From the Vault: Nike SB Dunk High “Paul Brown”
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By Stadium Goods |From the Vault: Nike SB Dunk High “Paul Brown”
Who is Paul Brown, anyway?
Matt DeSciora
Everyone loves a shoe with a cool backstory, but storytelling isn’t a prerequisite of a great shoe. I was recently reminded of this when I saw the Nike SB Dunk High “Paul Brown” had hit our inventory. Released in 2002, the “Paul Brown” was neither designed by a legendary skater or skate shop like some of the other original Dunks from its era, but that hasn’t made it any less desirable as those shoes. In retrospect, everything that made the “Paul Brown” a sleeper in 2002 is what makes it covetable today.
Before I dive into the “Paul Brown’s” story, let me start by saying that the shoe was bound to be different from the start. What I mean by that is, the “Paul Brown” was the first-ever SB Dunk High release. Before it, Nike SB had only released low-top Dunks (from March 2002 to June 2002, when the “Paul Brown” dropped.) The “Paul Brown” was also one of the few original high-top Dunks to feature the same “fat” padded tongue as the original run of low-top Dunks. Subsequent high-top SB Dunks came with a thin mesh tongue that was introduced on the standard Dunk model in 1985.
Compared to other Dunks from the “Orange Box” era, the “Paul Brown” was an early adopter of the earth tone, outdoors-inspired theme that’s trended over the last few years. The shoe’s base features a black suede construction, while the overlays are rendered in a rich chocolate brown hue dubbed Paul Brown, from which the shoe gets its nickname. In fact, speaking of its colorway name, there have been some misconceptions about that over the years. Paul Brown didn’t design the shoe—nor was there ever a Paul Brown on the Nike SB skate team. Paul Brown does appear, though, on the shoe’s list of colors, alongside Obsidian and Outdoor Green.
I could go on and on about why the Nike SB Dunk High “Paul Brown” is a great shoe that was criminally slept-on upon its release, but enough of me yapping. Instead, we’ll let the detailed shots of this vintage, incredibly rare Nike SB gem do the talking.