Jonathan Isaac is releasing a new basketball shoe called the Judah 1. The Judah 1’s will be blue and white and will feature Bible verses to inspire young athletes to stay true to their faith while competing. With the new shoe, players will be able to outwardly express their Christianity while also looking fashionable.
Jonathan Isaac has stood out in the NBA due to willingness to embrace the Christian values that he was raised on. As a highly touted prospect in college basketball, he has made just as much of an impact off the court as he has on it.
We Are Unitus, the website responsible for selling the Judah 1, offered this brief explanation and selling point for the upcoming shoe that is bound to battle controversy as it seeks to take market share away from the big dogs like Nike and Adidas.
The website writes, “Throughout his career, Jonathan Isaac has been injured, misunderstood, and criticized. Knowing God is always with him has given him the strength to live bold. The JUDAH 1 Triumph reminds you that no matter what they say, no matter the score, victory is yours through Christ.”
Isaac has a long running relationship with conservative publication The Daily Wire. He went on record in a recent interview to speak about the upcoming release of the shoe and to explain to fans and haters alike why he feels the release is necessary.
He said, “Well, it started back in 2020 – back in the NBA bubble. I got injured, and at the time I was signed to Nike. After I got injured, I wasn’t able to re-sign with them, and I went to my pastor and I told him about my sneaker situation. ‘Hey, you know, I’m not signed with a company anymore.’ And he said, you should create your own sneaker, and make it around how you want it.”
As a young man who was thrust into the spotlight due to his ball playing skills, Isaac has maintained his humbleness and his ability to be himself in the face of constant social pressures. He showed his ability to be a leader in the 2020 season by standing for the National Anthem while the rest of the league took a knee and chided him for standing. While that bothered him then, he has grown to embrace his values better than ever.
He explained, “It’s definitely something that has weighed on me in the past, but I’ve kind of got to the point where I’m like, I’m fully okay with being authentically me, and I just want other people to have that confidence and that pride to say, I can be authentically me, as well, I can stand for my values. No matter who disagrees, we can agree to disagree. And if I lead with love and grace, I can stand boldly for what I believe in.”
I don’t play basketball, and likely never will again, but seeing the conviction with which Isaac stands for America and God, I want to purchase my own pair of Judas 1’s to support the great work he is doing with his voice.
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