about a decade straight. Hit the video and catch the kicks about 6:20 in when he hits his infamous skyhook over the Celtics for the game-winner. Unfortunately for Beantown it was just the beginning of things.

Michael Jordan - Converse Pro Leather

Converse Pro Leather — Michael Jordan

Year: 1982

The shot that started the legacy that is Michael Jordan and it didn't happen in Nikes — that still feels kind of weird.

Lorenzo Charles - Pony #1s

Pony #1s — Lorenzo Charles

Year: 1983

One of the greatest Cinderella moments in basketball history, Charles rocked the classic Pony #1s and caught a desperate shot short of the rim for an easy put-back dunk. NC State not only knocked off Akeem Olajuwon and Phi Slama Jama, but became the ultimate NCAA Cinderella story.

Keith Smart - adidas Conductor Hi

adidas Conductor Hi — Keith Smart

Year: 1987

Bobby Knight birthed tradition and it started with the gutsy effort and nameless uniforms. In the '87 national title game, Keith Smart drained the game-winner over Derrick Coleman and 'Cuse in Ewing's famous adidas Conductor HIs.

Magic Johnson - Converse Weapon

Converse Weapon — Magic Johnson

Year: 1987

Converse kept Magic laced in classics and the Lakers' purple and gold make-up was just flashy enough for "Showtime" himself. The baby sky-hook in game four might have been a little more iconic though.

Michael Jordan - Air Jordan IV

Air Jordan IV "Black/Cement" — Michael Jordan

Year: 1989

When you Google “The Shot,” typically the first image you will come across is this. In the fifth and final game of the first round (they only played five back then kids) Jordan hit the game winner on the road over Craig Ehlo, finishing with 44 points and one of his most memorable moments. To make matters worse, if you watch the video it looks like MJ kicks Ehlo and knocks him down during his celebration. Ether.

Christian Laettner - adidas Bank Shot

adidas Bank Shot — Christian Laettner 

Year: 1992

Christian Laettner was hurting feelings during his run with the Dukies, and he tooled up in the adidas Bank Shot, the first shoe to feature the Torsion system. The two-tone scheme and large branding was major with adidas in the early '90s and the sneakers ran the Torsion stability bar from the heel to forefoot. The underrated model saw a retro release in the spring of 2009.

Charles Barkley - Nike Air Force Max

Nike Air Force Max — Charles Barkley

Year: 1993

Chuck owned '92-93 up until the Finals but one of his greatest moments was playing the big-man spot, yet pulling up on Robinson from 18 feet out to bury a J and win a road playoff game in his Air Force Maxes. Thank you Nike for bringing these back, welcomed with open arms and wallets.

Alonzo Mourning - Nike Air Flight Lite

Nike Air Flight Lite — Alonzo Mourning

Year: 1993

One of the greatest game-winners and celebrations (we won't even pause the monkey pile) all made possible by 'Zo transforming from a five to a wingman in his Nike Air Flight Lites and hitting the step-back 20-footer to help the Hornets get a huge playoff 'W' over the aging Celtics.

Tony Kukoc - Nike Air Prevail

Nike Air Prevail — Tony Kukoc

Year: 1994

While Scottie Pippen sat out the final play because he didn't like the call (and got chewed out on the bench by veteran center Bill Cartwright), Kukoc hit the court in the underrated Nike Prevails and hit a dagger to help the Bulls win Game Three against their biggest foes of the decade.

Reggie Miller - Nike Air Bound

Nike Air Bound — Reggie Miller

Year: 1995

No need to torture Knicks fans any further — the Nike Air Bounds were mad underrated too. Reggie doing big things in style.

Gabe Lewullis - Converse Raw Energy

Converse R.A.W. Energy — Gabe Lewullis

Year: 1996

The Princeton back-door cut is a bitch to defend and it helped lead to easy jumpers in this tournament upset over UCLA. Gabe Lewullis' shoes look familiar? The Converse R.A.W. Energy model was also worn by a few of the starters for UK's title team from the same tournament. Now when can we get Converse to drop a few of these retro gems? These and the denim joints would be a great start.

Bryce Drew - Nike MZ3

Nike Air MZ3 — Bryce Drew

Year: 1998

One of the greatest game-winners ever drawn up and his pops made the call. Valpo and Bryce Drew went with the old hook-and-ladder move to get off an open jumper at the buzzer in the NCAAs, and Drew hit the shot in the same Air MZ3s rocked by Vince Carter at UNC and 'Zo in Miami.

Steve Kerr - Nike Air Rise Uptempo

Nike Air Rise Uptempo — Steve Kerr

Year: 1997

Mike was fresh off the Flu-Game and still not feeling 100 percent, but just like Paxson in '93 (sorry, his sneakers were boring), Kerr was there for the kick-out wearing Nike Air Rise Uptempos and he nailed the game-winner to help the Bulls go back-to-back once again. Almost got there, Stock.

John Stockton - Nike Zoom Court Challenge

Nike Zoom Court Challenge — John Stockton

Year: 1997

John Stockton looked more like a tennis player more than a basketball player in general, so much so that even in Barcelona when The Dream Team was treated like Beatles, Stockton was left alone. During the '97 playoffs, Stockton took the scrunched-down socks and three-inch inseam shorts to another level when he paired them with Agassi's sneakers on the hardwood to help lead the Jazz to the NBA Finals after knocking out Houston's big three (Barkley is a hypocrite).

Reggie Miller - Air Scorin' Uptempo

Nike Air Scorin' Uptempo — Reggie Miller

Year: 1998

Mike had been doing it to Reggie for years, but Miller got revenge with the help of a little shove and that awkward leg kick equipped with the Nike Air Scorin' Uptempos to help the Pacers pull one out over Da Bulls. Mike got the last laugh, though. Of course.

Michael Jordan - Air Jordan XIV

Air Jordan XIV "Playoff" — Michael Jordan

Year: 1998

In the '98 NBA Finals MJ hit us with “The Last Shot.” In Game Six at Utah, Jordan crossed Jazz guard Bryon Russell to his knees, pulled back and nailed a game-winning 20-foot jumper with 5.2 seconds left, giving the Bulls their second three-peat and Mike his sixth ring in what ended up being his last shot in a Bulls uniform. We didn't see any push-off either.

Richard Hamilton - Pippen II

Nike Air Pippen II — Richard Hamilton

Year: 1998

Before Rip was officially a member of JB, he was rocking Mike's sidekicks' kicks. Hamilton hit a put-back shot against Washington in the Sweet 16 to help the Huskies advance and cement his status as an up-and-comer with a rep for donning dope sneakers.

Allan Houston - Nike Air Vis Zoom Uptempo

Nike Air Vis Zoom Uptempo — Allan Houston

Year: 1999

The Vis Air Uptempo happened to be the sneaker of choice for Allan Houston as he got the shooter's touch to help the rock bounce off the rim and in for a huge playoff win against the Knicks most-hated rival, the Miami Heat.

Kobe Bryant - Air Jordan VIII

Air Jordan VIII PE — Kobe Bryant

Year: 2003

Just like Mike, you can't leave Kobe open on the wing with the game on the line — the player-edition VIIIs only added to the legitimacy.

Kobe Bryant - Nike Huarache

Nike Air Flight Huarache PE

Year: 2003

Nike was after Kobe like Terrell Owens hitting up girls on Twitter — relentless. While KB was a sneaker free agent, The Swoosh set up Bryant in the classic Nike Huaraches with a Lakers twist and they became a game-day favorite for L.A.'s prodigal son.

William Bynum - Air Jordan XII

Air Jordan XII "Playoff" — William Bynum

Year: 2004

Mike wasn't the only Chicagoland representative to get people shook in the "Playoff" XIIs. Bynum blew by his defender to beat Oklahoma in the Final Four semi-final game and stayed stunting on CBS rocking his Js.

Ray Allen - Air Jordan XX

Air Jordan XX PE — Ray Allen

Year: 2006

Ray Allen at his finest ended with 42 points, including eight threes in the final minute of regulation and both overtimes. Ray-Ray closed the casket with a 35-foot bomb in the murdered-out player exclusive Jordan XXs. Jesus.

LeBron James - Zoom Soldier III

Nike Zoom Soldier III — LeBron James

Year: 2009

So 35 on the night, capped off by a catch-and-shoot game-winning three over two defenders at the buzzer — his first in the NBA Playoffs and one of the coldest moments in the young King's career.

Kevin Durant - Nike KD IV Playoff

Nike Zoom KD IV PE — Kevin Durant

Year: 2012

You've made it once your brand starts hitting you with exclusives just for playoff games. To help prove his worth, Durant nailed the Game Four winner and helped OKC to its first NBA Finals.