On Sunday night, during his record 21st NBA All-Star Game appearance, LeBron James wore Nike LeBron 21 footwear inspired by Deion Sanders’ iconic shoe from the 1990s.

The claw mark striping from the special-edition footwear was also seen on the Air DT Max ’96, also known as the Air Diamond Turf 3. Furthermore, it was designed in the same white and black color scheme with gold accents, which coincides with the colors of Sanders’ alma mater, Colorado Buffaloes.

Nike relaunched Sanders’ third trademark sneaker with his emblem for the first time this month, as well as launching a brand-new version. Despite repeated reintroductions of Sanders’ shoes since their first release, the brand has refrained from incorporating the insignia due to Sanders’ prolonged absence from the brand, ending in his resignation in 2024 (thus the separate name). Sanders, who was signed with Under Armour at the time, made it clear that he would never return to Nike.

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Conversely, for this year’s NBA All-Star Game, Nike has created an additional trio of modern basketball shoes inspired by vintage designs. The GT Hustle 2 was inspired by the Air More Uptempo, and the GT Jump 2 was based on the Total Foamposite Max. The GT Cut 3 was inspired by the Zoom Flight 5. James is making his 21st consecutive All-Star Game appearance, both of which are records. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had the previous record for both at 19.

It is currently unclear whether the Nike LeBron 21 “DT Max ’96” will be offered to the general public or only to players. If new information becomes available, this post will be updated. Footwear News contacted Nike for a comment.