Under their “It Takes Five” campaign, adidas challenged the egocentric, self-seeking ventures of players begging for signature shoe contracts. For the first time in a long time, the brand was returning to uniformity—“Basketball is A Brotherhood” they reasoned—no more publicizing astronomical sneaker deals. Yep, the Three Stripes was slotting their most ballyhooed players in the TS Litespeed and Lightswitch. Pioneering in a way, right? One question remains though: did the crusade work?

I don’t have any final sales figures, or at least how those numbers would correlate to previous years, but check this. Tracy McGrady played intermittently in the Litespeed, and was often seen in the Pilrahna III as the season wore on. Kevin Garnett, Dwight Howard, and Tim Duncan stayed pretty true to the concept, but I never saw Chauncey Billups wear either shoe in-game, opting to stick with his ’07 signature ride.

The troupe’s remaining member, Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas, remained against adidas’ Brotherhood concept, believing he deserved his own model. The brand and the player came to a middling agreement where Arenas was awarded his own lowtop shoe that most know as the “Gil II Zero”, with adidas receiving the satisfaction of calling the sneaker the “TS Lightswitch Low” in catalogs.

A month ago, I was lucky enough to acquire a pair of the “Channel Zero” TS Lightswtich Lows that emphasize Arenas’ famous citation, “Don’t Watch Me Watch TV.” Featuring a television static pattern along the upper and “Channel Zero” along the forefoot strap, the shoe was undeniably cool (In a 21st Century way.) On a performance front the shoe featured a finely sculpted midsole platform that offered awesome transition, stability, and fit. Cushioning was offered through an interchangeable insole system, allowing the wearer to customize feel underfoot.

Thanks Kristen and Lauren!