Reebok Question x Burn Rubber – ‘Apollos Young’

Born to Christian missionary parents and raised by his grandparents, Apollos “the S is silent” Young was very sheltered so his only outlet came thru basketball and led Machlan Prep to their first city title averaging an astounding 97 points, 44 rebounds, and 0.3 assists a game in his 8th grade season. Those numbers prompted Reebok to lock A.Y. down to a lifetime contract at the end of that season. But enough about him, on to the sneakers.

The black ostrich leather upper is accented with red accents seen on the entire toebox as well as on the upper heel panel that features Iverson’s Question logo. The number 3 is replaced by the Burn Rubber logo which is also done in the suede material. A teal color is seen on the inner lining and speckled midsole which sits atop a translucent sole. Gold is used on the Vector logo and all over branding.

The team from Burn Rubber recalls the story of the forgotten superstar:

The reason you may’ve never heard of Apollos Young is because he never played one second of A professional NBA game. His new found “fast life” turned this nice little Christian boy, into a certified Rockstar. A.Y. Went from a clean cut, sweater vest wearing schoolboy to a tattooed, baggy shorts wearing womanizer with a no holds barred attitude during the preseason. It started with the double cup lean sipping instead of the Gatorade that his teammates used for refreshments. A.Y. is on record for being the first player to ever smoke a black & mild during a game. Although, as a 14 year man child, he averaged 48.7 pts, 23.3 rebs, & 0.1 assts, the line was drawn in his last preseason game. You see, the inquiry was known to wear his cell phone on him during the game, but no one could ever think that he would take it to the level that he took it. Alot of his antics were swept under the rug because of his superior skill level. One thing that couldn’t go unnoticed, was his last time on an NBA court.

In the 4th & final game of the Pistons (1996ish) preseason game, in front of a packed crowd, Apollos Young put on an amazing show. 54 pts, 31 rebs, 22 steals, 0 assts. Other than the fact that he’d cursed his coach out, punched a referee, & fondled a cheerleader, A.Y. was having a great game. His team was down 2, with 10 seconds to go on the clock. The entire world was watching, and Apollo knew it, he was born for this moment. The ball is inbounded to the inquiry, the clock starts to tick. 9, A.Y. calls for an iso at the top of the key. 8, he looks off a wide open teammate in the corner for the 3 pt attempt. 7, the entire stadium is on its feet. 6. The Inquiry, starts his signature (crossover) move. 5, he completely embarrasses the defender, and has a wide open lane to the basket. 4, he stops, pulls up for 3. 3, the ball is in the air, it looks good. 2, the ball is still in the air, and it still looks good. 1, the ball hits the rim, it rolls around the rim 2 times. Everyone in the stands is in awe of what is developing right in front of there eyes. When he comes down from his picture perfect jumper, a .45 caliber pistol falls from his waistline & 3 shots go off. The first shot, hit the opposing coach in the shoulder, the second shot …, the third shot struck the basketball & knocked it off of the rim ruining the perfect storybook ending for Apollos Young.

After that debacle, The Inquiry was no more. No team in the entire free world was willing to give him a second chance, and every sponsor he had, pulled out of the deals that were on the table. Everyone except the lifetime sneaker contract that he had signed with Reebok.

The story of Apollos Young is somewhat similar to actual events the original player who wore the Reebok Question went through just definitely not to the extreme depicted in The Inquiry’s story. The Burn Rubber x Reebok Question drops on September 1st at 12 PM.