Famous people like to create trademark sneakers. It's what they do. Sneakers are to male celebrities what fragrances are to pop stars.
Al Harrington likes sneakers, too — but he's taking a different approach to selling them.
The Knicks star joined rapper Fat Joe at the Protege Basketball Block Party in Baltimore, Md., on Saturday to promote the company's affordable sneaker line, which he helped to develop. According to the Baltimore Sun, the kicks — sold exclusively at Kmart — are worn by Golden State's Stephen Jackson and a handful of WNBA stars.
Harrington is more excited about the prospect of giving kids something fun and affordable to be excited about than raking in cash.
"It's a give-back brand," he told the Sun. "We did it for our community. Made it affordable so people can look good and feel good wearing it. Kids see me and Stephen wearing them every night so they know they're battle-tested."
Harrington isn't lying, at least judging by his stat line: Over his 11-year NBA career, he has averaged 13.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. Those numbers could help sell some shoes.
And even if the kids aren't playing basketball, they can enjoy the sneakers, anyway. As Fat Joe told the crowd on Saturday, "I wear them all the time. Al plays ball in them. I just chill in them."
