Adidas’ X/Twitter Account Calls Kevin Durant ‘Dusty,’ Pokes Fun at His Burner Account
Adidas‘ account on Twitter, now known as X, got real spicy Friday in an exchange with NBA superstar and lifetime Nike endorser Kevin Durant.
It all began harmlessly enough with Nice Kicks posting a video of Anthony Edwards saying he’d like to see Durant wear his AE 1 sneaker, his first signature model which was fully unveiled today. Durant quote-tweeted the video and said, “Won’t EVER see me put a big toe in them Mfers.”
Initially, Adidas responded by saying, “u dusty bouta retire soon anyway” in a since-deleted post. That was then followed up by the response, “meant to send that from the burner account…” in a post that’s still live as of publishing.
Durant has a history with burner accounts himself, as he’s admitted to using them. In 2017, he accidentally defended himself in the third person on his verified account, which NBA Twitter had a field day with.
Adidas hasn’t been afraid of trash talk in its promotion of Edwards’ new sneaker. In a campaign video posted in October, Edwards pulls out and criticizing other players’ first models from Nike, Jordan Brand, and Puma before revealing his own and giving it his stamp of approval.
In Footwear News’ feature story on the AE 1, Adidas Basketball execs discussed how the sneaker is part of a new era for the division. “When we looked at the performance basketball space, we felt that the consumer today is much less brand loyal and looking for newness,” Eric Wise, global GM for Adidas Basketball, said. “So we saw an opportunity there, and we took a look ourselves and said, ‘Over the last decade, if we’re honest, we’ve been inconsistent at best.’ We wanted to get back to being the best version of Adidas.”
Wise and Nathan VanHook, the company’s VP of Basketball Design, also referred to the recent landscape of basketball sneakers as being “stale” and a “sea of sameness,” respectively.
About the Author:
Ian Servantes is a Senior Trending News Editor for Footwear News specializing in sneaker coverage. He’s previously reported on streetwear and sneakers at Input and Highsnobiety after beginning his career on the pop culture beat. He subscribes to the idea that “ball is life” and doesn’t fuss over his kicks getting dirty.