UPDATE: The Chicago Bulls held off the Cavaliers in game one, with Derrick Rose leading Chicago, scoring with 25 points. The guard did not change his playoff colorway of choice, beating Cleveland in his white, black and gray Adidas D Rose Boost 5. LeBron James — in a player’s-edition Nike LeBron 12 sneaker with mostly white upper with maroon and gold accents — scored 19 points in the loss.
The most popular sponsored basketball players of Nike and Adidas advanced to the second round of the NBA playoffs and faced off Monday night in Cleveland. LeBron James, sponsored by Nike, and Derrick Rose, sponsored by Adidas, are battling to advance to the Eastern Conference championship.
On the court during the playoffs, when James and the Cavaliers swept the Boston Celtics in the first round, the forward wore different colorways of his latest Nike signature shoe, the LeBron 12 Elite, released April 17. The four-time league MVP hit the court in the university red version with white and crimson accents, as well as two player exclusives: all white with maroon and gold accents, and a graphic black with gold and white accents.
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Rose, the youngest player to ever win MVP honors, has only worn one colorway of his D Rose Boost 5 during the playoffs so far, as his Chicago Bulls beat the Milwaukee Bucks in six games. The shoe boasted a predominantly white upper with black atop the boot and lining, with gray and red accents and red laces.
James and Rose have met in the playoffs before, and each time James has led his teams to victory over the Rose-led Bulls, once with the Cavaliers and in another season with the Heat.
