Nike Air Zoom Flight The Glove Prm 'Tech Challenge'
Colorway: Green Abyss/Black-Bright Magenta-Turf Orange · Style code: 631406-300 · Price: $2832 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: Nike Air Zoom Flight The Glove (IV6206-010) · Nike Air Zoom Flight 96 (317980-011) · Nike Air Zoom Flight 95 (430040-112) · Nike Air Zoom Flight Premium (317810-141) · Nike Air Zoom Flight 96 (317980-101)
Gary Payton picked up the nickname in the 1993 Western Conference finals against Phoenix, and it stuck because it described exactly what he did to opposing guards. Three years later he became the first point guard to be named the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, a distinction no other point guard matched until 2022, and he made nine straight All-Defensive First Teams between 1994 and 2002.
Eric Avar designed the Air Zoom Flight for him in 1998 and gave it a full shroud that zips over the lacing: a shoe that covers itself up, for a defender whose job was taking things away. This 2014 premium version keeps that structure and repurposes the surface. The outer shroud is Green Abyss, printed with graphics pulled from the Air Tech Challenge tennis line, a Nike series with nothing to do with basketball and everything to do with loud early-90s color.
Unzipping it is the point. Inside sits a Bright Magenta bootie with Turf Orange accents and the black Monkey Paw panel at the forefoot. 'The Glove' is written on the heel, the midsole runs Zoom cushioning, and the outsole is Total Orange. It carried a $140 price.