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In the 1996 offseason, Charles Barkley was traded to Houston from Phoenix after a somewhat disappointing season despite Charles having a solid year.?The move to Houston put Nike in an interesting position. As we mentioned in our article When Sh*t Happens to Signature Sneakers, Barkley wore the CB34 II in Houston (complete with the number 34 on the side of the shoe), but was forced to wear the #4 jersey as Hakeem already owned the number. Nike was sent scrambling to get their numbers straight, and for the latter part of the 1996-97 season, Charles Barkley wore the Nike Air CB4. Ultimately, the Nike CB4 did not perform nearly as well on the court or in stores as prior Barkley models and was the second to the last signature sneaker for Sir Charles. Something that has become somewhat interesting as of late is the introduction of Chris Bosh PE’s that feature the same initials and numbers as Barkley – CB4. Click here to have a better look at the Nike Air CB4. |
