For LeBron James, 23 is more than just a number. The NBA great first took up his idol Michael Jordan’s jersey digits as a kid in Akron, and beyond two brief interludes wearing 6—first with the Miami Heat between 2010 and 2014, and then again with his current team the Los Angeles Lakers between 2021 and 2023—he’s carried that legacy forward.
Which means the 23rd edition of his beloved Nike signature shoe line was always going to come with sky-high expectations—and, naturally, LBJ and the Swoosh have risen to the occasion. The Nike LeBron 23, with its swooping mid-top silhouette, is designed to serve as a proud summation of the 40-year-old’s first-ballot Hall of Fame career.
The sneaker’s dramatic ad campaign has already stirred speculation that this could be James’s final season before retirement, while the 23 versions of the shoe that Nike will be releasing each represent an iconic aspect of his legacy: the shimmering gold “Uncharted” launch colorway celebrates LeBron becoming the first player in history to reach 40,000 points; the “Miami Twice” variation pays tribute to his back-to-back championships with the Heat; and the “LeBronto” is a nod to his dominance over the Raptors in the playoffs throughout the 2010s.
Of course, this wouldn’t be a LeBron shoe if it didn’t also perform like a dream on the hardwood. To that end, the Nike LeBron 23 boasts a full-length ZoomX drop-in midsole that keeps things light while maximizing energy return, paired with a new “Crown Containment System” which provides extra stability for high-force movements.
To launch the new shoe, James is currently traveling through China on his “Forever King” tour, which features youth basketball games, sneaker activations, and community projects. GQ caught up with the legend himself in Shanghai designing the LeBron 23, his all-time favorite Nike signatures, and his golf handicap.
LeBron James: Yeah, I think so. Obviously, year 23, big moment for me. It’s the number that I’ve worn pretty much my whole life, ever since I picked up a basketball. And we wanted the silhouettes to reflect that. I thought we did a great job as a team, as a collective, of bringing that focus to the silhouette.
Obviously, you know, two boys of mine are playing ball—one [Bronny] that's a teammate of mine, and another one [Bryce] who’s an Arizona Wildcat down in Tucson. They have a lot of influence on my life, and they have a lot of influence on the next generation. And, obviously, what I’ve built over the last two decades-plus is inspiring the youth as well. So we’re trying to just listen to them, on what they need, what they want, what they see, how they feel. You know, the game is evolving, and the footwear coincides with that.
I mean, for sure. There’s things that they resonate with, that in our era, when we were growing up, maybe wasn’t something we would do. But you got to also listen to what the next gen is asking for and what they’re riding with. I’ve been on so many circuits with Bronny and Bryce, watching the next gen for years and seeing what they want to wear, how they feel when they wear it, the variety of shoes and things of that nature, what the colors look like. And it’s not smart to not listen to them.
I think it’s a fine line on how much tech you bring into the shoe and how the player himself feels the ride of the tech, you know? For me, obviously, I’ve had a signature shoe for over two decades, so the technology has come a long way. And my game and how I play the game has changed over the course of that time, too. So I kind of want those things to mesh together. It depends on what the latest technology is. I have an opportunity to kind of test those things.
My building on Nike’s campus in Beaverton is actually part of the tech and innovation center. So I have an opportunity to test out a lot of the latest innovations and things of that nature to kind of see what fits—the ride, the comfort, the style, if it's protective—when it comes to my silhouettes and shoes. So there’s a fine line on how much you add to it or how much you don’t.
For me, I’m a big—big forward, big guard, whatever you want to say. So I have to be able to protect myself when I’m out on the floor as well. So with the outsole, the midsole, the lockdown suspension—we have to lock the shoe in to where I can be on the floor, running at the pace that I run, jumping the way I jump, and still feel protected at whatever position I’m playing.
Yeah, for sure. The game has changed as well. Twenty years ago, there was a lot more physicality. The game was a lot slower. If you remember, shoes were a lot heavier as well. But that came with the game. You know, now it’s way more uptempo. The game is faster. Possessions are quicker. So you want to try, as you get a little bit older, to get a little bit lighter. And with technology, we’ve been able to do that.
I think it's dope. Obviously, I’m A’ja from top to bottom. She repped the LeBron brand for so many years until she got her own silhouette, and she still rocks with me. And my daughter is, like, in love with her, so she’s family, you know? So when it comes to seeing A’ja and some of the other athletes not only wearing their own signature shoes in their respective league, but also those shoes crossing over to where you now see guys wearing their silhouettes, I think it’s super dope. You know, it's one big family—we’re all trying to figure out how we can continue to push the game forward and inspire the youth and inspire the next generation, as we mentioned earlier. And A’ja and the rest of [the WNBA], they do it.
[Laughs.] We don’t know yet. We don’t know yet, man. The 7 is still up there, you know, the 7 and 15. I think the 20 is up there as well.
We actually just did a re-release of the 20. The pink-silver 20s that I wore at the Drew League in LA. The 20 is dope. The 21 is cool. I mean, listen, the 23—the stories behind the 23 are going to knock people out. There’s a lot of storytelling in the 23 because of how meaningful it is to me. So the 23 has a chance.
[Laughs.] You got to relive that moment, for sure!
Yeah, man.
I do. I feel good about it. I do feel like I’m getting better, but more importantly, I just love the challenge, man. It’s so uncomfortable. So uncomfortable. Like, everything that you thought was the right thing to do? It’s not. It does not apply to golf at all. I’m looking forward to continuing to learn and continuing to travel places, going to great golf courses and things of that nature. It’s fun, man, to just be out in the open with a group of friends, seeing if we can be as great as we can be on something that you can’'t even try to master. And if you take yourself too seriously out there, you’re definitely going to lose every single time. We have fun with it, man.
I haven't played enough to know my handicap. You got to play like 10 to 12 times and record your scores. I’m at a point now where I literally just started recording my scores. So I got to play a couple more 18s and then out. My handicap would probably, if I had to guess, my handicap right now, would probably be like a 20, 25, something like that. .
[Randy Mims, LeBron’s chief of staff, chimes in: “I would say 14 or 15.”]
Really? Nah.
No, my shit’s out there in the 20s. I got to get better, though.