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The Nike Sabrina 3 serves as the latest addition to Sabrina Ionescu’s highly popular signature line.
Since the Sabrina 1 in 2023, Sabrina Ionescu’s signature line with Nike has been a hit among hoopers for its perfect blend of performance and aesthetics. Whether it’s in a professional league or your local pickup game, chances are you’d spot a player or two rocking a pair of Nike Sabrinas.
Given this, it comes as no surprise that Sabrina will now be getting her third signature model with the Swoosh, starting with the “Blueprint” colorway that will be released on July 24.
“I know every single basketball player who puts on the Sabrina 3 will continue to see and feel the work that we’ve put in to create the best performance shoe that we can,” Sabrina said of her latest signature model.
Consistency remains key for the Sabrina 3, which stays on the same design language used for the Sabrina 1 and 2. More likely than not, this will be a welcome development for fans of those models, which were lightweight performance models that reminded many of the Nike Kobe line.
Along with the overall shape, familiar features in the Sabrina 3 include the trademark vertical Swoosh in the inner part of the model, and a Cushlon 3.0 midsole that will be combined with a forefoot Air Zoom unit.
“I remember when we started this project, [Sabrina] talked about [how she loved] how the [Sabrina] 1 played, the [Sabrina] 2 played, and there’s consistency [she wants] across [her] product. So, we definitely heard [her] on that one and brought that level of expectation onto the 3,” Ben Nethongkome, the signature line’s lead designer, said in a product preview with Sabrina Ionescu herself.
Of storytelling and empowerment
Accompanying the Nike Sabrina line’s consistency is continued refinement, with each model being a direct evolution of its predecessor. For the Sabrina 3, that refinement comes in the form of storytelling that celebrates Sabrina Ionescu’s Romanian roots and status as a women’s basketball icon.
As seen on the Blueprint colorway, there is the textile mesh upper accompanied by embroidered patterns, which pay tribute to an integral part of Romanian culture.
“We explored that on the [Sabrina] 1, and now, we’re revisiting it on the [Sabrina 3] as well. Like having the midfoot being this pleated fit system, but then as it bleeds into the forefoot and the heel, there’s this beautiful crafted embroidery that’s just kind of blended outward,” Nethongkome said of the Sabrina 3’s upper.
The outsole, meanwhile, features a concentric “S” pattern that serves as a celebration of Sabrina’s rise to women’s basketball stardom. It may be a departure from the herringbone pattern we’ve gotten used to, but it nonetheless adds another personal layer to the model.
And as mentioned, the vertical Nike Swoosh remains on the Sabrina 3, serving again as a representation of Sabrina’s continued desire to break down barriers in sports.
“This shoe represents so much of me, from the vertical Swoosh that we’ve had since the Sabrina 1 to the design touches personal to me. I hope it inspires all hoopers, especially young girls — helping them continue to break down barriers and believe in themselves,” Sabrina said.
Images courtesy of Nike via Larc&Asset PR.